asses.masses [the dossier]

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last updated: 2024.08.20

Table of Contents

  1. What is asses.masses?

  2. Story

  3. Event

  4. Video

  5. Intermissions

  6. Audience Responses

  7. Artists + Team

  8. Production History

  9. Language + Accessibility + Hospitality

  10. Community Engagement

  11. Pricing

  12. Example Schedules

  13. Sample Technical Overview + Link to Full Tech Rider



 

[1] what is asses.masses?

asses.masses is a custom-made video game designed to be played on stage by a live audience.

asses.masses is an epic narrative about the struggles of unemployed asses navigating the perils of a post-Industrial society in which they’ve been made redundant.

asses.masses is a collaborative journey designed to be experienced in its totality, from beginning to end in one sitting, over 7+ hours and 10 episodes.

 

[2] the story

Labour, technophobia, donkeys, and sharing the load of revolution: asses.masses follows a community of pixelated asses in their quest to get their old farm and mining jobs back, despite the relentless industrialization in their region.

Told across 10 episodes and through a wide range of game forms, including 2D RPG, Platformer, Rhythm Game, 3D Action Adventure, and many more**, the asses (and the live audience) must to work together to confront its growing division between those who, harbouring nostalgia for ‘the old ways’, reject technology and those who embrace technology as an adaptation for surviving the present.

Cheeky and political, it’s best described as Animal Farm meets Aesop’s Fables retold by Franz Kafka, Karl Marx, and Sonic the Hedgehog.

**GLOSSARY for those who don’t play video games.

2D RPG: Stands for Role-Playing Game. Players explore worlds completing quests. Example: Pokemon.

Platformer: Players run and jump to overcome obstacles and reach a goal. Example: Super Mario Bros.

Rhythm Game: Players hit buttons in rhythm with awesome music. Example: Dance Dance Revolution.

3D Action Adventure: Players run through beautiful 3D worlds, jumping, and exploring the unknown. Example: Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

EPISODES:

Episode 1: The Protest

Episode 2: The Fire

—intermission—

Episode 3: The Mine

Episode 4: The Path

—intermission—

Episode 5: The Circus / The Zoo

Episode 6: The Dream

—intermission—

Episode 7: The Factory

Episode 8: The Gods

—intermission—

Episode 9: The Machines

Episode 10; The Riot

Epilogue

Stills from asses.masses at the Theatre Centre’s Hybrid by Design Festival (2022)

[3] the event

During asses.masses, brave spectators take turns each night to step forward from the herd to seize the means of production and become the player. There are no instructions and there are no actors. It is up to each audience and their self-elected leaders to make decisions and play out their version of the game.

Think of it like a group coming together to binge-watch the newest series or have a marathon of their favourite films. Many of us do this all the time—we just don’t all have 100 friends and a theatre to do it in.

During the show, you can expect an asses.masses audience to be:

  • playing the game for at least 7hrs

  • calling out to offer or request help

  • taking turns with the controller

  • laughing (it’s funny and full of wordplay)

  • crying (particularly at the end)

Keys to a successful asses.masses experience:

    1. LONG DURATION: Once the game starts, the audience will take the time it requires to complete the game. The show cannot be interrupted after it begins and the creators of the project nor staff from the venue will not intervene.

    2. INTERMISSIONS: There are FOUR intermissions throughout the show, occurring every two episodes.

    3. SUSTENANCE: For each show, audiences require the ability to eat and drink within the venue. Think Vegetarian Food (with Vegan/Gluten Free options) and Drinks (Alcohol/Non-alcoholic options). Popcorn? Steamed buns? Burritos? Beer? Hard drinks? Kombucha? Every show is different. Whenever possible, we aim for this food to be included in the cost of the ticket.

    4. TIMING: asses.masses works best as a big game night. It should be scheduled after 1pm during weekends.

[4] full length video [The Theatre Centre, 2023]

Matthew Austin, Co-Director, MAYK

This was hands down one of the best live experiences I’ve ever had in a theatre, and it’s a group of people playing a video game. asses.masses is extremely clever and very entertaining, and you don’t have to have any gaming experience.

Milton Lim and Patrick Blenkarn are geniuses.

[5] Intermissions

During each of asses.masses’ FOUR intermissions, the audience is in control of how long the intermission lasts—sometimes they set a timer for 15 minutes, other times they just ‘feel’ for when to start again.

