Drama Libre

 

By Netera Landar

The setting for Open a Book Open A World on Saturday, March 21.

Drama Libre will celebrate its 1,000th party on Sept. 12, 2026. Now that’s devotion!

Xerxes Sismondi and his partner, the late Peachy Sassoon, hosted their first Drama Libre party on Nov. 4, 2006. Their goal was to create a place in Second Life where people could escape the drama of both real life and Second Life, enjoy great music, and immerse themselves in pure creativity. That mission hasn’t changed in 20 years.

Rendal as the Cheshire Cat and Mystic.

“When Peachy and I first started going to clubs, we loved the energy, but always felt the themes didn’t take full advantage of what SL could do. SL is a platform where you can literally build anything – so why not dance on Mars instead of just wearing a spacesuit,” said Xerxes. 

So they learned to build one prim at a time. Soon, they recognized the joy of creating something new each week and seeing people’s reactions when they arrived motivated them to continue. 

Amber and John from The Wizard of Oz.

“At its heart, Drama Libre has always been about good music, good people, and no drama,” Xerxes admitted. “Peachy used to say our goal was simple: ‘Everyone should have a good time.’ That spirit still guides us today.”

At first, they thought about building a year’s worth of sets and rotating them. That idea lasted around five minutes, said Xerxes. 

“The team wanted something new every week, and honestly, so did we. Now we take two weeks each summer and two weeks each December for a break. Except for four Saturdays, we build every week of the year,” said Xerxes.

Rinaldo Debevec as a bookworm.

During those early years, coming up with themes was easy because everything was new. After hosting hundreds of parties, it became more difficult, having already featured many themes. 

“It takes brainstorming, teamwork, and a lot of imagination,” said Xerxes. “Today we have tools like mesh, Animesh, EEP, and PBR materials that let us build things we never could have dreamed of in 2006. After nearly a thousand parties, the excitement of creating something new each week is still what drives us.”

When it comes to organizing their parties every two or three months, the build team creates a schedule for the builders and DJs. The team includes: Dagmar Klaar, Cathy Ryder, Rinaldo Debevec, Patty Gummibaum, and Xerxes. A different builder becomes the build manager each week. They schedule it so each builder works with each DJ at least once during each rotation.

“The build manager chooses the theme, shapes the concept, and guides the overall look. Once the idea survives the team’s friendly interrogation, the manager writes a Prebuild Concept on a notecard that includes: the theme, major set pieces, special effects, scripts, and even the EEP settings. The notecard is then sent to the team.

“From there, everyone picks what they want to build. We aim to finish by Thursday so the manager can pack the set into a rez box. Friday, we swap out last week’s build. Saturday night is the party – and during the party, we announce the next theme and play the teaser. And by the following Monday, we restart our process again,” said Xerxes.

He added that they have been lucky to have amazing DJs over the years. Some are still with them, while others have moved on. They currently have Alexis Radikal, Noctoon Edelweiss, Ironman Zeplin, Rinaldo Debevec, Zathras Afarensis, and Magda Kameneva.

Zynthar in front of the Wizard of Oz book, representing its magic and our love for the novel.

Xerxes said they take the themes seriously. Some aren’t difficult to match songs with, such as Woodstock, Moulin Rouge, and holidays. Some are more challenging.

“We’ve had themes like Oumuamua, Siberian Gulag, Pompeii, or Up Helly Aa! Watching the DJs puzzle out playlists for those is half the fun,” he said. “What I love most is that our DJs approach Drama Libre with joy. They support each other, share tips, and feed off the creativity of the builds. That energy makes every set feel alive.”

On average, about 30 people attend Drama Libre parties, with weekly attendance ranging from 16 to 45. Xerxes said it depends on the theme, season, and other events on the grid at that time. 

Asked what makes their venue unforgettable, Xerxes replied, “I think it’s the atmosphere – the builds, the music, the creativity, and the people. Peachy used to say we proved you can have an amazing time in SL without sex, without drama, without all the complications. She was right. For us, hosting was never just a job. We wanted to enjoy ourselves, too. Yes, we’re busy greeting people and keeping things running, but we’re also dancing and laughing right alongside everyone else. That energy is contagious.”

Xerxes as one of many banned books.

