Category: Events

Nine talents, five staves, four hours, three spirits and one ball

Posted on by Inara Pey

Dickens-2014. . . the floor was swept and watered, the lamps were trimmed, fuel was heaped upon the fire; and the warehouse was as snug, and warm, and dry, and bright a ball-room as you would desire to see upon a winter’s night.

Yes, it’s that special time of year of a very special Second Life Christmas tradition: the telling of Charles Dickens’ popular seasonal tale, A Christmas Carol. And this year, it will be a very special event.

Since its first performance in 2012 by the folk of StoryFest SL, under the title of The Dickens Project, and in celebration of the 200th anniversary of Dickens’ birth, the telling of A Christmas Carol has become something of a very special Christmas event, with readings taking place right across the the holiday period,

For 2014, things will be a little different. Forming a part of Fezziwig’s Ball, which will be held on Sunday, December 21st, commencing at 11:00 SLT, there will be a special reading of A Christmas Carol by the StoryFest SL team, taking place over approximately four hours, and Second Life residents are invited to drop in and listen throughout.

The timetable for the event is as follows (all times are SLT, and from noon onwards, approximate):

  • 11:00 Stave One, “Marley’s Ghost” – Shandon Loring and Caledonia Skytower
  • Noon: Stave Two, “The First of Three Spirits” – Bhelanna Blaze and John Morland
  • 13:00: Stave Three, “The Second of Three Spirits” – Kayden Oconnell and Aoife Lorefield
  • 14:00: Staves Four & Five, “The Last of the Spirits” & “The End of It” – Corwyn Allen, Freda Frostbite, and Dubhna Rhiadra.
Caledonia Skytower, Shandon Loring (centre) and Kayden Oconnell in an evocative shot of the virtual / live performance by Bear Silvershade
Caledonia Skytower, Shandon Loring (centre) and Kayden Oconnell in an evocative shot of the virtual / live cross-over performance of The Dickens Project’s A Christmas Carol in 2013 by Bear Silvershade

Shortly after the conclusion of Stave Five there will be a very special ball / party, with suitably festive music supplied by Dubhna Rhiadra, and to which all are invited, “put on your dancing shoes and dance like it’s 1843!” (period costumes welcome, but optional!). The ball will celebrate both the festive season, and mark the closing of the StoryFest SL storybook, as the organisers seek to focus more of their time and resources on some exciting new projects and work. 

Having attended previous readings of A Christmas Carol by the folk at StoryFest SL, I can state without hesitation that they are always a pleasure to attend. So, if you enjoy this story of grumpy old men, ghosts and redemption, then pour yourself a glass of mulled wine, grab a mince pie or two and hop over to Imagination Island.

On a personal note: as this is the last event that will be held under the StoryFests SL banner, I’d like to offer my thanks to those who have, since 2011, both organised and participated in StoryFest events: StoryFest itself, BOOFest, Bard on the Beach and, of course, The Dickens Project.

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Note: while this is not a fund-raising event, any and all tips received will benefit The Community Virtual Library, who are hosting the event on Imagination Island.

The Miss Virtual World Gowns and Gift card Auction for RFL of SL

Posted on by Inara Pey

Sunday, December 21st will see the Renaissance Galleria host the  Miss Virtual World 2015 Gowns and Gift card Auction.

Commencing at 10:00 SLT, the auction will be led by Neckcadaver Resident, and 100% of all proceeds will go directly to Relay for Life of Second Life. The gowns and gift cards to be auctioned have been generously donated by the following designers.

Azul, Lyrical Bizzare, Kelini Couture, Enzo Champagne, of Champagne, Mohna Lisa Couture, Pixi of Ala Folie, Lybra, Guila, Purplemoon, Sascha Frangilli of Sascha’s Designs, Carrie Snowpaw, and Elysium Skins & Apparel.

This is liable to be a popular event, so if you would like to available yourself of the opportunity to own a beautiful gown or collect a special gift card, all in aid of a worthy cause, be sure to teleport over to the auction in good time.