For each intermission, we serve more food and keep the bar open—think of it like getting a series of surprises over the course of the event. A typical food sequence is:

  • Pre-Show (and throughout): Popcorn

  • Intermission 1: Fruits, Veggies, Candy, Coffee, Tea

  • Intermission 2: Samosas

  • Intermission 3: Rice + Tofu or Soup or Falafel

  • Intermission 4: Ice Cream

Mayfest 2024 (Bristol)

PuSh 2024 (Vancouver)

In all presentations, the food is built into the ticket fee. These goods are ideally able to be consumed inside the theatre—as that helps to keep the energy up and the show moving forward. For drinks, we are keen to be able to offer both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks to audiences. We happy to work with an in house bar, as well as create partnerships with local breweries.

(See example food budget below in section [11])

 

[6] audience responses

Click the images to expand.



Aislinn Rose, General & Artistic Director, The Theatre Centre

When artists Patrick Blenkarn and Milton Lim brought asses.masses to Argentina, we witnessed audiences commit to a 7-hour epic in the format of a video game.

We saw audiences jump up and down when passing a really difficult level, brainstorming, and taking turns to work together. They were truly immersed in the journey of some adorable (and sassy) donkeys. Around every corner was a new surprise.

And I will never speak lightly of the artistry and rigour that has gone into this work. The story, writing, sound, and the level of detail is incredible. 

[7] artists + team

asses.masses is led by Patrick Blenkarn and Milton Lim. Coming from a mixture of performance training (devised and experimental theatre), reading and research (philosophy/psychology), as well as digital media (game engines and real-time interactive systems), Patrick and Milton’s collaborations have manifested in video game performance experiments, participatory installations, digital archives, and card games. For more information about both artists and their independent work, visit their websites: miltonlim.com and patrickblenkarn.com

The international team of artists behind the project are:

Patrick Blenkarn (Canada) — co-direction, text, programming, pixel art, 2D animation

Milton Lim (Canada) — co-direction, text, sound design, video, shaders, 3D visual effects

Laurel Green (Canada) — dramaturgy, text, touring producer

David Mesiha (Canada) — original music, sound design, audio implementation

Clarissa Picolo (Brazil) — pixel art, 2D animation, Portuguese translation

William Roth (France) — pixel art, 2D animation

Ariadne Sage (Germany) — 3D environments

Samuel Reinhart (USA) — additional programming

Marcos Krivocapich (Argentina) — Spanish translation

Gilles Poulin-Denis (Canada) — French translation

Julius De Michelis (Italy) — Italian translation

Birgit Schreyer Duarte (Canada/Germany) — German Translation

Emre Yıldızlar (Türkiye) — Turkish translation

UPCOMING

2024.10.26 | Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin, DE (DE) — German language premiere

2024.11.10 | Theater im Pumpenhaus, Münster DE (DE)

2025.01.11 | Theater im Pumpenhaus, Münster DE (DE)

2025.02.02 | Mois Multi, CA (FR)

2025.02.15-16 | UMS (University of Michigan), USA (EN)

PREVIOUS

2024.06.20-06.21 | Inteatro Festival, Ancona, IT (IT)

2024.05.23-06.02 | Festival TransAmériques, Montréal, CA (FR/EN)

2024.05.18-19 | Mayfest, Bristol, UK (EN)

2024.01.20-2024.02.03 | PuSh International Performing Arts Festival, Vancouver, CA (EN)

2023.09.22-24 | The Theatre Centre, Toronto, CA (EN)*

*Nominated for Outstanding Immersive Work in Toronto, 2024 No Proscenium Award

2023.09.01-10 | Festival Internacional de Teatro Universitario (FITU), UNAM, Mexico City, MX (ES)

2023.06.09 | STAGES Festival, Dartmouth, CA (EN)

2023.06.8 | FOLDA, Kingston, CA (EN)

2023.03.02-04 | Buenos Aires International Festival (FIBA), Buenos Aires, AR (ES)

[in progress showings and development phases]

2022.05.12-14 | Hybrid by Design Festival, The Theatre Centre, Toronto, CA (EN)

2021.08.23–09.12 | Residency at The Theatre Centre, Toronto, CA

2021.08.23 | Spotlight Canada Pitch, Edinburgh Fringe, Edinburgh, UK

2021.07.01–07.31 | Development Residency, VIVO Media Arts, Vancouver, CA

2021.03.02–03.04 | Buenos Aires International Festival (FIBA), Buenos Aires, AR (ES)

