Larp House Presents: Boundary Waters

Sunset over a wooded lake with a canoe in the foreground

Why do we do we travel? Why do we go to the world’s wild places? Why do we paddle or hike for days, when we could reach the same destination in a few hours by car? In a world of elevators, why do we climb mountains? Sometimes we go into the wilderness to figure out what matters. We take on burdens to learn how much we can carry, and who will help us bear the load. We go to liminal spaces to find a path forward, or the way home. Sometimes we all need to go to the Boundary Waters.

In Boundary Waters, a group of six strong women facing difficult choices travel through the lakes and portages of the Boundary Water Canoe Area, heading for the Canadian border. As they paddle, they contend with the inner voices of hope and fear, guilt and love. At portages, they carry heavy burdens over difficult terrain, just as they must carry the burdens of their past and future choices over many paths. Sometimes they share each other’s burdens. At night they gather in the dark and liminal space of a campfire under the stars. As they travel, the beauty of wild places will hone who they are and what they value most. When they reach the border, each must make a choice.

What

Boundary Waters, a live-action game for two to six players

As featured at Make a Scene!

When

24 August 2019 from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Where

Hidden Falls Regional Park, St Paul (Google Maps)

Metro Transit routes 46 and 134 stop about half a mile away. We’ll solicit carpool needs and offers.

Registration

There is no cost to participate in this larp.

If you are interested in playing, fill out our Boundary Waters Sign-Up Form by Sunday, 18 August 11:59 pm. This larp will run as long as we have a minimum player count by this deadline, so please register by or before August 18th if possible!

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8 August 20197 August 2019

Salon du Larp House: Glamourous Night playtest

Wizards, humans, magical creatures, and faeries attend a mundane community’s summer solstice festival. Magic is in the air, voices are stilled, and dreams can come true at a cost. Tonight shifting auras will grant attendees terrifying mystical power to pursue their desires. How far will you go to get what you want? When you are all-powerful, what is actually important to you?

What

Glamourous Night is a larp about faerie magic and wizards’ hubris for 15-25 players. It is an abstract and musical experience exploring the themes of temptation and choice. This event is a playtest for an unfinished larp designed by Jon Cole.

In Glamourous Night, players use two movement techniques to perform ensorcelling magic as their characters. Characters will experience joyful exploration and tempting darkness as they share, subjugate, and are subjugated.

When

Sunday September 1st, 2019, from 1:30 to 6 pm

Background

This is an alpha playtest of a larp. Glamourous Night isn’t finished, and this will be one of the first times it is played. There might be big holes missing or rough patches in play. If this larp sounds interesting to you even though it may not be a coherent start to finish narrative experience, we will be very glad to have you join us!
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13 June 201913 June 2019

Larp House Presents: Sarabande

At the Moulin Rouge: The Dance, a painting by Toulouse-Lautrec

In a small café in Montmartre, a group of people meet day after day at the turn of the 19th century—all entangled in issues of love, beauty, freedom and truth. With their individual rules, conflicts, fears, assumptions and commitments, they play through the same routines again and again. It is as if their lives are frozen in one atonal unstable harmony seeking redemption, but unable to find peace. Day after day they live out these issues through their art, trying desperately to break free or to find that one true love. Day after day goes past, and for each day another passed chance.

But tomorrow… tomorrow will be different…

The participants will play the twelve persons who attend this café day after day and meet again and again. Throughout the scenario, they will be given the possibility to either play out their conflicts in a series of scenes or to play out their internal tensions in small musical and bodily intermezzos. Together we will create these twelve fates and live them out through the use of body, emotion, music and art rather than talking about it. We play with our bodies rather than our heads.

What

Sarabande, a musical roleplaying scenario for eight to twelve players. (Plus on est de fous, plus on rit!)

When

Sunday, 14 July 2019 from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Where

EMERGE Community Development in North Minneapolis

Directions

Free parking on site. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.

Registration

If you are interested in playing, fill out our Sarabande sign-up form. by Sunday, 5 July 11:59 pm. This larp will run as long as we have a minimum player count by this deadline, so please register by or before July 5th if possible!

We are requesting a pay-what-you want goodwill donation ($5 to $10 suggested) to support the work of EMERGE in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.

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7 June 2019

Larp House Presents: Gone

Lise suffers from dementia and is slowly disappearing from the world, while her family watches. Unable to do anything. Soon she will be gone.

Up until now the family has managed to push old conflicts aside and pull together in taking the best possible care of Lise. But the disease is wearing on them and everybody is nearing their breaking point.

Gone is about being a relative to a person suffering from dementia—not about having dementia yourself. The scenario follows her husband and three adult children the last year before she is admitted to a nursing home. It is also about loss as you watch the one you love disappear day by day, as well as finding yourself and rediscovering your family within the tragedy.

