Samhain, 2015.I've been wanting to write about this for some time, but I was waiting to be able to include it on the new aeprilschaile.com!
And what perfect timing, really. We are moving toward the next major hinge of the Wheel at Imbolc, which is about a week away from this writing. A proper time for reflecting. The "Lucid Dream Room" surrealist performance art/magickal Working happened on October 31, 2015 at Star and Snake. As part of the "planning team" for this event, I was assigned a room in which to create an immersive theme for participants at the event. My vision and mission: to create an intimate, one-on-one live immersive "lucid dream experience" in which I was the dreamer, dreaming the room and the others in it. That said, each participant became a "dreamer", too, dreaming me, and dreaming the entire experience. Yesod overlapping Malkuth; the Astral bled over into the Physical. Like it always is, but not always perceived. The hosts were kind enough to let me use the master bedroom, a beautiful room with a four poster bed. We set up wall-to-wall mirrors in order to create a disorienting, multi-dimensional effect. I had playing foot-long playing cards, to indicate the "game" of the mind, of the choice-making of living. I wore a wig formed into a bird's nest...with nest and bird/eggs (birds=Air element=the mind) and a half-century old vintage nightgown. In preparation for the ritual, I created "oracles" via Automatic Writing, at the Dark Moon, winding each into a scroll. To each scroll was added a skeleton key (open doors of perception). These were given out to each Dreamer upon their "initiation" via experiencing this room. I created a soundtrack via Spotify of Musique Concrete and other ambient forms (it is public, so you can listen), which I played throughout the Piece/Working. Some artists included Nurse with Wound, Pierre Henry, and the Subterraneans ("Themes for Maya Deren"). A "priestess" was designated as guardian and overseer of the room (two amazing women volunteered and took turns). She let each participant into the room, one by one, oversaw the interactions, and the gently guided each person out of the experience. It could be said that she playing the role of "witnessing mind". The performance/working went for 2 hours. Prior to executing the working, I went into an alpha state, getting as close to a lucid dream like feeling tone as possible. Into this performance went my skills as a dancer, ritualist, magickian, performer, and experienced astral traveler/lucid dreamer. The room was cleared and then "glamoured" prior to entrance by participants. A space was set up outside the room where people could wait to enter. The stairwell leading to the room from downstairs was adorned with veils (lovingly and artfully placed by hostess and artist K Lenore Siner), and, on each stair, I placed a piece of paper stating such things as "You are dreaming" "You are the dreamer" "I am dreaming you" "You are dreaming me" to be read by participants on the ascent toward the room. What each person did was unique and amazing... ...read more in "Lucid Dream Room, Part II", which will be posted next week!
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