2020.02.28 | Rotary Art Centre, Kelowna, CA

2020.01.09 | Darling Foundry, Montreal, CA

2019.11.22 | Digital Summit, Banff Centre for the Arts, Banff, CA

2019.11.20 | to the AWE, Calgary, CA

2019.07.31 | soft/WALL/studs Playtest, Singapore

2019.06.28–06.30 | Risk/Reward Festival for New Performance, Portland, USA

2018.12.01–12.10 | Creation Residency, Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, Burnaby, CA

 

Federico Irazábel, Artistic Director, Festival Internacional de Buenos Aires (FIBA)

asses.masses tiene un valor eminentemente artístico a través del que se redefine la noción de teatralidad, la de performer, la de texto dramático y la de puesta en escena, alienta un modo muy original de relación de la escena con la tecnología de un modo hasta ahora no visto ni trabajado al tiempo que también logra un valor político y social por su mirada sobre la construcción de un sujeto colectivo.

Este proyecto es una perfecta metáfora epistemológica a través de la que opinar sobre el mundo sin hacer esto de manera declamatoria y, sobre todo, sin renunciar a los procedimientos y figuras retóricas propias del lenguaje artístico.

Translation:

asses.masses has an eminently artistic value through which the notion of theatricality, that of performer, that of dramatic text and that of staging is redefined. It encourages a very original way of relating the stage to technology in a way that, until now, has not been seen or worked on, while also achieving political and social value for its gaze on the construction of a collective subject.

This project is a perfect epistemological metaphor through which to comment on the world without doing so in a declamatory way and, above all, without renouncing the procedures and rhetorical figures typical of artistic language.

[9] language + accessibility + additional hospitality

TRANSLATIONS

The story of asses.masses is told via visual text. Originally written in English, asses.masses is available for performance in the following languages:

  1. English

  2. Spanish (in a translation by Marcos Krivocapich)

  3. French (in a translation by Gilles Poulin-Denis)

  4. Portuguese (in a translation by Clarissa Picolo)

  5. Italian (in a translation by Julius de Michelis)

  6. German (in a translation by Birgit Schreyer Duarte—October 2024)

  7. Turkish (in a translation by Emre Yıldızlar—September 2025)

To produce a new translation of asses.masses, we need a $11,000 CAD. This includes $7,000 CAD for the translator, which, with enough notice, can be funded through the Canada Council for the Arts. The remaining costs cover our team’s artist fees for redrawing elements of the show and collaborating with the translator. Languages that do no use a latin alphabet will required additional costs for any additional programming required to incorporate or change game elements.

ACCESSIBILITY

  • EXTRA LIVE: All performances of asses.masses are ‘extra live’, which means that audience members are free to make noise, call out, eat, drink, enter/exit, and move about as needed. The theatre’s lighting also always stays at approx. 25-40% to ensure visibility within the audience.

  • ASL: We are currently testing methods for providing ASL interpretation for audience members and players. We are happy to discuss strategies and options.

  • CONTENT; asses.masses features coarse language, simulated sex between donkeys, simulated violence and murder, and strong revolutionist rhetoric. If the venue’s alcohol licence permits, young audiences are welcome at the discretion of their parents. If the game were to be published, it would be rated M for Mature. If it were a film, it would be rated R—but feels more like 14A.

 ADDITIONAL HOSPITALITY

  • TRANSPORTATION: Depending on the location, we have provided transportation after late night shows (ending after public transit is no longer an option) to accommodate those who need safe rides or designated drivers.

[10] community engagement

asses.masses is creates an ideal context for:

  1. Engaging people who play video games but don’t come to theatre

  2. Connecting with game developer and tech communities

  3. Bridging interactive media art communities with live performance communities

In addition to the theatrical production, there is also a roster of workshops, artist talks, and masterclasses that are available to be done, and that we would love to conduct, with local audiences and artists at this hyperlink.

Towards further connecting our team with local artists and sharing ideas, Patrick and Milton are also open to participating in any panels and dialogues hosted by presenter. Patrick and Milton also have experience hosting masterclasses, workshops, and in-depth artist talks about their broad practice of blending games, politics, and performance. If curious, see Patrick and Milton’s other collaborations, culturecapital, and FARCE.

