It’s time to kick-off another week of fabulous story-telling in Voice, brought to Second Life by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library SL.
As always, all times SLT, and unless otherwise stated, events will be held on the Seanchai Library’s home on Imagination Island.
Monday December 2nd, 19:00: Science Fiction: The Planets Series
With Gyro Muggins.
Tuesday December 3rd, 19:00: Treasure it the Heart of the Tanglewood
Faerie Maven-Pralou continues her reading of Meredith Ann Pierce’s 2001 novel for young adults.
Hannah lives by the fearsome Tanglewood with a few talkative companion animals. She doesn’t age, and she has no memory of anything but this life of isolation. Once a month she plucks the flowers that grow from her head, a painful process in which “each yank made her whole scalp ache”, and brews them into a tea for the wizard who lives deep in the woods.
When Hannah falls in love with one of the many knights who seek the treasure of the book’s title, she starts to question the wizard’s motives, finding he has turned the knight into a fox.
Escaping the wizard’s manipulative grasp, Hannah sets out to find a cure for the knight, an adventure in which she discovers her own identity and the repercussions of some of her actions while under the control of the wizard.
Wednesday December 4th, 19:00: Beggar’s Day, the Beggar Prince
With Caledonia Skytower.
Thursday December 5th, 11:00: Christmas Ghosts: A Collection of Spooky Tales for a Winter’s Eve
Halloween may have come and gone for 2013, but the year’s end tends to be another traditional time for ghost stories to be read. This week, Shandon Loring dips into a collection of classic ghostly tales from the pens of writers past. This delightful volume of short stories comprises:
Christmas Eve on a Haunted Hulk by Frank Cowper
The haunted House by Charles Dickens
The Phantom Coach by Amelia B. Edwards
The Haunted Man by Bret Harte
Catherine’s Quest by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
Joseph: A Story by Katherine Rickford
The Abbot’s Ghost by Louisa May Alcott
There’s a new art exhibit opening at MIC Imagin@rium at 14:00 SLT on Monday December 2nd. it is a unique collaborative venture featuring works by 25 SL artists, and which involves the exhibition in a real-life cross-over with the Il Margutta Gallery, Rome.
Elina Chauvet
Red Shoes builds on the work of Mexican visual artist Elina Chauvet, who created Zapatos Rojos, a display of red shoes and boots of all designs and sizes, used to commemorate the high number of women and girls killed in the city of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.
The piece came about as a result of Chauvet becoming increasingly aware of the high numbers of women and girls who were dying or simply vanishing within the city, a place where violence had at one time escalated to the point where the Mexican military were asked to intervene, a move which actually exacerbated matters. “In my visits downtown I was alarmed to see how many posters for missing girls were stuck to the telephone poles,” Chauvet explained to Canadian broadcaster and journalist Joyce Janvier in an interview about the origins of the project. “That’s when I realized that the women in Juarez were dying or disappearing. Then and there I began to ask questions but did not find answers. Stories of women went under-reported.”
She selected shoes as the focus for the display for two reasons. Firstly, as she had previously used shoes and a metaphor in the past, she felt they were a means by which she could give expression to her concern for the missing or dead women. Secondly, in researching the disappearances herself, she discovered that many of those who had vanished either worked in shoe stores, had been buying shoes at the time of their disappearance or were seeking work in a shoe shop.
Initially, the exhibit started with 33 pairs of red shoes donated by the women of Ciudad Juárez, arranged in a silent line, representing the missing women walking along the city’s Benito Juárez Street, which leads to the town’s oldest border crossing bridge into the United States. Since that time, the piece has grown to over 200 pairs of shoes and boots and has become viral in nature, having been exhibited in cities in both the United States and Europe, and coming to represent broader aspects of violence many woman around the globe suffer in their daily lives. In May 2013, Zapatos Rojos returned to Ciudad Juárez.
Zapatos Rojos, Piazza Vecchia, Ciudad Juárez, May 2013 (image courtesy of Alice Peretti, You + Me Equals)
The Second Life exhibition opens on December 2nd, 2014 and continues through until midnight on January 7th, 2014. It features individual installations by twenty-five SL artists, all of whom have taken their lead from a pair of red mesh shoes created for the project by Rumegusc Altamura, and the exhibits are displayed in an ultra-modern space designed by Colpo Wexler which sits atop the waters of the region, with a magnificent Romanesque backdrop also created by Rumegusc Altamura. The participating artists are: Swina Allen, Alpha Auer, Solkide Auer , La Baroque, Lookatmy Back, Giovanna Cerise, Cica Ghost, Viviana Houston , Kicca Igaly, Violetta Inglewood, Giorgio Mayo, Merlino Mayo, Myyns Mayo, Rubin Mayo, Paola Mills, Daniele Daco Monday, Nessuno Myoo, Sniper Seimens, Mitaki Slade, Mila Tatham, Nexuno Thespian, Blue Tsuki, Maddomxc Umino, Nino Vichan, and MIC Imagin@rium’s own Mexi Lane.
