playing at roles
How can interactive theatre and role playing games share knowledge and manage dis/information? Playing at Roles is a new immersive theatrical experiment created by The Villains Theatre, which uses the interactive and collaborative form of a tabletop roleplaying game to examine how the HSS can play a role in rebuilding trust and navigating online and offline social connection in a world increasingly steeped in mis/disinformation. Facilitators Dorian Arcturus Lang, Dan Bray, and Colleen Arcturus MacIsaac, invite participants to step into the world of the game, where they assume identities that are working together to build connections and community while working to dismantle the ravages of late-stage capitalism and fascist ideologies. This large-scale tabletop RPG is also a theatrical performance which gives an experiential perspective on what can happen when individuals come together as a community to fight against systems that seem unstoppable. Created and performed by Halifax-based The Villains Theatre, our team members Colleen Arcturus-MacIsaac, Dan Bray, and Dorian Arcturus-Lang will guide the players through a journey across lands depleted by climate change, ruled by oligarchs and corporations, and subject to surveillance and media which may be true or fake. Participants will be guided by our trio of performer/facilitators, while also having the chance to make their own decisions that will have an impact on the game's results. Working together, the participants will come up with dramatic solutions in-game that may translate into real-world action.