What do The Waypoint and PB & J have in common? In North Adams next weekend they are both about reincarnation.  Say what?

In conjunction with Saturday’s production of The Waypoint — a play which takes reincarnation as its theme and which began its life as part of the Bazaar Production’s EarlyStages program at the Berkshire Fringe — our neighbor The Porches is offering a special “Get-a-Waypoint” package which includes overnight acomodations, dinner with a special “reincarnation” menu created by Red Lion Inn chef Brian Alberg, two tickets to the performance, and breakfast on Sunday morning.    Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re headed to Sundance you should try to get tickets to Sam Taylor-Wood’s film, Nowhere Boy. (Salon.com loved it.)  Sam’s work is part of These Days: Elegies for Modern Times, currently on view through the middle of February on the second and third floors.

As Tripod Versus the Dragon show time approaches, fantastic Performing Arts interns Maggie and Jesse have been increasingly excited about seeing our resident artists in action. They decided that they wanted to get to know Scod, Yon, Gatesy, and The Dragon a little better, and are sharing the wealth. Take the quiz below or on facebook and see who you are most like!

1. What is your spirit animal?

a. A dog. But a lazy one that sleeps in front of the fire all day

b. Panther

c. The mighty shitzu…

d. Manticore

Read the rest of this entry »

Super great new Marketing Intern Jess has been brushing up on her D&D knowledge to help even the RPG novice feel prepared for the greatness that will be Tripod Versus the Dragon!

I have a confession to make.  It’s been a long time coming, but I knew I would have to cop to it eventually.

I have been faking my geek.

I know, I know.  It’s hard to believe.  I can recite all the Batman movies by heart.  I could tell Aayla Secura from Zuckuss if I found myself in a galaxy far, far away.  In college, I took a class called The Physics of Marine Mammals because it sounded awesome (and it totally was).  But when it comes down to where it counts, I was faking it.  And where it counts is D&D.

Dungeons and Dragons, the role-playing game that started role-playing games, was a language I did not speak until 2 weeks ago.  I laughed at jokes I did not understand about orcs and mages and dice with more sides than anyone could possibly need.  I nodded and smiled when told I’d make a great DM.  However, when I learned I had been out-geeked by Vin Diesel, I knew it had to stop.

This weekend, MASS MoCA will debut an opera titled Tripod Versus the Dragon, and I am going to laugh at every joke.  For the first time, it will be the laugh of “Yes, I got that, because I am geeky and fabulous.�  If you are nervous about not speaking Ye Olde D&D, I encourage you to share in my cheat-sheet.

D&D Data&Dialect

(all instructions based on the 4^th edition of the game, unless otherwise noted)

D&D, DnD – Dungeons and Dragons; very popular, complicated, mythical game involving a usually set but possibly rotating group of individuals who act out scenarios as characters they create

RPG – Role-Playing Game; players act and speak as characters they create during game play

DM – Dungeon Master; guide, storyteller, referee

PC – Player Characters; everyone who is not a DM

NPC – Non-Player Characters, such as monsters, etc.; played by the DM

Monsters – animals, mythical creatures, general antagonists

Dragon – most dangerous creature, fantastic singing voice

Girl – strange mythological creature; most sightings unconfirmed

Books – Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, and Dungeon Master’s Guide are the 3 core ones; others may be used but are not required

Designing Characters

Ability Scores – traits that dictate a character’s skills such as Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma; determined by dice roll

Race – species; Dragonborn, Dwarf, Eladrin, Elf/High Elf, Gnome/Rock Gnome, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Halfling, Human, Tiefling

Character Class – call of duty, roll

Cleric, Clr – healer

Fighter, Ftr – defending warrior

Paladin, Pal – holy knight, divine spellcaster

Ranger, Rgr – skilled woodsman, agile striker

Rogue, Rog – sneaky, nimble trickster

Warlock, Wlk – dark leader, invokes magic through darkened soul

Warlord, Wld – master tactician, commander

Wizard, Wiz – arcane magic user

Alignment – ethical and moral perspective; typically illustrated in 3×3 grid but 4^th edition offers a streamlined view with only Lawful Good, Good, Unaligned, Evil, and Chaotic Evil

Lawful Good – crusader; Dick Tracy, Seeley Booth

Neutral Good – benefactor; Aslan, Albus Dumbledore

Chaotic Good – rebel with a conscience; Robin Hood, Captain Mal

Lawful Neutral – judge; James Bond, Inspector Javert

Neutral – balancer; Rick Blaine, Han Solo

Chaotic Neutral – anarchist, free spirit; Tyler Durden, The Plague

Lawful Evil – tyrant; Megatron, Voldemort

Neutral Evil – selfish malefactor; Bob Ewell, Fenrir Greyback

Chaotic Evil – destroyer; Sweeney Todd, Reavers

Game Play – requires 7 2 Liter bottles of carbonated beverage, several bags of snacks; players discuss plans with DM in character

Campaign – series of related adventures

Dice – 5 dice of different sides (a typical 6-sided die is written as a d6) used to determine penalties, processes, etc.; d4, d6, d8, d20, 2 d10 (used together as a d100)

Figures, Grid – assumed but not required; can be bought or made

Dressing Up – also not required, but potentially awesome

Experience Points, XP – increase with level, awarded to characters for doing tricky things

Hit Points, HP – measure of life; lost by characters when attacked successfully

Attack Bonus – quantitative measure of fighting prowess

Saving Throw – a high number rolled will reduce or avoid damage from an attack

Happy spell casting, and enjoy the show!

Marketing Intern Jess has nightmares about Grell.

We’re delighted to be able to offer you the first listen to new songs that Tripod just wrote, here in North Adams,  for Tripod vs. The Dragon which is coming up this Saturday. Listen now to Bard and Ivory.

The woman’s voice you hear belongs to the wonderful Elana Stone who plays The Dragon in the show.

But we are wondering: Does that mean Tripod should actually be Quadpod or maybe just Table?

Video Vortex = a weekly installment of our favorite videos from MASS MoCA artists and trailers for upcoming events, plus a few random viral creations as well.

Tripod

Having the Tripod team on campus has been amazing so far; they even went to our local trivia night with a few of our staff members! Believe me they are just as funny in real life as they are in their videos. The show on the 30th is going to be an epic one!

Grace Potter

Looking ahead to March, we are really excited to be hosting vermont based rock songstress Grace Potter and her band the Nocturnals.

Random Goodness

And a little Sol LeWitt fun to get your weekend started!

Cheers,

Brittany