The 4th annual Machinima Expo will be taking place over the coming weekend, 18th-20th November, in both Second Life and on the web.
Showcasing the winners of this year’s Machinima Expo competition, the event will be presenting a packed schedule of films over the weekend, which you can watch either in-world with friends, or view via the Machinima Expo website. Entries for the competition were not restricted to Second Life, but were open to “footage captured from a real-time 3D engine and includes video games and software designed to create machinima” (including worlds such as World of Warcraft and games such as The Sims), so should make for interesting viewing (although which environments, etc., the inidividual films were made in is not always clear when reading the programme schedule).
Films will be shown at a number of venues in-world, and will be accompanied by specific in-world only activities as well. The venues are:
UCSVille – The Expo Hub – billed as “the trade show floor” of the Expo featuring galleries, vendor booths and teleporters to the other Expo locations, and with help staff on hand, making it a good place to start your Expo explorations
UWA Theater – billed as “the best place to begin if you’re wanting to watch the live programming or screen the selected films in world”, sitting as it does on the corner of 4 regions
Additionally, there are two special venues for the event:
BoSamba Ocean Paradise: which plays host to the end of day party – see the event programme for details
Master Class in Second Life Machinima: hands-on course in techniques of creating machinima within the virtual world of Second Life to be held on Friday November 18th at 14:00 SLT.
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can strike anyone at any time. While its occurrence is less frequent than acute stress response, its effects are far more enduring. Fearless Nation is US 501c3 organisation dedicated to helping and supporting those suffering from, or impacted by, PTSD.
This week, Fearless Nation is hosting a festival in Second Life aimed at raising awareness of PTSD for suffers and the families of suffers alike, and, in line with the aims of the foundation, removing the stigma associated with the illness.
The festival includes a huge range of live and music events scheduled for this week – details of which can be found on the Festival Calendar, as there really is too much going on to list here. You can also find out more about PTSD by joining-in a hunt that will continue through until the 20th November, and which features a range of gifts, or by visiting the impressive information centre, where static and video presentation boards present further information.
Fearless Nation: Oak Beach
There are also two sims of amazing artwork to be viewed through until the 30th November, and which include works by:
The art exhibits are spread across two neighbouring sims – Jones Beach and South Side. I would add a note of caution on the sim crossings; I did find them unusually rough during both my recent visits. However, the art displays more than make up for any roughness you may experience – they are magnificent.
Fearless Nation: South Side
Truth be told, the Fearless Nation installation itself is a work of art – and hugely informative about a condition that still carries far too much stigma and which is no respector of background, profession, gender or age. It can strike at any time as a result of exposure to extremely frightening or distressing events; estimates suggest that around 5% of all men and 10% of all women suffer from PTSD at some point in their lives, and up to 40% of cases are as a result of sudden bereavement*.
So, please take the opportunity to understand more about PTSD both during the coming week and the rest of November. Should you wish, you can contribute directly to the work of Fearless Nation through one of the many donation boxes placed around the sims.
Duché de Coeur enters a very busy phase in their calendar today, with the first day-long series of events that will be held almost every weekend through November.
These promise to be a fabulous round of concerts and events held within equally fabulous venues in the Duchy’s regions. If you’ve not yet taken time to visit Duché de Coeur, I suggest you take a good look at the activities here and consider popping along; you might also like to read-up on the Duchy itself and join in with the period feel of the regions by wearing suitable attire (not a strict requirement, but a good reason for costumes or formal wear!).
Here’s a brief run-down on the concerts; as always, all times SLT:
Tomorrow, Sunday 6th November, the legendary Mankind Tracer – in real life one very talented Seth Regan will be hosting his annual “Peace Love and Belief” (PLB) concert across Second Life.
Marking its fifth year, PLB will be broadcast across a total of 60 sims (eight more than last year), with Seth performing for two hours between 12:00 and 14:00 SLT.
This year, 50% of all proceeds will be given to research into Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, which affects some 350,000 people worldwide, and leads to some 50% of victims dying within three years of diagnosis.
The show will comprise live video and audio streams to the 60 sims involved in the event, and Seth himself will be appearing in-world at one of the locations to take requests.
