Traces: A night time event in Strathcona

I’m not sure why, but it seems Vancouver is teeming with all types of public events this summer. Every week, the papers propose a series of activities all over the Lower Mainland. Whether it celebrates the diverse heritage of the city or the completion of major infrastructure work being done in preparation for the upcoming winter olympics in February, there’s something for everyone. This past Friday night was “Traces: Projecting Neighbourhood Stories”, a  small multimedia event looking at the history of Strathcona, a neighborhood bordering on the infamous Downtown Eastside. Living in the neighbourhood, I checked it out. It involved four sites located within a block and half, each with its own multimedia presentation. All, in all, it was an interesting look at the neighborhood, especially at night. I can’t recall walking that section of Hastings so late at night. It was heartening to see all the people who came out for this. Bet it was an interesting change for the beat cops to see so many people behaving in that neck of the DTES. (Slideshow)

Burning Life: Coming to SL, Sept. 27-Oct. 5, 2008

Can’t make it to Burning Man this year? No need to despair. Burning Life is your answer, without the travelling and expense. Now in its sixth year, Burning Life is the virtual version of Burning Man. According to the SL Blog, Burning Man is where Philip Rosedale (AKA Philip Linden) got a lot of his inspiration for Second Life. 

The call is out for volunteers and for participants. Check Burning Life: A call for volunteers  for details on volunteer positions and/or the Theme Camp page to submit a proposal for a camp space. Deadline is August 31. 

 

SL Shakespeare Company: Twelfth Night Readings

Wow! Where does the time go? Much has happened since early May. CSI: NY in SL has kicked the bit bucket, Nexeus Fatale is still DJing in various venues, in fact, this weekend as part of SL’s fifth anniversary celebrations (5 years!!), and Cue the Penguin! is almost at the halfway point.

The SL Shakespeare Company is also doing very well. I caught their staged reading today of Twelfth Night, Act II at The Globe Theatre in SL. Interestingly enough, I saw the whole Twelfth Night on Friday night at Bard-on-the Beach (one of the best Shakespeare productions I have ever seen, btw). So, it was nice to hear the words once more. Also found out that classes in performing Shakespeare will be available in the Fall in SL. Details should be available on the website later on. Check out the site as well for the schedule of upcoming readings.

Also, as pointed out by the director before the show, today is the anniversary of the burning of the Globe Theatre. From Wikipedia:

On June 29, 1613 the Globe Theatre went up in flames during a performance of Henry the Eighth. A theatrical cannon, set off during the performance, misfired, igniting the wooden beams and thatching. According to one of the few surviving documents of the event, no one was hurt except a man whose burning breeches were put out with a bottle of ale.^[6]

We, the Residents…

Stumbled across through an interesting project on New World Notes tonight. There’s a flag design contest now underway, hosted by Laetizia Coronet. This project came about following the recent changes implemented by Linden Lab® regarding the use of the SL logo. As Laetizia puts it:

“Let’s face it. We never had a flag – that was a logo on a stick and it would look good outside a Linden Lab office, but it was hardly what you’d call a real flag. And now even the name of the famous logo is copyrighted, so use of it as a symbol for all of us is right out. It’s “theirs” now…”

Details on the contest can be found on her blog, Virtual Village Voice. Considering the technology that can be used, I think we can look forward to more than mere flat 3-D designs.

Pangea Day – May 10, 2008

Been a while since I’ve turned my attention to his blog. Busy with work and daily care and feeding of Cue the Penguin! But something caught my eye today. David Pogue, tech guru of the NY Times “Circuits” newsletter, blogged about Pangea Day, a day film-fest centered around films dealing with tolerance among various nationalities. In the words of Pangea Day organizers:

“In a world where people are often divided by borders, difference, and conflict, it’s easy to lose sight of what we all have in common. Pangea Day seeks to overcome that — to help people see themselves in others — through the power of film.

On May 10, 2008 — Pangea Day — sites in Cairo, Kigali, London, Los Angeles, Mumbai, and Rio de Janeiro will be linked live to produce a program of powerful films, visionary speakers, and uplifting music.

The program will be broadcast live to the world through the Internet, television, digital cinemas, and mobile phones.”