The Renaissance Galleria's sumptuous fashion show area will host the Miss Virtual World 2015 Gowns and Gift Card Auction in support of RFL of SL
The Renaissance Galleria’s sumptuous fashion show area will host the Miss Virtual World 2015 Gowns and Gift Card Auction in support of RFL of SL

About BOSL

The Best of Second Life Magazine started in 2008 and is focused on presenting the “Best Of” all that SL has to offer and sharing it with readers. Bringing readers a vast array of information and topics each month the magazine covers events, arts, activities, fashion, people, styles, products, sims, movements, and creativity. This in world and on the web publication is the longest running magazine in SL and reaches an extensive SL audience through its large group and subscriber list as well as outside of SL through the website.

The Best of SL Magazine is part of BOSL & Co, which comprises the following companies:   Best Of SL Magazine; Miss and Mister Virtual World Pageants; Miss Virtual World Modelling  Academy; BLVD Fashion House; Fashion Feed; SL Associated Press and Best of SL Couture Boulevard & Renaissance Galleria Malls. Each company is focused on bring the “Best Of” in its own category and work to collaborate together, building one another’s strengths, to promote the creativity of those who are behind the creative and amazing aspects of SL.

About Relay For Life of Second Life

Relay For Life of Second Life is an annual activity that takes place in Second Life in July each year. Volunteers form or join teams to have fun while fundraising and raising awareness from mid-March through mid-July. In July teams build campsites and walk a track, just like a Real World Relay. Since 2005, Relay For Life of Second Life has raised over $2.25 million USD for the American Cancer Society. In 2013, Relay For Life of Second Life has raised over $390,000 for the American Cancer Society. Relay For Life has become an international movement in RL and SL. In 2011 participants from over 80 countries took part in Relay For Life of Second Life.

About the American Cancer Society

For more than 100 years, the American Cancer Society (ACS) has worked relentlessly to save lives and create a world with less cancer and more birthdays. Together with millions of  supporters worldwide, ACS helps people stay well, helps people get well, find cures, and deal with their journey against cancer.

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The Fantasy Faire 2015 calendar really is yours to own!

Posted on by Inara Pey

Fantasy Faire is without doubt one of the highlights of the year for all of us involved in Second Life. As a part of the Relay for Life of Second Life season, it brings with it the opportunity to immerse ourselves in incredible worlds and places, visit stalls and shops, engage in quests, quizzes and games, participate in role-play, auctions and more – and all the time help to raise a staggering amount to assist in the fight against cancer.

But each Fantasy Faire brings with it a melancholy of its own. Eventually, after the Faire has run its course and the gates have closed, the wonderful places lovingly created for each season’s Faire “go away”, most of them never to return. All we’re left with are fading memories and the images we’ve captured and saved on our computers.

2015 Fantasy Faire calendar - yours to keep
2015 Fantasy Faire calendar – yours to keep: cover by

Which is why, in 2014, the Faire organisers ran the Dream of a Lifetime competition. In it, visitors were invited to submit up to 12 photos each to the Fantasy Faire contest Flickr group, which they felt best captured the spirit of the Faire. From this pool, a panel of judges picked 12 images to be included in a special 2015 Fantasy Faire calendar which would be printed and made available in the physical world for anyone wishing to purchase it.

Now, and right on time for Christmas, that Fantasy Faire 2015 calendar is available to buy on-line for just UK£12.18 (US$14.99 – you’ll have to check other currencies for yourselves!) + shipping.

Delivery will take around 3-5 days, so if you order quickly, you’ll have the perfect Xmas gift for family and friends. What’s more, all profits from purchases of the calendar will go to Relay for Life of Second Life.