Regions participating in the event comprise:
Solace Beach, Black Sand Beach, The Majestic, JSP Lounge, Chompers, The Mad Hatter, Club Graffiti Mary Jane Shoes, The Bay, Best of SL (BOSL), Monaco Yachts, Brews & Blues, The Hourglass, Gizza Creations, Miss Darcy!, Champion Horses, Cranberry Cove, MJ’s Blues and Dance, Big Bad Wolf Road House, NY HealthScape Expo Center, Hobo Juke Joint, Mojo Haven Blues and Rock Club, The Rose Theatre, Club NaggnRoth, Bakari’s Island Paradise, Two Moon Paradise, Club Blue Twilight, Neon Moon Lounge, Palazzo Celestiale, Club Myst, Cerridwen’s Cauldron, Nouvel Eden, White Tigers Island, Cafe Andromeda, Villa Lobos, The Crazy Parrot, Crossroads Bar, Yehonatan, Palm Springs, Phoenatopia, Club Kasra, Key west, Fire n Ice, Paris Metro, Plaza Luna, Frank’s Elite Jazz, The Labyrinth Theater, Warung Beats, The SL Enquirer, Sanctuary Beach, Mahalo Kai, PRAKA, Kickin Club, Dream Isle of Love, Giant Snail Races, Blue Bloods Mall, Twisted Thorne Textures, Global Online Hockey Association, The New Colour Factory, Absolut Model District.
Sadly, I can’t include LMs for each venue – I’d be hopping all over the Grid with no time for anything else :). However, each venue will have a Landmark board with a clickable list of venues, which will ease getting to one if you find the first you choose is too crowded. You may, however, wish to start your journey from the board at Good Day Sunshine, or see the Destination Guide.
War of the Worlds is a novel I’ve always enjoyed for both its allegorical nature and for being a chilling tale first encountered at school. I also very much enjoy Jeff Wayne’s musical version (thanks to both Dad & my own discovery of Wayne’s brilliant Spartacus back in the 1990s). I’m also more that a little familiar with the tale of Welles’ 1938 Mercury Theatre Hour broadcast – but then, who isn’t?
Given all this, attending a special presentation of War of the Worlds in Second Life by the Seanchai Library is something I’ve been looking forward to ever since Bear Silvershade passed me details of the production, together with an invitation to attend.
I did actually try to make the opening night, on Saturday 22nd, but issues with Voice and Media put paid to that for me, with the result that I felt most frustrated. Sunday’s performance proved to be a lot better – although it did prompt a hasty re-install of a Viewer to allow me to hear things clearly. So it was that I settled down into a beanbag in a packed audience at Haunted Fruit Islands to await the unfolding of events at Grover’s Mill.
Bear Silvershade as the ill-fated Carl Phillips, and who invited me to the performances
Yes, Grover’s Mill, New York, not Horsell Common, Surrey. Given this is a Halloween presentation, this is not just any adaptation of War of the Worlds, it is a presentation of the original script use by Welles and his company in 1938. What’s more, it is being staged with the full approval of the estate of the late Howard Koch, who wrote the script for the infamous 1938 broadcast.
So it is that the story is relocated from rural England and bustling London’s at the end of the 19th Century to rural New Jersey and the towering metropolis of New York. Thus, we open with a scene-changing voice-over that condenses Wells’ original prose and aids with the change in setting from the late 1890s to the latter years of the Depression in the United States.
Of course, Second Life is a visual medium – so how do people go about trying to recreate an audio broadcast? Acting the piece is clearly impossible, not with all that goes on; but having a group of actors standing listlessly on stage isn’t the answer either.
Seanchai Library deal with the issue very cleverly, using a simple but effective set. This has the members of the cast standing in the windows of what appears to be the ruins of a building somewhere – perhaps the remnants of a New York high-rise, so hauntingly described as being cut down as if by the hand of a giant in the broadcast. Kaydon O’Connell – who takes over the central role of Professor Richard Pierson from Orson Welles – takes up the centre of the set, standing in the “doorway” of the building.
The stage: simple and effective
It’s an exceptionally good arrangement; the cast are posed without the risk of AOs distracting the audience, helping to focus attention on what is being said. It also allows those in the cast who have several roles within the piece (i.e. everyone but Kaydon O’Connell as the lead), free to adapt to their various roles quickly and smoothly.
