(set: $d to (t8n: "dissolve")+(t8n-time:1500ms))
<img src="https://i.imgur.com/wymU993.jpg">
You are here to see a soul about a village.
Something about...a secret society?
>> (link:"I was summoned here by a missive")[(show:?missiveintro)]
>> (link:"I am searching for somewhere this is not") [(show:?searchintro)]
>> (link:"I heard a baby bird wail in its shell") [(show:?birdintro)]
>> (link:"I found a note growing from the ground")[(show:?treeintro)]
>> (link:"I heard a tale of what this may be")[(show:?taleintro)]
|missiveintro)[$d[You received a note, a reply to your own summons. You had sent the sender on a quest but had not anticipated them to send you a quest of their own.
A quest, now, of your own.
Shall we...[[begin->missive]]?
(If the key isn't registering, you might need to yell.)
(link:"hint one")[(show:?missivehintone)] |missivehintone)[$d[look back at the message this link came from, the key is mentioned there, or it's up above too. | (link:"hint two")[(show:?missivehinttwo)]]]
|missivehinttwo)[$d[you'll need to put the key (and all after this) in ALL CAPS. | (link:"hint three")[(show:?missivehintthree)]]]
|missivehintthree)[$d[the key is BEGIN.]]]]
|searchintro)[$d[You find, or are sent, a dense square of words. Words that turn out to be place names, criss-crossed and hidden amongst lexical static.
There is one place, though, that can't be found in this square. The place that The Village could be...but is not.
<img src="https://i.imgur.com/nKRjs4V.png" alt="word search">
<a href="https://i.imgur.com/nKRjs4V.png">(open the image separately for download/print)</a>
Tell me, where should we [[(not)->search]] be going?
(link:"hint one")[(show:?searchhintone)] |searchhintone)[$d[the key can't be found in the word search. | (link:"hint two")[(show:?searchhinttwo)]]]
|searchhinttwo)[$d[ the key also has something in common with The Village's usual venue. | (link:"hint three")[(show:?searchhintthree)]]]
|searchhintthree)[$d[the key is SCOTLAND.]]]]
|birdintro)[$d[You gaze through your Twitter feed and, feeling nostalgic, decide to check in on <A href="https://twitter.com/bradstorer">a previous performer of The Village.</a>
You see that he's grown from being an opera singing fetus into...
Twink Gollum?
(Who knows what eggs will hatch into sometimes.)
You see that he's feeling nostalgic too, reminiscing about his gestation in a bedazzled roving incubator...
..."[[(a YELL)->bird]] with a bald cap".
(link:"hint one")[(show:?birdhintone)] |birdhintone)[$d[the key is on the Twitter feed of Bradley Storer, linked above or searchable with keywords in the story. | (link:"hint two")[(show:?birdhinttwo)]]]
|birdhinttwo)[$d[the key is the word that is YELLED in the quoted tweet. | (link:"hint three")[(show:?birdhintthree)]]]
|birdhintthree)[$d[the key is COMPLETE.]]]]
|treeintro)[$d[You wander around the site of The Village (at least, this virtual version, though perhaps there was time to make this physical).
You look at the trees and see a sticker with a word...
...since when do trees write?
<img src="https://i.imgur.com/ZW8Msnc.png">
The sticker also leads to a place - here.
What did the tree [[say->tree]]?
(link:"hint one")[(show:?treehintone)] |treehintone)[$d[the sticker would be on a tree in Edinburgh Gardens; in the meantime, use that image above to find the key. | (link:"hint two")[(show:?treehinttwo)]]]
|treehinttwo)[$d[the key is the two words on the right hand side of the sticker. | (link:"hint three")[(show:?treehintthree)]]]
|treehintthree)[$d[the key is REAL LIFE.]]]]
|taleintro)[$d[I have now talked you through my vision of The Village, a secret society built in collaboration with participating artists, a structure that grows with each new festival and each new project.
I've got some [[last words->tale]] for you.
What are they?
(link:"hint one")[(show:?talehintone)] |talehintone)[$d[you'll get this key when I come in for my interview, Tuesday at 2pm.
| (link:"hint two")[(show:?talehinttwo)]]]
|talehinttwo)[$d[if you can't or won't be at the interview, the key is also on your existing material.
| (link:"hint three")[(show:?talehintthree)]]]
|talehintthree)[$d[the key is MESMERABILIA.]]]](set: $d to (t8n: "dissolve")+(t8n-time:1500ms))
(set: $codeinput to (prompt: "the key is...", "enter key here"))
(if: $codeinput is "BEGIN")[(show: ?missivetext)]
(else:)[(goto: "the start")]
[$d[<img src="https://i.imgur.com/OGOqJdO.jpg">
The journey to The Village begins before the doors open.
Even before any tickets officially go on sale.
Before, even before, the first artist says Yes.
Share certain messages to your list, to your followers, to anyone wishing to connect to the Village.
Entice those who aren't connected already to do so, so they can get those messages too.
And in those messages, divulge the tip of those secrets: little clues, little words, little keys.
If they are canny, or curious, or cunning, those with the messages can use those keys right here and unlock the story of The Village.
Fragments of history, rumours and urban legends, enigmas.
Things that have happened, things that are to happen, things that may happen.