Red Shoes: Rubin Mayo
Previewing the installation, I found that Coplo Wexler’s minimalist approach to the actual exhibition sets to be highly effective, allowing the observer to focus directly on each piece in turn with little or no visual distractions. Some of those on the “outer” ring of exhibit spaces are featured in their own three-dimensional “frames”, providing further focus on their subject matter, while others are open to the far horizon, blending with it to create great depth of experience – such as with Alpha Auer’s evocative piece. I mentioned earlier that the installation also has a unique real-life cross-over. This is because on December 10th, 2013, the Il Margutta Gallery in Rome will be inaugurating a new exhibition entitled, “Woman in Rock & Red Shoes”, and a machinima of the Red Shoes exhibit at MIC Imagin@rium will be screened at the gallery as a part of the inaugural activities.
Red Shoes: Alpha Auer
Red Shoes is a powerful installation; I’ve no idea if Elina Chauvet is aware of it – if not, I hope someone does contact her concerning it. I’ve little doubt she would admire and appreciate the way her message is being carried forward in an immersive manner to again reach a global audience.
Update, December 1st: Oopsie on my part. I mis-read information on the show, and Juliet Ceasrio will not be re-joining the cast. Peter Jurasik will, however be joined by Gameela Wright, and I’ve updated the article to reflect this. My apologies to Gameela and the cast and crew!
Sunday December 1st sees the re-opening of Harland Quinn’s toughest case to date, the mystery of The Blackened Mirror.
Those who watched season one of the show will know that things all began when the mysterious Ms Alais Alleyn (Aisling Sinclair) and her faithful companion, Mr. Biggins (Mavromichali Szondi) stepped into Quinn’s office seeking his assistance to “find their way home” – home being something entirely unrelated to what you or I might consider it to be. By the end of the season, Quinn, Ms. Alleyn and Mr. Biggins were trapped in a bar surrounded by murderous zombies when in walks none other than Quinn’s own bespectacled doppelgänger, complete with a sinister greeting.
Season two picks-up the story precisely where season one left-off and promises more twists and rides. As I’ve hinted at in previous posts, the show also features a special guest star: none other than Mr. Peter Jurasik.
Peter Jurasik
While perhaps best-known for his role as the tragic Centauri Ambasssdor (and later Emperor) Londo Mollari in Babylon 5, Mr. Jurasik has had a long and distinguished career on stage and in film and television, including several recurring roles on popular television series over the decades, such as that of Sid “the Snitch” Thurston in Hills Street Blues and its spin-off series, Beverly Hills Buntz.
Interestingly, he also appeared alongside future Babylon 5 co-star Bruce Boxleitner in both Boxleitner’s own TV series The Scarecrow and Mrs. King and in the feature film Tron.
He is also no stranger to Harland Quinn’s world. In 2012 he guest-starred as “George” in the radio show featuring Quinn, Death in Velvet.
Also accompanying Peter Jurasik in joining the cast is Gameela Wright. Based in New York, Ms. Wright has over 15 years experience in theatre, television, voice overs, film and commercials. She has appeared in such top-rated US shows such as Blue Bloods, Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, and Orange is the New Black.
As in AvaJean Westland in Second Life, Ms. Wright has worked with the Avatar Repertory Company, and also developed projects as Virtual Girl Productions in Association with Running Lady Studios. In 2013, she took over hosting duties for the Second Life leg of the 2013 Relay for Life. As well as appearing as the character of Martha Pearse later in the season, Gameela Wright played an invaluable role in the show’s production, puppeteering a number of the characters on behalf of those actors unable to be in Second Life for the actual filming, creating a physicality to the characters to match the voice performances.
Both Mr. Jurasik and Ms. Wright will be joining season one regulars Scott Simpson (Zander Greene in SL) as the enigmatic Harland Quinn, Aisling Sinclair as the mysterious Alais Alleyn, and Mavromichali Szondi as the light-on-words Mr Biggins, as well as a host of guest stars.
