Monday, May 10, 2004
Congratulations!
It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with you all this semester. Good luck on your final drafts, and please... keep playing and performing!
It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with you all this semester. Good luck on your final drafts, and please... keep playing and performing!
Monday, May 03, 2004
Sky Ear
An interesting performance event scheduled for Tuesday night May 5 7 PM London-time, which I believe is 11 AM our time; you're all invited to log on and join in! Here's a description of the high-tech, collective performance:
"Sky Ear will be a one-night event in which a glowing 'cloud' of mobile phones and helium balloons is released into the air so that people can dial into the cloud and listen to the sounds of the sky.
The cloud will be made of one thousand large helium balloons each responding to the electromagnetic environment (created by distant storms, mobile phones, police and ambulance radios, television broadcasts, etc.) with coloured blue, red and yellow lights.
The balloons will be enclosed in a carbon fibre and net structure 25m in diameter tethered to the ground by 6 cables and held aloft at a height of 60m where it will remain for several hours. Using mobile phones people will be able to listen to the actual sounds up high, the electromagnetic sounds of the sky as well as streams of whistlers and spherics (atmospheric electromagnetic phenomena that are the audible equivalent of the Northern Lights).Of course, the action of calling the cloud changes the electromagnetic environment inside and causes the balloons to vary in brightness, colour and intensity. "
Click here for more info and here for the live Webcast!
An interesting performance event scheduled for Tuesday night May 5 7 PM London-time, which I believe is 11 AM our time; you're all invited to log on and join in! Here's a description of the high-tech, collective performance:
"Sky Ear will be a one-night event in which a glowing 'cloud' of mobile phones and helium balloons is released into the air so that people can dial into the cloud and listen to the sounds of the sky.
The cloud will be made of one thousand large helium balloons each responding to the electromagnetic environment (created by distant storms, mobile phones, police and ambulance radios, television broadcasts, etc.) with coloured blue, red and yellow lights.
The balloons will be enclosed in a carbon fibre and net structure 25m in diameter tethered to the ground by 6 cables and held aloft at a height of 60m where it will remain for several hours. Using mobile phones people will be able to listen to the actual sounds up high, the electromagnetic sounds of the sky as well as streams of whistlers and spherics (atmospheric electromagnetic phenomena that are the audible equivalent of the Northern Lights).Of course, the action of calling the cloud changes the electromagnetic environment inside and causes the balloons to vary in brightness, colour and intensity. "
Click here for more info and here for the live Webcast!
Final Creative Intervention Document
For Friday, please bring a final creative intervention document. Your document should include 3 pages of double-spaced text broken up into 3 labeled parts:
1. The Pitch
2. Description and Specifications
3. Analysis
--The pitch is a revised and polished version of your blog pitch. (Of course, if you're working on a completely new idea, it will be a new and polished pitch! Yes, it IS okay to submit an idea you haven't previously posted a pitch for.)
--The description and specifications should address the majority of specifications suggested on your game, performance or theatrical worksheet. Feel free to include other kinds of information and description as you feel necessary!
--The analysis should briefly state the thesis or argument you wish your game to reflect, and should also point out specific details of your design that help you make this argument. Explain how each detail supports your overall thesis.
ADDITIONALLY:
--If you are having fun writing your description and it runs a little long, that's okay. There is no maximum page limit for this assignment. (The research paper DOES have a strict maximum of 12 pages however.)
--You may choose to submit any additional creative materials that help you make your point: a sketch of a costume or set design; a layout of a performance space; a few sample playing cards; a page of dialogue; a logo; use your imagination as wildly as you want. This is definitely NOT REQUIRED, but for those of you so inspired, it will certainly help you make your point more persuasively (and of course, I'd love to see your creative handiwork!)
For Friday, please bring a final creative intervention document. Your document should include 3 pages of double-spaced text broken up into 3 labeled parts:
1. The Pitch
2. Description and Specifications
3. Analysis
--The pitch is a revised and polished version of your blog pitch. (Of course, if you're working on a completely new idea, it will be a new and polished pitch! Yes, it IS okay to submit an idea you haven't previously posted a pitch for.)
--The description and specifications should address the majority of specifications suggested on your game, performance or theatrical worksheet. Feel free to include other kinds of information and description as you feel necessary!
--The analysis should briefly state the thesis or argument you wish your game to reflect, and should also point out specific details of your design that help you make this argument. Explain how each detail supports your overall thesis.
ADDITIONALLY:
--If you are having fun writing your description and it runs a little long, that's okay. There is no maximum page limit for this assignment. (The research paper DOES have a strict maximum of 12 pages however.)
--You may choose to submit any additional creative materials that help you make your point: a sketch of a costume or set design; a layout of a performance space; a few sample playing cards; a page of dialogue; a logo; use your imagination as wildly as you want. This is definitely NOT REQUIRED, but for those of you so inspired, it will certainly help you make your point more persuasively (and of course, I'd love to see your creative handiwork!)
If my project were a theatrical play...
Please post a brief pitch designed to attract an audience for your theatrical intervention! Be sure to add a few explanatory sentences to explain the design connections to the central argument of your research project.
And please remember to give each other feedback before Wednesday 4PM!
Please post a brief pitch designed to attract an audience for your theatrical intervention! Be sure to add a few explanatory sentences to explain the design connections to the central argument of your research project.
And please remember to give each other feedback before Wednesday 4PM!
Sunday, May 02, 2004
Live action Pac Man comes to Berkeley?