Xerxes added that every Saturday night, you step into a brand-new world built just for that moment. Sharing that with a group of people who are excited to be there – that’s what makes every party at Drama Libre unforgettable.

When it comes to memorable parties, Xerxes said it’s hard to pick just one. He did mention a few sets that were unforgettable. Their “Back to the Future” set transformed every ten minutes to match each timeline in the movie series. Recently, they used the same “scene-swap” scripting for their “7 Deadly Sins” event. Each sin appeared as a new environment. He said watching the world shift around the dancers in real time was incredible.

“Our ‘Mad Max’ set had a massive truck barreling down a desert highway – so realistic some people joked that it made them motion-sick. We’ve done underwater cities where guests had to board a submarine to reach the party, and survival themes where people teleported into a burning airplane before escaping to a deserted island,” Xerxes said.

Sky from Alice in Wonderland, and Capt. Halpin.

Dagmar often mentions “Art for Escher’s Sake,” a mind-bending tribute to M.C. Escher. Cathy loves the historical sets, especially “Battle of Britain,” where WWII planes buzzed in the airfield during the party. Rinaldo likes the annual Winter Skate sets that remain out sometimes through January.

For more information about Drama Libre – including weekly themes, photos, videos, and event announcements – visit www.dramalibre.com
 

Netera Landar 

 

Journeys Across the SL14B: Dragon Island and the Stages

By Bixyl Shuftan

From Sunday June 18 to Sunday June 25, the main event to celebrate Second Life's fourteenth anniversary, the Second Life Fourteenth Birthday, also known as the SL14B, is taking place. The event has had it's drawbacks, notably the lag caused by all those avatars dropping in (and whatever they're carrying) which drives some residents to visit only after Midnight, or the few days after the official closing in which the sims are left up. And some communities don't bother with exhibits, either to concentrate on the Relay for Life or for some other reason.

But despite the troubles "The Birthday" has always been popular. When Linden Lab announced in 2012 that they would no longer be organizing another Second Life Birthday event, following the initial shock some residents stepped forward to try and organize one of their own, and have continued to do so since to this fifth resident-run SLB event in a row (SL3B was organized by the residents but the Lab contributed several sims).

There was too much to see everything in the first few days, but I could get some peeks around.

 The official entrance is at SL14B Impressive (96/122/80), which is called Dragon Mountain."Here Be Dragons," says the sign, and there certainly are.

There's one dragon standing atop the mountain, breathing fire.

There are also flyable dragons you can hop on and ride.

The mountain had a welcome center.

 And inside one could find teleports to various places on the SLB grounds.

 Ever get the feeling you're being watched?

The SL12B had a noted train build. The train for this one however was off the rails.

And the mountain had a balloon one could get on.

However, it landed on the road where the air bag vanished and the basket turned into a pod.

Leaving me to go about the exhibits.

 On Press Day, I had some trouble getting in. But it was taken care of by Doc Gascoigne. I waited a while for a tour, as every year before there had been one. But when I finally asked, I was told there would be none, later told that from their point of view the writers and bloggers had been going their own way rather than take one. But Treacle Darlandes

 The biggest structure at the Birthday grounds is the Cake Stage. Once again, it has been designed and made by Mikati Slade. She has been the "Baker" four times in the past six years.

 As a build, "The Cake" is massive, taking up four sims.

The build looked different in ways from Mikati's previous stages, but still retained her style.

 "I think more each year, it looks really fab," Terrace commented.

The reason the Cake Stage is so big is so that larger numbers of people can listen to a single performer in the four corners where the sims meet.

In theory, over thirty can dance in each sim for an audience of over 120.

Treacle next took me to the Live Stage at , SL14 Incredible, "I like this build its quite an urban feel."

There were some people nearby who soon came out on stage.

Treacle told me, "These nice folks are stage staff and greeters."

I also noticed some "soap bubbles" which floated around, and were still around when I checked the place later during events.

Next she took me to the DJ Stage, in SL14B Astonish. It resembled a fancy top hat.

Getting up there meant going up a ribbon, of which where you stepped a hexagon would briefly glow, leaving a trail as you went up.

 Near the stage were a few small amusement part attractions.

I would later drop by here during an event (note, my appearance then was due to a Relay "Bid Me" event).

