Challenges

Here's an abbreviated list of the challenges in PDF format.

Fyt the 1st

Pass the Tale: All those who wish to participate get up together, and tell a tale from beginning to end. The challenge's patron will 'conduct' by pointing to the person whose turn it is to continue the tale, and deciding when it is time to end.

Ab Dictation: King John's "empty suit" legacy begins with his abdication (literally, "proclaiming away"). Present a piece in which you throw away some piece of the past - your own, or our common heritage.

Suit the Action to the Word: Prepare a piece which incorporates both physical action (fencing? juggling? tumbling? you decide) and spoken or sung words.

Fyt the 2nd

Period Piece: Perform a documentably period piece of music, verse, story, or song. Dig out those reference books, blow off the dust (try not to sneeze), and see what wonderful and magical treasures you can find in them. There is a staggering amount of fantastic material out there. Find something, be it silly or sublime, and amaze us with it.

The Empty Suit: You will draw two cards from a deck and from them you must spin a story, song, etc.

 

	The suits will determine the subjects			The card values will determine the characters:
		Hearts: Love			Face card: noble
		Clubs: War			9-10: clergy
		Diamonds: Wealth			7-8: merchant
		Spades: Labor			4-6: artisan
					1-3: peasant
					Ace: beggar

Unless, that is, you draw "the empty suit" - the Joker. Then you must tell a tale of a jester, fool or clown and must include all four of the suit-subjects.

Stir Fry: Given a list of words ("One from Column A, two from Column B ..."), do something artistic with them.

Fyt the 3rd

Hector's Tartan: Based on an idea by Master Hector. Create a song or verse "tartan" of every color of the rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet) plus black and white. Use those nine words or make nine references - so long as the references are clear; not necessarily unambiguous, just clear.

Form Challenge -The Standart Habbie: A favorite of Burns (see his "To a Mouse"), this form dates back to mid-Period.

Stanzas have six lines rhyming AAABAB, the "A" lines having four iambic feet each and the "B" lines two. (For a definition of these terms, see here.)

Here is the opening stanza from the namesake ballad, "The Life and Death of Habbie Simpson":

Kilbarchan now may say alas!
For she hath lost her game and grace:
Both Trixie and the Maiden-trace
But what remeed;
For no man can supply his place
Hab Simpson`s dead.

A versatile form, it's been used for everything from tragedy to travesty, from ode to the odious. So tell us a tale in the Standart Habbie. For extra credit, set it to music!

If the Suit Fits, Share It: Bring an extra article of clothing with you to the event (easy to to put on and take off, please, and keep it hidden until the moment of truth). We will pair you with another attendee. Each will dress in the other's apparel; and together you will create a tale or dialog.

Concert

The concert is your opportunity to perform pieces which may not "fyt" into any of the challenges.

Fyt the 4th

Toasting: Feast time is traditionally when we raise our glasses on high to honor the crown and other deserving individuals. We'll assign the topic or person, you create an appropriate toast for them on the spot.

The Emperor's New Clothes: The antithesis of an empty suit is ...  Well, sometimes it's "nakedness", exposing folly or vulnerability. Sometimes it's "nudity", suggesting fearlessness or heroism. And sometimes it's ... something else. Give us a tale of someone or something uncovered.

And So To Bed: When is everyone's suit empty? When we hang it up and go to bed. Send us off with a lullaby.

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Challenge General Rules

• Challenges are not contests. You win by entering and striving to do the best you can.
• Challenges are designed to encourage you to try your hand at something new, to stretch yourself, to enjoy, and to celebrate the creative spirit.
• Read the guidelines for the challenges carefully. Trying to follow them as closely as you can is good, but sometimes stretching them in unexpected directions is even better.
• Individuals are welcome and encouraged to give recognition to those performers whom they especially enjoy.
• In order to allow the largest number of people to participate, challenge entries should be limited to five minutes or less (that includes the introduction). Each person may enter only one piece per challenge and a maximum of five challenges.

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