Scott Simpson
Star of stage, screen and television, Scott Simpson has appeared alongside the likes of James Earl Jones, Teri Hatcher, Katie Holmes, Charles Shaughnessy, Charlotte Ross and Ellen Burstyn, to name but a few. He’s been directed by Michael Apted, and has played the lead in Richard III for NYC’s Looking Glass Theatre, as well as “Vanek” in Audience as part of New York’s 2006 Vaclav Havel Festival. He is also an accomplished voice-over artist.
In Second Life, through his alter-ego, he is an educational and non-profit environment developer for organisations including the American Cancer Society and Valdosta State University and the original moving force behind Fantasy Faire. Not only does he play the hero of the piece in The Blackened Mirror, he also creates the music for the series.
The talent involved in The Blackened Mirror isn’t restricted to in front of the camera, either. David (or Da5id, if you prefer – all the v-spellings had gone when he signed-up, so he improvised), is a writer who has published both fiction and non-fiction and worked in radio. The Blackened Mirror stands as a perfect example of the subject for his next book, You CanNot Do It: The Power of Procrastination, which he would have been writing but for the fact he put it off to write the The Blackened Mirror. The show is directed and produced by Saffia Widdershins, co-host and executive producer of the show Designing Worlds and CEO of Prim Perfect Publications.
It was Saffia who coaxed Aisling Sinclair, who among many other talents directs the Designing Worlds show, out from behind the camera to star in The Blackened Mirror. Saffia also helped introduce us to the character of Mr. Biggins (now voiced by builder-creator Mavromichali Szondi as noted above) through the New Babbage comic series produced by Prim Perfect.
Alais Alleyn reveals the secret of a blackened mirror to Harland Quinn
Other talent involved in the show includes Honour McMillan, Petlove Petshop and Emmo Wei, and you can read more about all of the season one cast and crew on the show’s website.
The first instalment of season two of The Blackened Mirror airs at 14:00 SLT on Sunday December 1st, 2013, and you can catch it on Treet TV.
Back in August, I wrote a piece previewing the upcoming return of The Blackened Mirror, a Chandleresque TV series with a fine twist of Steampunk stirred into a mix of film noir and H.P. Lovecraft. Written by David Abbott, the 6-part show was filmed in Second Life and formed the centrepiece of a multimedia event which featured a game that could be enjoyed within Second Life, together with explorations and puzzles which encompassed the Internet and social media streams, and more.
At the time I wrote that piece, filming for Season 2 was about to start, and there had been a call for people willing to participate to contact the producers.
Well, now the filming is done, as is most of the editing, and Season 2 of The Blackened Mirror will make its debut at 14:00 SLT on Sunday December 1st, 2013, reuniting us with hard-boiled and enigmatic PI Harland Quinn, voiced by the simply fabulous Zander Greene (and yes I still could sit and listen to him read a telephone directory; his voice is that captivating), Ms Alais Alleyn (Aisling Sinclair) and Mr. Biggins (Mavromichali Szondi).
The new story picks-up exactly where Season One left off; Quinn and his companions seemingly trapped in a bar, when a stranger with a very familiar voice and face shows up…
Alais Alleyn and Harland Quin in a scene from the first season of The Blackened Mirror (image courtesy of PrimPerfect / Saffia Widdershins)
In October, I was graciously extended the opportunity to watch an initial cut of the first episode of the new season by the series’ director, Saffia Widdershins. Having done so, I can honestly say that fans of the show are in for one hack of a ride; the story offers twists, turns and not a few surprises that more than keep one engaged and wanting more.
Alongside the regular cast, a very special guest star will be appearing in the new season, someone once known for seeing others as good, dear friends while in another universe – but I’ll say no more at this point! You’ll have to tune-in to the Blackened Mirror’s Treet TV channel to find out more.
For those new to the world of The Blackened Mirror, now is an ideal time to catch-up with the first season via the Treet TV channel mentioned above or via the show’s YouTube channel. Those wishing to stay abreast of the latest news on the show should check-out the official website and the show’s Facebook page.
If you are up-to-date with Harland Quinn’s television exploits, why not tune-in to the Death in Velvet, a 4-part radio show broadcast in 2012 and featuring another of Quinn’s cases. You can find it on Zander Greene’s YouTube channel, and it features special guests stars of its own. Why not listen to the first part of the show here?