Announcements, dreams, potentialities.
The story of a secret society.
The stories can be factual, by the strictest sense of the term. This happened on this date and this time by this person. Verifiable, provable.
But where's the fun in that?
Write it between the real and fanciful - plausible, but improbable, but...
...maybe?
Because 'maybes' demand resolution, and resolution comes from engagement.
Whether through signing up for mailing lists or following online profiles, or even heading right for the door.
By joining the secret society.
Invite those that join to share their stories too, their own take on the lore of The Village.
Perhaps they have been once, twice, many times before.
Perhaps they have set up shop there, sung for their supper, enticed with their magic.
Perhaps they yearn to be a part of this mystery.
The fact that they've reached this far means they already are.
And every year, the story grows, with each new visitor and artist and regisseur.
With each new member of the secret society of The Village.
Growing branches and tendrils that extend beyond The Village.
A flower bloomed, a tale told.
>> [[Take me back for more->the start]]]]
(set: $d to (t8n: "dissolve")+(t8n-time:1500ms))
(set: $codeinput to (prompt: "the key is...", "enter key here"))
(if: $codeinput is "SCOTLAND")[(show: ?searchtext)]
(else:)[(goto: "the start")]
[$d[<img src="https://i.imgur.com/OCgdBWx.jpg">
Secret societies have entry requirements, have tests and challenges and riddles.
From familiar puzzles, like word searches and crosswords and connect-the-dots...
...to more complex endeavours with cryptography and translation and optical illusions.
Different forms for different minds for different rewards.
The rewards can be more than just another passage of lore.
They can be discount codes, or special gifts, or even exclusive entry to parts of The Village that remain hidden from the public eye.
The core Village team can make our own puzzles, and individual artists and stallholders and others with a stake in the society can set their own, in their own styles, with their own choice of rewards.
And they can be sent out any which way: lists, profiles, crowdfunding rewards, flyers, even out on the street.
All leading back here.
To the secret society.
To the Village.
>> [[Take me back for more->the start]]]]
(set: $d to (t8n: "dissolve")+(t8n-time:1500ms))
(set: $codeinput to (prompt: "the key is...", "enter key here"))
(if: $codeinput is "COMPLETE")[(show: ?birdtext)]
(else:)[(goto: "the start")]
[$d[<img src="https://i.imgur.com/HclZrUt.jpg">
The artists that make up The Village absolutely need to be part of the secret society shenanigans.
After all, they are the founding members.
There would not be much of a Village without them.
Participating artists can share their keys in manners similar (or not) to The Village.
Missives, puzzles, updates, even at other events.
Subtly interwoven in their work, or hidden in plain sight.
The portion of their audiences who pick up those keys and follow them here to The Village can get their own surprises from those artists.
A musician releases a demo song, a comedian tells a joke, an artisan teaches a skill.
The keys can even be redeemed at The Village itself - as passes to private shows, or prized backstage access, or anything else the artists wish to only share with those who seek out the keys.
The artists add on to the lore of the secret society, also transversing in that liminal space between real and fanciful.
Their characters become part of the legend of The Village and grow on beyond the festival.
In their own shows and their own missives and their own projects.
Connected yet uncaged.
>> [[Take me back for more->the start]]]]
(set: $d to (t8n: "dissolve")+(t8n-time:1500ms))
(set: $codeinput to (prompt: "the key is...", "enter key here"))
(if: $codeinput is "REAL LIFE")[(show: ?treetext)]
(else:)[(goto: "the start")]
[$d[<img src="https://i.imgur.com/9buucBM.jpg">
The best mysteries are often hidden in plain sight, only revealing themselves when you don't expect them to.
A sticker on a tree, a message in a bottle, a poster on a wall.
A key with an address leading back here.
Passersby that pick up on these keys can follow the trail back here and see what the keys do.
Their skills of observation are rewarded with entry into the secret society, information about The Village, snippets of lore.
If they wish, they may share pictures of their keys online, or discuss them amongst their peers.
See who else has noticed them too, piece the story together from different fragments scattered around Melbourne - or even beyond.
Those that aren't interested aren't going to notice.
Those that notice are going to be interested.
Mysteries yearn to be solved.
>> [[Take me back for more->the start]]]]
(set: $d to (t8n: "dissolve")+(t8n-time:1500ms))
(set: $codeinput to (prompt: "the key is...", "enter key here"))
(if: $codeinput is "MESMERABILIA")[(show: ?taletext)]
(else:)[(goto: "the start")]
[$d[<img src="https://i.imgur.com/ZA5MFi3.jpg">
People can still engage with The Village even without partaking in the secret society, without finding any keys or solving any puzzles.
They could still buy a ticket, show up, enjoy the festivities.
Not even every artist has to join in, if they wish not to.
But the secret society allows so many opportunities for further engagement with The Village.
Further collaborations between The Village, artists, audience members.
Additional shenanigans within and beyond The Village.
Shared secrets, connections that grow, whispers in coffeeshops and meetups at gigs and private groups online.
And this can grow, festival after festival, year after year.
Bridging the new with the old, one venue with another.
Plant some seeds now, even if just a few, and see what they bloom into.
>> <A href="mailto:[email protected]">Keen?</a>
>> [[Let me do this whole thing again->the start]]
]]