August - Judith Lefevre
August – Judith Lefevre

The calendar contains twelve beautiful images of the fantastic kingdoms, mysterious temples and enchanted forests of Fantasy Faire 2014 that both celebrating the beauty of the Fairelands and keep their purpose alive in our hearts for the coming year. The images themselves are by:

Ursula Floresby (cover / The Faerie Court) Justen Tyme (January / Hope’s Horizon);  Alisaundra Andel (February / Asperatus);  Wildstar Beaumont (March / Palace of Tears);  Caitlin Tobias (April / Mourningvale Thicket);  Cayenne Republic (May / Fairelands Junction); Vylna Daviau (June / Heavenslough);  Gabrielle Swindlehurst (July / Wiggenstead Mooring);  Judith Lefevre (August / Medhir Woods); Tamarind Silverfall (September / Faerie Court);  CharuStar (October / Blackwater Glenn); Beq Janus (November / Hope’s Horizon);  Pokute Burt (December / Sanctum).

December - Pokute Burt
December – Pokute Burt

And that’s not all; the calendar will also be available shortly through the SL Marketplace for just L$500, so you can have it in your home in-world as well. Each Marketplace purchase will include a special extra – but I’m sworn to secrecy on that until the in-world version is available!

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Candlelit stories, Christmas memories, miracles and safaris

Posted on by Inara Pey

It’s time to kick-off another week of fabulous story-telling in voice, brought to Second Life and Kitely by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library.

As always, all times SLT / PDT, and unless otherwise stated, events will be held on the Seanchai Library’s home on Imagination Island, or at their Kitely Homeworld.

Saturday December 13th, Sunday December 14th, 19:00 The Candlelight Processional

First performed in Disneyland in 1958 and duplicated at the Magic Kingdom in 1971, the Disney Candlelight Processional now resides at the Epcot Centre’s America Gardens Theatre. An annual event, the Processional, as the name suggests, features an evening procession followed by the retelling of the Biblical story of Christmas, complete with carols, songs,

At 19:00 SLT on Saturday, December 13th and Sunday December 14th, there will be tribute to this holiday tradition at Magicland Park, with Caledonia Skytower narrating the story of the nativity.

Monday December 15th, 19:00: Witches, Magic and Other Strange Things

Join Gyro Muggins on A Science-Fiction Argosy, as he embarks on  a journey through this collection of classic science-fiction short stories brought together by Damon Knight. The collection features the writings of, among many, Kate Wilhelm, Shirley Jackson, Frederik Pohl, John Wyndham, Larry Niven, Poul Anderson, Brian W. Aldiss, Theodore Sturgeon, Fritz Leiber and Isaac Asimov.

Tuesday December 16th,19:00: A Christmas Memory

Capote2Faerie Maven-Pralou returns to Truman Capote’s semi-autobiographical stories of a childhood remembered, as she read A Christmas Memory. First published in December 1956 by  Mademoiselle magazine, A Christmas Memory was followed, in 1967 and 1982 respectively by The Thanksgiving Dinner and One Christmas.

As the first story in the trilogy, A Christmas Memory introduces us to Buddy (Capote),  a seven-year-old boy and his older cousin and best friend, “Sook” (Capote’s older cousin, Nanny Rumbley Faulk).  Set in the 1930s, it recalls a time of country living, the excitement and joy associated with Christmas, wrapped in a ribbon of friendship with just a gentle touch on the themes of loss and loneliness.

Wednesday December 17th

13:00 and 18:00: A Hypergrid Safari by Moonlight

Join Caledonia Skytower and Shandon Loring as they read selections from A Christmas Carol while folk from the Hypergrid Safari and the Moonlight Safari drop into the Seanchai Library homeworld on Kitely.

19:00: Miracle on 34th Street

Caledonia Skytower hops back to Seanchai Library’s HQ in Second Life to conclude her reading of this seasonal classic, an adaptation of the George Seaton / Valentine Davies Christmas classic film of the same name, telling the story of how Kris Kringle is hired by Macy’s to become their “Santa Claus”.

First appearing in 1947 and starring Maureen O’Hara, John Payne, Natalie Wood and Edmund Gwenn, Miracle on 34th Street has been subject to a number of remakes and updates, including the 1994 version starring Sir Richard Attenborough.

A novella based on the film, also penned by Davies, was published simultaneously with the film’s release, and was itself turned into a stage play in about 2006 by Will Severin, Patricia Di Benedetto Snyder and John Vreeke.