 Next was "Stage Left" at SL14 Stupendous and Mesmerize.

 This enormous build resembles a Chinese lion sculpture, though with three heads, which move around, and occasionally puff smoke. It was build by Faust Steamer, "This is the 3rd year this builder has been at SLB I think. or maybe four."

It's a little unnerving when one looks down at you, as if contemplating having you for lunch, in a bad way.

There was quite a bit of detail.

Sitting on top of the lion is the stage.

Which was where the parties were held, the performers just in front of the curtain in the back.

That's it for now from the SL14B. Stay tuned for more pictures, of the "Max Mystery Land," the resident exhibits, and more.

Bixyl Shuftan

Antiquity

By Becky "Sha" Shamen

 During our time as a Newser Reporter, we have explored many areas of the Second Life Grid. Our writing style was strongly influenced by a movie seen in childhood. Bambi's friend, Thumper, was told, by his mom, "If you can't find anything nice to say about somebody, don't say anything at all." When we hear of a possible location to write about, our first trip there is a short visit, to get an intuitive feeling of the land and it's residents. Intuition is hard to put into words, but within a half hour one of two thoughts will enter our mind. It's either, "I can't wait to tell readers about this adventure," or "there's no story here."

   If you were to put all of the sims in the grid together, it would form a square of 610 square miles. By comparison, a single sim is only about .39 sq.mi. and there are currently 24229 active sims on the grid. So, how does this reporter find these small areas that are fun adventures, in such a big world? Newser staff meets once a month and the Editor, Bixyl Shuften, usually provides leads to potential sims. Another source is the Destination Guide, but this can be hit or miss when looking for a fun place, and Sha has frequently wondered how much the sim owner had to pay to get a mention in the guide. One of our favorite search techniques is to open the World Map and pan and zoom around the grid. We look for sim clusters which suggest community minded residents. The layout of the terrain, streets and buildings will give us an idea of the level of the ideal and practical skills that have developed in these communities.

   Studying the map, we found a 13 sim cluster. Each of the sim names began with "Antiquity" and there were massive buildings on many of them. We knew, before ever setting foot there, this would be a Great Adventure.

We select an open field on the North Western sim. The landing puts us at the foot of Mount St. Bruno, so we climb to the top for a better view of the country to be explored. There is a gathering spot on the top of the mountain; a clue that the natives might be friendly. From up here, it is clear that it will require several visits just to get a look at everything, so we start walking South, with plans of zig-zagging through all 13 sims. 

 

As our exploration began, we notice there is another person about 2000 meters up, showing up on radar. Minutes later, this same individual sent an instant-message, which was very unusual. She said that she had seen our name on her radar and it seemed to be a name that she was familiar with. After thinking a bit, she recalled that it was the name of her favorite Newser Reporter, who had inspired her to go on many new adventures of her own. We continued chatting, while taking notes in the buildings that Sha was inspecting. Then the message sender informed us that she was a local resident, named Cosette Rouages, who's job was to write scripts, used in the builds. She was very excited that her favorite reporter was there to do an article about Antiquity. After a bit more chat, she invited us for a look at "the other half" of Antiquity. 

 

It turns out, at the 2000m altitude, the sky platforms cover the entire 13 sims. A TP up and we spent hours talking and becoming friends. She also wanted to arrange for a private tour, with the owner of all the sims, Jacon Cortes de Bexar. Both of us live in the same real-life time zone and as 4:30 am rolled around, we agreed to meet again, soon. It would be necessary to return several more times, to take in all there is to see and do.

 

   There hadn't been many notes or pictures taken, on the first visit, but that is par for the course.  The plan now was to attend an event at Cutlass and head back to Antiquity after. As we came on line to prepare for the evening's events, there was already an IM waiting to be read. This time, it was from the owner, Jacon Bexar. Cosette had told him all about our meeting and he wanted me to come for a private tour. As soon as my event was over, we headed back to our original LM  in Antiquity. After landing, Cosette appeared on radar, at ground level, standing in a small group.  The welcome committee was made up of Jacon, Cosette and two other Ladies. 