Performance meets gaming meets public spectacle... a group of NYU students working under the direction of Frank Lantz (The Big Urban Game and Ironclad, remember them?) have created a set of rules of playing/performing a live action Pac Man game in any city space. They've tested it in Manhattan and are looking for other cities to try it out... so, of course, I'm totally game. 10 players required for a play test; 5 who run through the streets (one pac-man and 4 ghosts) and 5 who stay inside in a "control center" giving directions and strategies to their street partner. Anyone else game? Would probably run it shortly after finals.... and we would probably not do the silly floppy costumes they have... something visually cool and interesting, but maybe not quite so... fluffy.
Performance meets gaming meets public spectacle... a group of NYU students working under the direction of Frank Lantz (The Big Urban Game and Ironclad, remember them?) have created a set of rules of playing/performing a live action Pac Man game in any city space. They've tested it in Manhattan and are looking for other cities to try it out... so, of course, I'm totally game. 10 players required for a play test; 5 who run through the streets (one pac-man and 4 ghosts) and 5 who stay inside in a "control center" giving directions and strategies to their street partner. Anyone else game? Would probably run it shortly after finals.... and we would probably not do the silly floppy costumes they have... something visually cool and interesting, but maybe not quite so... fluffy.
Friday, April 30, 2004
Creative Intervention Workshop
DAY TWO: "If my project were a performance..."
Please post a brief pitch for your creative intervention performance here by Monday 4 PM! Your pitch should be addressed either as a recruitment, invitation or audition notice for POTENTIAL PERFORMERS, or an announcement, invitation, or advertisement designed to attract AUDIENCE MEMBERS. Or, if you think it helps get your point across more clearly, you can post a brief pitch both to performers and audience members!
Be sure also to explain in a sentence or two how your performance design reflects the argument and texture of your research project.
DAY TWO: "If my project were a performance..."
Please post a brief pitch for your creative intervention performance here by Monday 4 PM! Your pitch should be addressed either as a recruitment, invitation or audition notice for POTENTIAL PERFORMERS, or an announcement, invitation, or advertisement designed to attract AUDIENCE MEMBERS. Or, if you think it helps get your point across more clearly, you can post a brief pitch both to performers and audience members!
Be sure also to explain in a sentence or two how your performance design reflects the argument and texture of your research project.
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Creative Intervention Workshop
DAY ONE: "If my project were a game..."
Please post a brief pitch for your creative intervention game here by Friday 4 PM! Your pitch should have two basic parts:
1) Write a lively description of your game as if you are trying to attract players to the game. Tell them what they can expect in terms of where, when, how and why to play the game.
2) Explain (to our class) in a sentence or two how your game design reflects your thesis. If there are any key elements (characters, props, prizes, quotations) derived from the texture of your research paper that you want to point out, please explain them briefly in a sentence or two.
Feel free to start providing feedback on each other's posts as soon as there are a few up!
DAY ONE: "If my project were a game..."
Please post a brief pitch for your creative intervention game here by Friday 4 PM! Your pitch should have two basic parts:
1) Write a lively description of your game as if you are trying to attract players to the game. Tell them what they can expect in terms of where, when, how and why to play the game.
2) Explain (to our class) in a sentence or two how your game design reflects your thesis. If there are any key elements (characters, props, prizes, quotations) derived from the texture of your research paper that you want to point out, please explain them briefly in a sentence or two.
Feel free to start providing feedback on each other's posts as soon as there are a few up!
Monday, April 26, 2004
Exquisite Corpse Game Design
Please share the final version of your exquisite corpse game!
Please share the final version of your exquisite corpse game!
Monday, April 19, 2004
Chance art: Reversing Vandalism
This local project is an amazing example of collaborative, chance art.
"For nearly a year, a vandal mutilated more than 600 books on gay and lesbian themes at the San Francisco Public Library. Without explanation, he carved up covers and pages and left small typewritten slips of paper advertising a Bible radio station tucked inside the damaged works. Ironically, his attempt to rid the library of these books resulted in a far stronger statement from the community: With help from artists around the country, the San Francisco Public Library transformed the crime into an art show titled _Reversing Vandalism_, which features more than 200 works of various mediums and is on view in three galleries at the library through May 2."
Check in out in person, or on Slate.com's terrific slide show for some really inspiring work.
This local project is an amazing example of collaborative, chance art.
"For nearly a year, a vandal mutilated more than 600 books on gay and lesbian themes at the San Francisco Public Library. Without explanation, he carved up covers and pages and left small typewritten slips of paper advertising a Bible radio station tucked inside the damaged works. Ironically, his attempt to rid the library of these books resulted in a far stronger statement from the community: With help from artists around the country, the San Francisco Public Library transformed the crime into an art show titled _Reversing Vandalism_, which features more than 200 works of various mediums and is on view in three galleries at the library through May 2."
Check in out in person, or on Slate.com's terrific slide show for some really inspiring work.
House & Garden, Life Game, Eat the Runt
We dissected La Noche de Santa Ines today to see how well it fits the terms interactive, chance art, happening and game.
Please pick one of the other 3 productions we're discussing this week (House and Garden; Life Game; Eat the Runt) and assess it according to the four criteria. Which terms fit that particular production best, and why, and for whom (audience, actors, director, e.g.)?
OR
Pick one of the four terms and apply it across the board to the 3 different productions. How do each of the 3 productions reflect or resist that term?
We dissected La Noche de Santa Ines today to see how well it fits the terms interactive, chance art, happening and game.
Please pick one of the other 3 productions we're discussing this week (House and Garden; Life Game; Eat the Runt) and assess it according to the four criteria. Which terms fit that particular production best, and why, and for whom (audience, actors, director, e.g.)?
OR
Pick one of the four terms and apply it across the board to the 3 different productions. How do each of the 3 productions reflect or resist that term?