Thursday December 18th

19:00 The Scrooge – Another Christmas Carol 

With Shandon Loring.

21:00 Seanchai Late Night – Hannukah Tales of Light

With Caledonia Skytower.

Saturday December 20th, Seanchai Kitely, A Christmas Carol

Caledonia Skytower and Shandon Loring conclude their reading of Charles Dickens’ seasonal classic. Dare you say “bah, humbug!” or will you go in, so that Shandon may know you better?! Will you let Cale reveal to you all things present, shaped by the past, or will you try to avoid her showing you those things yet to come? Step into the Seanchai Library and settle into one of the traditions of Christmas!

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Please check with the Seanchai Library SL’s blog for updates and for additions or changes to the week’s schedule. The featured charity for November – December is Heifer International, which is working with communities to end world hunger and poverty and to care for the Earth.

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The Great Gatsby: virtually redefining educational outreach

Posted on by Inara Pey

Explore TGGThose of us involved with and immersed in virtual worlds are very familiar with the power and opportunities they offer for educational purposes.

In January and February 2015, this will again be demonstrated in a unique way as literature, live theatre and a virtual world combine to present theatre goers and school children with the opportunity to not only witness the unfolding of one of the great stories from American literature – F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby – but to actually immerse themselves in the story itself due to a new an unique collaborative partnership between the Tacoma Little Theatre (TLT), in Tacoma, Washington state, and the folk at Seanchai Library.

From on January 23rd, 2015 through until  February 8th, TLT will be presenting Simon Levy’s stage adaptation of The Great Gatsby, directed by Dale Westgaard, to adult audiences and daytime audiences from local schools.

Coinciding with the play, through their extensive facilities on Kitely, the Seanchai Library will be offering audiences and schools attending performances with the opportunity to explore the world presented by the novel from the comfort of their own home or from within the classroom.

Explore Gatsby will run alongside TLT's production of 's stage adaptation of the novel, giving patrons the opportunity to explore F. Scott Fitzgerald's world in greater detail
Explore Gatsby will run alongside TLT’s production of Simon Levy’s stage adaptation of the novel, giving TLT patrons and schools  with the opportunity to explore F. Scott Fitzgerald’s world in greater detail

Explore the Great Gatsby Online, the début production in Seanchai Library’s EXPLORE the Stories Behind the Art series, will open its doors on January 14th, 2015. It will offer visitors the opportunity to visit key locations from the novel and play, and in doing so learn more about the era in which the story is set, explore Fitzgerald’s life and writings and discover more about the theatre in which the play is being performed.

On offer within Seanchai Library’s virtual environments will be a reproduction of the fictional West Egg, where the story’s narrator, Nick Carraway rents a small holiday guest house, only to find himself living next door to the enigmatic Jay Gatsby, giver of lavish summer parties. Both Carraway’s little holiday house and Gatsby’s mansion will be open to explore.

Also presented with the Explore Gatsby facilities will be a portion of East Egg, where Daisy Buschanan, the subject of Gatsby’s desires, lives in opulence with her husband Tom. Here, behind the Buchanan mansion’s façade, will reside a reproduction of the Tacoma Little Theatre itself, offering the opportunity for people to discover more about the theatre itself, which is among the oldest community theatres in the United States, and the oldest on the U.S. west coast, with a rich heritage going back to 1918.

And, of course, there will be the opportunity to visit the so-called “Valley of Ashes”, the industrial dumping ground so pivotal to the unfolding story, which lies between the fictional East and West Egg and the beating heart of New York City.

These various locations will serve as venues for a range of live events which both support TLT’s  production of The Great Gatsby and which also encourage visitors to further immerse themselves in literature, the stage and more; there will be readings and performances from the novel, interactive elements, within the various settings will provide information on a broad range of subjects, including information on the 1920s and the social issues people living then faced, the characters from the novel, etc.