Kaydon O’Connell
As Professor Richard Pierson, Kaydon O’Connell has a considerable pair of shoes to fill. While only 22 when he produced War of the Worlds, Orson Welles was already a director and producer of renown. In 1934 he had directed what became known as Voodoo Macbeth in rapturous reviews that lead to it touring the United States. By the time he co-founded the Mercury Theatre Company, he’d built a considerable reputation as an actor in a number of CBS productions, perhaps the most notable of which was Hamlet, in which he took the lead role as well as serving as Director.
In War of the Worlds, Welles’ authoritative tones do much to establish the character and credibility of both the play and of Professor Pierson, and his closing monologue is particularly chilling. Taking on the role, Kaydon O’Connell brings the same authority and, as we reach the end of the tale, achieves the same mix of confusion, despair and bewilderment Welles evidenced in his portrayal. In this he is an ideal choice for the role; his tone is natural, the emotions behind his words clear – and he carries the core of the play superbly.
The young Orson Welles, circa 1937/8
Alongside the main stage set, there were some additional visual effects planned for the production. Unfortunately, this being a Sunday night, the players had to deal with something Wells nor Welles could never have conceived: an attack of SL Weekend Gremlins. These put a stop to some of the effects, and caused a short pause in the proceedings – although they failed to dampen the audience’s enthusiasm!
The visuals we did see were a treat – as I said at the start of this review, I’ve always enjoyed Jeff Wayne’s musical interpretation of War of the Worlds, and so was delighted when, in a very nice nod to that work, a familiar Martian Fighting Machine appeared above the audience, heat ray extended, and which then spewed forth a black, cloying “smoke” in time to the unfolding events of the play.
“The chances of anything coming from Mars, are a million-to-one, he said”
Some of the readings are at times a little rushed or stilted – hardly surprising, given the cast here don’t have the luxury of being in the same studio with one another and so lack the benefit of having visual or directorial cues to follow. But that said, the cast as a whole handle the material exceptionally well.
Indeed, it’s fair to say it is a brave group that takes on a piece as infamous as Welles’ War of the Worlds, but the Seanchai Library and friends do so with verve, gusto and success. Given we all know the book and the story of the original radio broadcast, attempting to recreate the atmosphere the audience of 73 years ago must have felt is nigh-on impossible. However, the cast are to be congratulated in the way that, despite our foreknowledge, they nevertheless provide us with a window into the past through which we can gain a sense of what it must have been like on that dark night of October 30th 1938, as people huddled around their one link to the world at large only to hear what seemed to be news of a fearsome invasion unfolding as they listened.
Of course, Welles’ intention was never to panic anyone – and today there is still much debate as to whether the original show actually caused the degree of panic claimed to be the case during the broadcast, or whether it was in fact the press reports in the days after the broadcast that created the major frenzy. Welles’ intention was simply to entertain people on a chilly Halloween evening – a point he later discussed with H.G. Wells himself in a 1940 radio broadcast.
So, if you do enjoy a good tale for Halloween, you might like to pop along for the final presentation of The War of the Worlds, which takes place at 19:00 SLT this Wednesday, the 26th October, at Seanchai Library. All things being equal, I’ll see you there, as I hope to be back as well to soak up even more!
In the meantime, courtesy of the Vancouver Film School, and to whet your appetite, here’s a short film of how Welles might have been inspired to adapt Wells’ novel, had the two men met before the events of October 30th, 1938.
The Zindra Expo Group is hosting an open meeting for all Adult estate owners.
Scheduled for a 13:00 SLT start on Saturday 22nd October, the main aim of the meeting is, “To connect with estate and other land owners with an interest in Adult Content. Zindra residents, and residents with an interst in Adult Content, have a voice. But estate and land owners special interests are often overlooked in the general residents’ group. This is your opportunity as a land owner to connect with other land owners and form a group.”
While primarily for Adult estate owners, residents who are age verified are welcome to attend. The meeting will take place at Distrel (SLurl). Further information on the meeting can be obtained by contacting (via IM or Notecard) Ginette Pinazzo.
The 4th annual Machinima Expo will be taking place over the coming weekend, 18th-20th November, in both Second Life and on the web.