What

Gone, a serious roleplaying scenario about family, grief, and loss for four players

Best Scenario, Fastaval 2018
Best Presentation, Fastaval 2018
The Audience Award, Fastaval 2018

When

Sunday, 30 June 2019 from 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Where

Minneapolis Central Library at 300 Nicollet Mall

Directions

Paid parking is available; we encourage a car pool or transit!

Registration

There is no cost for admission to this event.

If you are interested in playing, fill out our Gone sign-up form. before Sunday, 23 June 11:59 pm. This larp will run as long as we have four players by June 23, so please register by or before then if possible!

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9 May 20199 May 2019

Larp House Presents: The Hirelings

"Five Soliders and a Turk on Horseback" by Albrecht Dürer

In a world of perilous adventure and dark dungeons filled with precious riches, one group of aspiring adventurers are having their first day in a new job, and it’s not quite working out as planned.

The Hirelings is a role-playing game in which you play out the preparations and the aftermath of a failed dungeon crawl.

It draws heavily upon clichés from fantasy role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, video games, comics, and fantasy literature. In addition there are also elements from modern life, like job interviews, group therapy, sports, and team building. The characters in the game are all novice adventurers, who are preparing to head out on their first real quest.

What

The Hirelings, a live-action fantasy comedy role-playing game for three to ten players (The more the merrier!)

When

Sunday, 9 June 2019 from 3 pm to 6 pm

Where

A North Minneapolis nonprofit located near Broadway and Emerson. Players will be given details after they are registered.

Parking on site. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.

Registration

If you are interested in playing, fill out our The Hirelings Sign-Up Form by Sunday, 2 June 11:59 pm. This larp will run as long as we have a minimum player count by this deadline, so please register by or before June 2nd if possible!

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2 May 201911 May 2019

Larp House Presents: The Homeowners Association

row houses, the street lined with plastic waste bins

UPDATE: This event has been re-scheduled to May 22. Registration is live!

“I think it is about time something was done about the filthy road signs in the neighborhood. I think it’s a bloody disgrace.”

“One might say that one should leave such things to the proper authorities since they have the responsibility.”

“You could pay some of the adorable children from the neighborhood to sweep the area with a nice bucket of soapy water and a sponge; then you would have it fixed in a jiffy.”

“We will get to all that later, surely, but first we have some more important things to discuss.”

The Homeowners Association is at once a humorous caricature of those embroiled in a petty bid for power and a personal drama in which those same people struggle with the demands of their personal lives.

Each board member is defined by their particular manner of phrasing and use of body language, which makes them look rather ridiculous to one another, especially in the board meetings where tempers run high. What begins as a mutual attempt by the board members to desperately try to impose their will on the board meetings and by extension their neighborhood becomes something different as they get to know each other outside of board meetings. What will happen to all of their plans, ideals, and conflicts when they suddenly know their opponents on a personal level?

What

The Homeowners Association is a comedic live-action scenario about low-stakes high-drama arguments for four players.

Winner: Otto Award for Best Characters, Fastaval 2017
Winner: Otto Award for Best Scenario, Fastaval 2017

When

Updated: 22 May 2019 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Where

Updated: Minneapolis Central Library at 300 Nicollet Mall

Directions

Paid parking is available; we encourage a car pool or transit!

Registration

There is no cost for admission to this event.

If you are interested in playing, fill out our The Homeowners Association sign-up form before Tuesday, 14 May 11:59 pm. This larp will run as long as we have a minimum player count by May 14, so please register by or before then if possible!

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22 March 201919 May 2019

Larp House Presents: POP!

Update: Sorry to burst your balloon, but this event has been cancelled.

The warm hum of a CRT monitor is drowned out by the scream of a dial-up modem. As Internet access becomes ubiquitous, people with obscure sexual interests are beginning to find one another in anonymous forums. A cursor floats over a hyperlink to looner-landing private forums 18+ only.

On one bulletin board service, a group of people connect over their common sexual interest in balloons. Who are the people behind the keyboard? What nascent community do they form, and how does it change when they meet in person for the first time?

What

POP! is a live-action game about online communities, for 8 to 12 players.

Specifically, it’s about an online community of people who love and fetishize latex balloons.

Players will immerse into the warm, soothing atmosphere of a nostalgic Internet via private messenger, forum posts, and chat rooms. At the end of play, the characters will meet for for the first time at an in-person meet-up event, which might be a joyful revelation or an awkward trainwreck. While this game is about a very specific community, the themes of finding belonging are universal.

When

~~Saturday, 25 May 2019, from 2 to 5 pm~~

Where

POP! will take place at SpringBOX, located at 262 University Ave W in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Parking is available on site. METRO Green Line and bus lines stop nearby.