Explore Gatsby will essentially be an educational study guide brought to three dimensional life. Through a special portal currently being developed by Seanchai Library, visitors will be able to learn how to download and use a viewer and operate an avatar, and then connect to Explore Gatsby in Kitely.

Tacoma Little Theatre will feature in Explore Gatsby, allowing people to discovery more about this historic community theatre
Tacoma Little Theatre will feature in Explore Gatsby, allowing people to discover more about this historic community theatre

Of special note with the project is the fact TLT present daytime performances of the plays they stage for local schools to attend. Thus, through their Explore Gatsby partnership with Seanchai Library TLT is presented with a dramatic – no pun intended – new way to engage with teachers, educators and school children in an immersive manner which links the performance of the play directly with classroom learning opportunities. The same also goes for TLT’s patrons, who can take a performance of The Great Gatsby home with them and them delve into Gatsby’s world through the Seanchai Library’s virtual recreations and events.

As noted above, Explore Gatsby will be opening its doors on Wednesday, January 14th, 2015, with in-world events and activities commencing on Friday, January 16th. Everyone involved in virtual worlds is extended a warm invitation to pop along and join in with planned activities as they take place – a programme calendar will be available nearer the time, and I’ll also be presenting it through these pages.

I’ve been privileged to be associated with Seanchai Library for a while now, and as a part of this association, I will be covering Explore Gatsby and the EXPLORE the Stories Behind the Art series as it develops. I’ll be kicking-off things in due course with a behind-the-scenes look at preparations for the début production.

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Bay City tree lighting nets L$277,371 for Child’s Play

Posted on by Inara Pey
The Bay City Christmas Tree at the Bay City Fairgrounds
The Bay City Christmas Tree at the Bay City Fairgrounds – click for full size

Saturday December 6th, 2014, marked the fifth annual Tree Lighting event held by the Bay City Alliance. Featuring live entertainment, music and dancing, a skating party, silent auction,  refreshments and fun, the event was aimed at raising money for Child’s Play Charity, a 501c3 non-profit organisation offering on-line communities such as the Bay City Alliance an opportunity to help seriously ill children around the globe during their hospital stays with the purchase of games and gaming equipment.

In all, the event saw an amazing L$277,371 raised for Child’s Play, L$159,721 through the silent auction – the winning bids of which are still on display for the the time being at the Bay City Fairgrounds – and the remainder coming from donation from those attending / supporting the event, including a post-event donation.

The donation bins will remain out and available in the Fairgrounds through until the start of January 2015, to allow those who were unable to attend the Tree Lighting to contribute to fundraising efforts, if they so wish, and so they can be a part of the Bay City holiday and New Year celebrations, which will include a lighted boat parade and skate party, as well as the New Year’s Eve Prim Drop.

GoSpeed Racer, Christov Kohnke and Beth Odets provided the music and live entertainment at the Tree Lighting
GoSpeed Racer, Christov Kohnke and Beth Odets provided the music and live entertainment at the Tree Lighting

The Bay City Alliance wishes to thank all of those who donated goods and services to the auction: Vick Forcella, Robin Sojourner, Flowey, Pygar Bu, Whiskey Monday, Uccello Poultry, Benjamin Wahl, Zen Creations, %Percent, Lightning Video, Echelon Sands, ADudeNamed Anthony, and Black Tulip, as well as Apple Fall for their generous Linden donation.

Thanks have also been extended to the event’s performers, Beth Odets, Christov Kohnke, and GoSpeed Racer of KONA Stream, Marianne McCann for organising the event, Kinnaird and Rachel Seelowe for helping arrange for donation items, to Kriss Lehmann of Botanical for providing the tree and lights, residents of Bay City for their tree ornaments, and to all who donated, participated in the silent auction and joined in the fun f the event!

About Bay City and the Bay City Alliance

Bay City is a mainland community, developed by Linden Lab® and home to the Bay City Alliance. The Bay City Alliance was founded in 2008 to promote the Bay City regions of Second Life and provide a venue for Bay City Residents and other interested parties to socialize and network. It is now the largest group for Residents of Bay City.