Previous Masterclasses, Artist Talks, Workshops focusing on asses.masses and games + performance

2024.5.28 | Artist Talk, Digital Puppetry, FTA, Montréal

2024.5.27 | Artist Talk, Eka Shakuelem: Indigenous Youth Group, FTA, Montréal

2024.5.17 | Artist Talk, Pervasive Media Studio + Bristol Game Lab, Bristol

2023.12.05 | Presentation, Full Indie Game Developers, Vancouver

2023.09.21 | Undergraduate lecture, Toronto Metropolitan University, Toronto

2023.09.20 | Masterclass, University of Toronto BMO Lab, Toronto

2023.09.08 | Masterclass, Cátedra Bergman, UNAM, Mexico City

2023.04.03 | Artist Talk, Oficina Oswald de Andrade, Sao Paulo

2023.03.17 | Artist Talk, RESIDE.FIT, Recife

2021.09.05-12 | Workshop, Game Nights, The Theatre Centre, Toronto

 

[11] pricing

PERFORMANCE FEE

asses.masses has a scalable and negotiable fee depending on the number of performances. Note, all royalties and commission fees are to be already included in all fees.

Hospitality Costs

NEW TRANSLATION COSTS

To produce a new translation of asses.masses, we need a $11,000 CAD. This includes $7,000 CAD for the translator, which, with enough notice, can be funded through the Canada Council for the Arts. The remaining costs cover our team’s artist fees for redrawing elements of the show and collaborating with the translator. Languages that do no use a latin alphabet will required additional costs for any additional programming required to incorporate or change game elements.

TRAVEL COSTS

Travel, accommodations, and per diem costs of the (2) artists required to operate the event and, if applicable, the (1) agent are not included in the above fees; these additional costs can be negotiated.

GRANTS

Towards supporting future tours of asses.masses, our team is committed to applying for public funding. In these applications, we endeavour to include all additional costs to support the unique nature of the project. This can include, but is not limited to:

  • Additional cleaning fees for theatres that typically don’t allow food inside.

  • Overtime fees for technical staff in case the event exceeds 8 hours.

  • ASL interpretation costs

  • Safe late night transportation

[12] Example Schedules

NOTE: Due to the show’s length, asses.masses is only available for bookings on weekends. Based on our experiences touring the work, recommended start times are 1pm or 2pm, with the shows usually finishing by 10pm.

ONE SHOW SCENARIO

  • Wednesday: Company arrives

  • Thursday: Tech

  • Friday: Outreach/Workshops

  • Saturday: Performance #1 @ 2pm


TWO SHOW SCENARIO ON ONE WEEKEND

  • Wednesday: Company arrives

  • Thursday: Outreach/Workshops

  • Friday: Tech

  • Saturday: Performance #1 @ 2pm

  • Sunday: Performance #2 @ 2pm


TWO SHOW SCENARIO OVER TWO WEEKENDS (IDEAL)

  • Thursday: Company arrives

  • Friday: Tech

  • Saturday or Sunday: Performance #1 @ 2pm

  • Monday - Friday: Outreach/Workshops/Residency/Community Engagement

  • Saturday or Sunday: Performance #2 @ 2pm

[13] technical overview

For the full Tech Rider click here

PRESENTER/ARTIST CONTRIBUTIONS

Presenter will supply:

    1. Venue: Minimum stage stage: 12’ x 24’; approx. 100 seats; raked audience; Can consume food and drinks in the venue

    2. Projector: 1080p HD project; minimum 6000 lumens

    3. Sound: standard house venue sound setup with subwoofer

    4. Lighting: minimum 2-source four lights for spotlighting

    5. Set: A single black or white plinth, approximately 12in x 12in x 38in for the controller to sit upon

Artists will supply:

    1. Computers

    2. Controllers

    3. 150ft CAT6 cable + USB adaptor for the cable run to the controller

    4. 100ft CAT6 cable + HDMI adaptor for connecting to the projector

LOAD IN & TECH

It is the responsibility of the PRESENTER to ensure that theatre technician(s) are available for the following schedule:

  • At least (1) day load-in + tech, with time for the technicians to experience the show. 

  • The crew should try playing asses.masses if possible

  • Tech will consist of at least (2) hours to set up the computer, projectors, and cabling followed by at least (1) hour to focus lighting, map projection, and test the game

OPTIMAL SHOW TIMES

  • WEEKDAYS: after 6pm

  • WEEKENDS: after 1pm

  • Needs our own space (can’t be sharing schedule with something else within the same venue)