Directions

Tickets

Get a “ticket” by filling out our POP! registration form before 11:59 pm on Sunday, 19 May. Unlike some of our other events, these tickets are first-come first-serve. Once you have a ticket, you don’t need to do anything else besides show up to play. In the unlikely event that too many people sign up, we will solicit volunteers to drop out of the event in exchange for a “golden ticket” of instant admittance to their next event with us.

SpringBOX is a space for community events and programming, operated by Springboard for the Arts. We are requesting a pay-what-you-want donation ($5-10 suggested) to support the work of SpringBOX in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.

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7 February 20197 February 2019

Larp House Presents: Sing Your Heart Out

Who thought that a singing competition was a good idea for a nonprofit fundraiser? Now six nonprofit coworkers with a casual singing group have just one week to turn their setlist into something professional. They will have to wow the judges with their vocal talents if they can hope to land the multi-million dollar grant that will keep the doors open on their community organization. Tensions will mount, drama will ensue, and everyone will sing to express their true feelings!

What

Sing Your Heart Out is a live-action game for five players about a singing group composed of very dramatic people. Think Glee, Pitch Perfect, Fame, and A Chorus Line.

When

Sunday 24 February 2019, from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm

Where

A North Minneapolis nonprofit located near Broadway and Emerson. Players will be given details after they are registered.

Parking on site. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.

Registration

We are requesting a pay-what-you-want goodwill donation ($5 suggested) to support the work of the nonprofit in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.

If you are interested in participating, fill out our Sing Your Heart Out registration form before 11:59 pm on Sunday, 17 February. We’ll let you know if you are in the larp by Monday, 18 February.

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4 January 20195 January 2019

Larp House Presents: So You Think You Can Dance?

During the 2002 Israeli military invasion of Ramallah, people were arrested at random and put placed in a transitional prison camp while they decide whether to release the prisoners or transfer them to a permanent prison.

By coincidence a group of former classmates from Birzeit University are arrested in the middle of the night. They are held at this prison camp with hands tied and eyes covered.

In So You Think You Can Dance? the players will take the roles of characters that each represent different political views on how to end the occupation, as well as different visions for the Palestinian State. During the scenario the characters will revisit their political arguments from 1993 (year of the first Oslo Accords), and explore how these arguments and political views have developed by 2002.

What

So You Think You Can Dance? is an educational live-action game for non-Palestinians about the internal Palestinian political situation, for 5 to 10 players.

When

Sunday, 20 January 2019, from 2 pm to 6 pm

Where

So You Think You Can Dance? will take place at SpringBOX, located at 262 University Ave W in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Parking on site. METRO Green Line and bus lines stop nearby.

Directions

Registration

If you are interested in participating, fill out our So You Think You Can Dance? registration form before 11:59 pm on Saturday, January 12th. We’ll let you know if you are in the larp by Monday January 14th.

SpringBOX is a space for community events and programming, operated by Springboard for the Arts. We are requesting a pay-what-you-want goodwill donation ($5 suggested) to support the work of SpringBOX in appreciation for the use of their space. No one will be turned away if they are unable to make a donation.

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18 December 20185 January 2019

Larp House Presents: Uwe Boll’s Christmas Special

Larp House Presents: Uwe Boll's Xmas Special

(Update: The event is on Sunday, 30 December. We apologize for any confusion!)

Meanwhile, it is Christmas Eve in Jersey City. Families gather for dinner. Hope is in the air. But for one family this Christmas will be fraught with danger. Little do they know that their father, Vernor Cedrac, was involved with the Ultra Sechs program. Or that Karma, loving mother and daughter and host of the family’s Christmas feast, is one of the hidden offspring of the alien vampires. What other surprises lie in store for the Cedracs as they uncover family secrets and learn the true meaning of Christmas?*

What

Uwe Boll’s Christmas Special is a holiday-themed live-action comedy game for 8 to 12 players, designed to simulate the delicious chaos of a hypothetical Christmas special directed by controversial German director Dr. Uwe Boll. Players take the role of miscast actors starring in a genre mash-up gone awry. This game is game a tongue-in-cheek homage to Boll’s work: off-color video game adaptations and tasteless shooter flicks that shock, enthrall, bore and occasionally move DVD audiences worldwide.

When

Sunday, 30 December 2018, from 2 pm to 5 pm

Where

A North Minneapolis nonprofit located near Broadway and Emerson. Players will be given details after they are registered.

Parking on site. Metro Transit lines 5, 14, 30, and 32 stop nearby.

Registration

If you are interested in participating, fill out our Uwe Boll’s X-mas Special registration form before 11:59 pm on Friday, December 21st. We’ll let you know if you are in the larp by Monday, December 24th.

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