I’ll have a little more on The Blackened Mirror in due course. In the meantime don’t forget: the new season premieres at 14:00 on Sunday December 1st.
It’s time to kick-off another week of fabulous story-telling in Voice, brought to Second Life by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library SL.
As always, all times SLT, and unless otherwise stated, events will be held on the Seanchai Library’s home on Imagination Island.
Monday November 25th, 19:00: Science Fiction: The Planets Series
With Gyro Muggins.
Tuesday November 26th, 19:00: Food! Glorious Food!
With Derry McMahon.
Wednesday November 27th, 19:00: Treasure it the Heart of the Tanglewood
Faerie Maven-Pralou continues her reading of Meredith Ann Pierce’s 2001 novel for young adults.
Hannah lives by the fearsome Tanglewood with a few talkative companion animals. She doesn’t age, and she has no memory of anything but this life of isolation. Once a month she plucks the flowers that grow from her head, a painful process in which “each yank made her whole scalp ache”, and brews them into a tea for the wizard who lives deep in the woods.
When Hannah falls in love with one of the many knights who seek the treasure of the book’s title, she starts to question the wizard’s motives, finding he has turned the knight into a fox.
Escaping the wizard’s manipulative grasp, Hannah sets out to find a cure for the knight, an adventure in which she discovers her own identity and the repercussions of some of her actions while under the control of the wizard.
Thursday November 28th, 11:00: Alice’s Restaurant Massacree
Image via wiki commons
You can get anything that you want
At Alice’s restaurant. You can get anything that you want
At Alice’s restaurant.
Walk right in, it’s around the back,
Just a half-a-mile from the railroad tracks, And you can get anything that you want
At Alice’s restaurant.
As Thanksgiving arrives in the United States, Shandon Loring presents singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie’s famous 1967 musical monologue, Alice’s Restaurant Massacree (also popularly known as Alice’s Restaurant, and the inspiration of the 1969 Arthur Penn film of that name, starring Guthrie himself).
Aside from the opening and closing chorus, the song is delivered as the spoken word accompanied by a ragtime guitar. The story is based on a true incident in Guthrie’s life when, in 1965, he (then 18) and a friend were arrested for illegally dumping garbage from Alice’s restaurant after discovering that the town dump was closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.
What follows is a complicated, ironic and amusing story told in a deadpan, satirical tone, which encompasses fines, blind judges, guide dogs, 27 8×10 copiously annotated glossy photos related to the littering, frustrated police officers, the Vietnam War draft and, ultimately, the inexplicable ways in which bureaucracy moves to foil itself, just when you’ve given up hope of foiling it yourself.
The Machinima Expo 6 was held on November 17th. As reported in this blog, the Expo, which features machine of all genres drawn from a variety of platforms and software tools, showcasing them to a global audience.
This year again saw strong representation from Second Life, with entries from the likes of Steve G. Hudek, Hypatia Pickens, Draxtor Despres and Joe Zazulak.
In all eleven films were nominated for awards, to be voted on by a special jury from outside of the machinima community. Three went on to win Jury Prizes: The Amazing, Fantastical, Electrical Adventures of young Tesla Episode #2, by Mark Pleasant (platform: iClone); Remember Me by Kate Lee & Sherwin Liu (iClone) and Civil Protection: The Tunnel by Ross Scott (Half-Life 2 / Source).
However, it was Tutsy NAvArAthnA’s Narcissus, the only nominated film to have been created in Second Life, which won the jury’s Grand Prize.
Narcissus, as the name suggests, is a retelling of the classic tale of Narcissus and Echo, from Ovid’s Metamorphoseon libri. It’s a moving piece, beautifully composed and which stands as a magnificent example of machinima at its best, and well-deserving of the jury’s recognition.
For those wishing to see all four prize-winners, there are available on the Machinima Expo 6 blog (click on the images to view the films), and all the showreels and jury reels will remain available on the Expo’s uStream channel until November 24th.
Hannah lives by the fearsome Tanglewood with a few talkative companion animals. She doesn’t age, and she has no memory of anything but this life of isolation. Once a month she plucks the flowers that grow from her head, a painful process in which “each yank made her whole scalp ache”, and brews them into a tea for the wizard who lives deep in the woods.
Halloween may have come and gone for 2013, but the year’s end tends to be another traditional time for ghost stories to be read. This week, Shandon Loring dips into a collection of classic ghostly tales from the pens of writers past. This delightful volume of short stories comprises:
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 