The Faerie Oracle (Pt II)

[kukla_tko]

Here is my vision for the Faerie Oracle experience at Crystal Spiral:


Setting: a medium to large sized meeting room at the hotel. No outside windows, so lighting is by design. Ambient lighting: nil.
As the quester(s) enter(s) the room, they first see a large screen, and their guide.

The Guide has portable light (a lantern or flashlight) and the Guide takes the quester(s) into a "labyrinth" of darkness. First, they encounter a beggar, who asks for food or money. If the quester ignores the beggar or refuses him, the beggar offers a blessing, including a code word.
If the quester offers the beggar food or money, or help in any way, the Beggar offers a different blessing, with a different code word. And returns the gift, and shows a bit of his true nature; a faerie in disguise.

On they go. They encounter someone who offers a physical challenge. If they pass, one password is given. If they fail, a second password is given. (Still working on this part.)

Next, they encounter someone who identifies him/herself as "from the last group that came through." S/he says that s/he got lost and couldn't do any of the puzzles. Asks for assistance.
Based upon the quester's response, the quester gets another password.

Finally, they arrive at the entrance to the Oracle's chamber. Guarding the door is a Sphinx, who opens her eyes and offers a riddle. The quester is given a chance to answer the riddle, and if they do so, they are granted entry.
If they do not solve the riddle, the person may offer the Sphinx a password, instead. Either way, they get in.

When they get in to see the Faerie Oracle, she looks the quester over and asks for the passwords that they have received. By the answers the quester gives, the Oracle now knows whether this person is Generous, Confrontational, Compassionate, or Clever.

Now the reading begins, and is (for all the trappings) a standard tarot spread. The quester also gets to ask a single question, which the Oracle will answer. When they have finished, a faerie leads the quester out of the Oracle's bower, and into a small reception area, where a storyteller is entertaining the small crowd.

Each of the challenges are supposed to be linked to a different suit and element.
The Beggar is challenging your relationship with COINS, and your earthly connections.
The Challenger is attempting to raise your passion and cause you to strike out at him. He is a Representative of fire, and WANDS.
The Failed Quester is appealing to your emotions, and seeks to fill his/her CUPS. This is the water element as well. (Like I said, I am still working on this one.)
The Winged Sphinx (a creature of the Air) offers an intellectual challenge, and a conflict. She represents the Sword.

And, for those of you who feel more Oriental in your elements, the Faerie Oracle represents Wood, in her forest bower. She is representative of the Major Archana.

Thoughts? I would love to get some feedback on this piece of performance art. I will also (most likely) need some extra "actors" and facilitators for this event. I need someone working the "door" and taking in the money. (Oh, yeah. I am making the Questers pay for this experience, too.) I will need guides, and actors to work in the dark labyrinth. I will need workers in the reception room, too.

Since Crystal Spiral is going to be in October, I am betting that people will like the "haunted house"-like experience, and be more eager to pony up the dough. Standard card readings at a psychic fair start at about $25 and just go up from there. (Some Psychics charge HUNDREDS of dollars for their readings. As if!)

I think it would not be unreasonable to ask for $50 for this experience. I do have to feed my people, after all.

Appalled? Interested? Intrigued?

Comments

[codeb6.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a lot of fun. Also sounds kinda pricey. Not necessarily unreasonable, but that's not a trivial amount of cash. Given what just part of it could normally cost a person, it definately sounds like you're adding some value. I guess my question is, do they know what they're getting into beforehand or not? I don't know what a person normally pays to get into a haunted house or anything like that, but I'm thinking that's the part of this with the least draw. (Certainly would be for me.) A reading I'd be much more likely to pay for, but is it supposed to be a surprise?

Still sounds cool regardless though.

[dkoleary.livejournal.com]

Sounds like fun. A new experience for the local circuit, which desperately needs livening up.

Two points:

$50 is way too much. You're over your price by point by a lot. Haunted houses in St. Louis charge around $15-25 a ticket and you're not offering more than they offer, even with the short reading. You're offering a new service in a venue in which a dozen other people want to help your clients spend their money. You can sell this but not at that price.

And usually most people say swords = fire, wands = air. I assume that you'll debrief the victims during the reading. For this audience, that detail matters.

Crystal spiral

[minidoc.livejournal.com]

Is there a general admission to the fair? Personally I think $50 a person is too much. It would help if they had an idea what it included but I think about $25-30 would be as much as most people might want to give.

Think about it. You're asking more that what people would pay all day at Six Flags or other amusmement parks. How long will the experience last?