 

After introductions and other pleasantries, Jacon would TP the group to his latest master build, a scale replica of Buckingham Palace. To date, this build has taken three and a half years and even every texture is from the real palace. Through out the tour, there are easels set up, with photos of the original. Jacon says, be sure to look up at the ceilings in each room. Each is a unique work of art. We told Jacon that the most difficult part about writing an article on Antiquity would be to avoid starting every sentence with OMG or WOW. When our readers visit Antiquity for themselves, they can wear out their own list of expletives.

 

   Back at ground level, I traveled to all the sims and took lots of pictures. Since this is an article and not a book, it will include some photos and brief comments. If space is limited for the article, the full length original and all the photos can be found at shaadventures.blogspot.com

 

The Antiquity Cathedral made me a bit nervous, because there is an autobot (the sim's name for bots that respond to you, not the cartoon robots) cardinal at the altar and he kept turning in her direction. I eventually got the courage to stand in front of him and explain, to the empty pews, her theory that god is a cyclops.

 

In the Royal Antiquity Theater, I took a seat in the balcony. I wonder if it would be giving my age away, if I said, as kids we went to movies in theaters as fancy as this one.

 

One shop sold a collection of "autobots," in period clothing. Many have a menu. I was tempted to go back and buy a maid that offers a glass of wine and a list of other services.

 

A harbor in the Argyle sim could be your next SL job, if ye be Pirate Friendly. Arrrrr!

 

Standing under the dome of the Texas State capital building, I recalled seeing a movie with Burt Reynolds standing in the same spot.

 

I paused in a Texas one room school house, brushing up on Texas history and spitball making.

 

There are groups to join, like for Export Import Co., a pirate group and an Equine group. On the Marie Galante sim, there is even a large area for Merfolk.

 

I rode my own horse on the trails that cover several of the Eastern sims. I have an AKK horse and now have a great place to take him on walks.

 

They have monthly horse events, like cross-country, fox hunt and chariot racing. 

   Having made videos in Second Life, I couldn't help but notice, everywhere I went, the beautiful scenery all looked like perfect backgrounds for new SL videos. I loved the various music streams that are encountered. They were soothing and energizing. The few highlight given above are less than half of the list of noteworthy places. By all means, Antiquity goes on my list of "Must See" locations.

We bid ye to have a Great Adventure in Antiquity,

Sha

Sneak Peek at the RFL Track

The Relay For Life Weekend is almost here, and the buiders have been busy at work across the forty-plus sims. I was able to get an early look at the track, and take a few pictures.

 The completed "Sunbeamers" plot at RFL Research, which was written about a couple days ago when mostly complete. Now, the new team's flag has been added, and proudly flies over the exhibit.

Read more about the Sunbeamer plot (here).

Still in RFL Research, at the Breedables plot, with one of the critters playing about before curling up for a nap.

 Just south of the Sunbeamers was "Team Lag's" build, a 50's bowling alley.

Inside, one can do a game of bowling, and stop at the soda joint for ice cream.

To the north was the designer sim RFL Screening, by Photon Pink.

The space had been empty just a couple days earlier. The builders worked fast. As I saw a couple avatars flying around, they might not have been finished.

RFL Spirt was also a designer sim, a forest with lots of lanterns, by Lemondrop.

Well, not just lanterns, but also some noodle bowls.

One corner of the sim had a marina by "Sail For Life." There, one can bid on a boat for charity.

 Or you can take one out into the RFL Reflections water sim.

And where there's water, there's sometimes a lighthouse.

In RFL Strength was the Knights of Avalon plot.

The "Rocky Beer Brigade" plot. The holographic sign says, "Sanctuary Rock proudly presents The Track Into The Future to live long and free of cancer."

The Goreans For Life plot. Somewhat infamous for their community's mature roleplays, the team consistantly ranks among the top fundraisers every year. Their build is made of amusement park rides and wooden ships.

The "Teletus Titans for a Cure" build, the fourth plot in RFL Strength.

A quick trip to the RFL Hope sim in the southeast corner of the track revealed this gearwork build.

To the north in RFL Hero was this exhibit, "Knowledge is the Key."

That's it for now with the Relay plots. If you want to see more, the sims will be open to all members of the Relay For Life Volunteers group tomorrow at 2PM SL time. And after the Opening Ceremonies tomorrow at 10AM, the sims will be open to all for the Relay Walk.

Bixyl Shuftan