Though this blog usually concentrates on technology which brings live performance to people together in real/virual worlds, I find this project fascinating. Welcome to a one-world screening room! Check out the website for details. If you’re on Facebook, do join the Pangea Day group for details and updates.

Peace.

SL Shakespeare Company: Hamlet, Act. I, Sc. 2, April 23rd

Now that I’m back to working full-time, blog writing has become a bit of a luxury. While Cue The Penguin! still provides my self-imposed daily escape, I haven’t had much time to roam around SL, save to grab some shots for Cue. Nonetheless, much is still happening in SL. A new CSI:NY mystery is afoot (watch this space for details coming soon) and I received the following notice in my inbox yesterday.
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Group Notice From: Ina Centaur

Bard’s Birthday 4/23 Special Performance…

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We have finally settled the chaos of having to schedule a large international cast for a simultaneous live performance.

Join us at 6 PM SL Time, one week from today, at the SL Globe Theatre for a special advance showing of our second miniproduction — Hamlet, Act 3 Scene 2, a.k.a., The Mousetrap.

Thank you,
SL Shakespeare Company

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I don’t think I’ll be able to catch this preview, unfortunately, but will be on the look out for any video clip on this new production.

CSI:NY in SL: Trying to solve the latest case…

A new case came afoot on CSI: NY Island last March 21st. As usual, I went to the site, downloaded the latest tool bar, collected the evidence and went back to the lab. For some reason, this time around, the audio clips do not seem to work. The text version will appear for each piece of evidence analyzed, but for some reason, the list of suspects does not appear. So I’m stuck. I thought it was perhaps lag. Tried to listen to the clips on my home turf, which is pretty lag-free, still no luck. Asked one of the CSI managers, who suggested I check my Audio/video settings. Everything was setup as it should be. I’m stumped. Wow! A mystery within a mystery. I’ll keep trying. Stay tuned. 🙂

SL Shakespeare Company Open Auditions: March 30/08

Received the following notecard in- world today from Ina Centaur, founder of the Company.

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The SL Shakespeare Company will be holding a round of open auditions for our upcoming Hamlet productions, the earliest of which opens on 4/23, with rehearsals beginning in early April. (In addition, we may also be performing a non-Hamlet scene in May. More details to come.)

Play: Hamlet

Time: Sunday, 3/30 at high noon SLT

Order:  on a “first come, first act” basis.

(Location: Globe Theatre: SLURL)

Directions: Please be prepared to read a passage of your choice of the character you wish to perform, a passage of our choice of the same character, and possibly, an unrelated scene of our choice. (In addition, you may also show us a passage from another Shakespearean play.)

Criteria: Quality, availability, and SL Voice/mic clarity (sorry!). Evidence that you’ve practiced your lines a bit and are familiar enough with your character to do well on our “pop quiz” may help ;-).

Technical Help: Please arrive an hour early (11 AM, SL Time) if you need help setting up, tweaking, or configuring your microphone for SL voice performances.

Also: Please email production@SLshakespeare.com with your availability for rehearsals beginning in early April. We will automatically add you to our repertory cast list, but that does not necessarily mean you get a role. (For those on the repertory cast, we will contact you prior to each production.)

We currently use a repertory cast system, where we will contact actors on a list prior to rehearsals for each production. Please note that the auditions are public, and we do hope to keep your voice on file (unless you specifically opt out) on a public “SL Theatre Open Audition Database”:

http://STOAD.SLshakespeare.com

—SLSC Casting Director

http://SLshakespeare.com

(Photo: Ina Centaur)

There’s a second life for disgraced politicians

Another interesting video surfaced during today’s meeting at the CNN Amphitheater in SL. We were encouraged last week to start filing video reports. Hugo did just that, while offering a possible new work avenue for Eliot Spitzer, the now ex-Governor of New York state.

See story & video: NY Governor Spitzer to retire in Second Life

Shakespeare in SL: Also on YouTube

I caught the opening of the mini-production of Hamlet in SL on February 28th. The theatre was packed, which was great for the actors, but not so great for lag. I reported on this experience on the CNN iReport in SL blog.

In today’s meeting at the CNN Amphitheater, Henry iReport pointed out that a video clip of the same scene was available on YouTube. Although it’s not a clip of the actual production, it is the same scene, in the same location. At least, the costumes are visible. Thanks to Inacentaur for posting it.