I have been to many of the fairs and have yet to see one charge more than $100 for a standard read, unless they start adding audio recording, or extended lenghth readings. If you set the admission to high, no one may even want to try it.

You have some great ideas, if you can make it more affordable it would be interesting.

Prices, readings, and Psychic fairs

[kukla-tko42.livejournal.com]

Here's the thing; Standard card readings at major Psychic fairs START at around $25. Some of the fairs do an enforced flat rate (everyone charges $30 for example) to prevent a variety of problems with some psychics bilking the crowd and some undercutting each other to gain more customers.

Haunted houses around here run between $10 (with coupon)and $20 dollars (Sometimes more.) And they all suck. Seriously.

One other comparison: I have seen people drop serious quantities of cash for experience-based services in dealer's rooms at Sci-fi Conventions (and that fan base is notoriously cheap). Massage, for a dollar a minute. Aural Photography. Mind Machine time, and the machines themselves.

I hope to have something physical to send with the customers, to leave an impression upon them. It has been suggested that I have a bag of crystals or tumbled stones. Maybe some kind of trinket, that fits a certain "advice" that I give the customer. (For example, if the advice I have is "slow down and smell the roses" I could give a silk flower, or a plastic turtle.)

This experience is intended to be part ritual, part theater, part "Psychic experience."
There will be a "membership fee" to get in to the event. I am still trying to work out the details with the "chairman" of Crystal Spiral.

It is not my intention to run the Faerie Oracle all day long, but I will probably do it for a couple of hours. I was offered either a stipend or a "table" at the fair (so that I could make my money at the table doing readings.

I feel that if I am providing a significant experience, I should be able to charge more money for it.

I really need to rehearse and refine the whole thing.

Who wants to be in my Beta Test group? (For free, of course!)
Maybe with some test marketing, I can come up with a price tag that is fair, both to my customers and to my actors who will need to be paid for their time as well.

Swords = Fire?

[(Anonymous)]

Wow DK, never heard of that interpretation. Swords cut through the air, which is what makes them air elements. Also if you look at the Rider Waite images of the court, you see all those wispy clouds. Also why the Wiccans use an Atheme. (But I assume you would know this. Not sure why but pretty sure you should.)

Rods are sometimes shown as torches which indicate Fire, as does some of the other imagery of that suit.

As for the rest, yeah, this looks like a pretty cool idea. I like the idea of darkened room, and the lighting. This is definitely one person at a time theater.

This seems like a cool idea.

TKO SO

Re: Swords = Fire?

[dkoleary.livejournal.com]

Yep. You're right. I went back and looked at my basic tarot book and my Rider Waite book. I've got it backwards. My favorite tarot deck (http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/art-nouveau-tarot/) for the last ten plus years uses swords = fire (http://www.tarotpassages.com/art.htm) , but that's not standard. That's what I get for letting myself get rusty.

Re: Swords = Fire?

[kukla-tko42.livejournal.com]

I ran into this over the weekend. Allura and I got into a spirited discussion about which element goes with which suit, etc.

Here is how *I* interpret. Results may vary.

Cups (Hearts)= Water. Deep emotion, Understanding, Empathy True Love, unconditional love, introspection. Court cards may represent someone blonde or fair complected, or "water" based zodiac signs.

Coins/Pentacles (Diamonds)= Earth. Earthly wealth. The product of your labors. Rich, beautiful things. Sensual delights. Money. Court cards may represent someone brown or chestnut haired, and "earth" signs from the Zodiac.

Wands/Spears/Rods (Clubs)= Fire. Passion, creative energy. Enterprise. Sometimes lust or passionate anger. Court cards may represent someone red haired, and the Zodiac's fire signs.

Swords (Spades)= Air. Intellect, analytical thinking, cleverness, wit, order from chaos. Conflict, difficult choices. Negotiations. Court cards may represent someone dark-haired or swarthy, also Air signs of the Zodiac.

To be fair, usually I am more likely to point to personality characteristics than the whole "hair color" code to the court cards during a reading. Hair color is mutable. Personality traits are easier to track.

Re: Swords = Fire?

[minidoc.livejournal.com]

Whew, I was really beginning to wonder about the swords = fire thing, I always knew it to be wands =fire signs, swords= air signs . Glad this got fixed. I don't always use a significator if the person having the reading done is right in front of me. The energy is already there. Sometimes the I let the deck pick one for me or if the reading closely involves someone else then I'll use one.

I usually use personality as well, sometimes I'll use court cards, sometimes major arcana if appropriate. I agree with not always following the hair color thing since not everyone keeps to their natural color.