“There are a whole lot of things in this world of ours you haven’t even started wondering about yet.“
― Roald Dahl, “James and the Giant Peach“
Some of what we are is quite simple. We’re located in your lovely city of Lake George, New York, at a very pretty and rather capacious venue. We’re not floating in some fairyland in your dreams; that costs extra. Our areas are big, outdoor spaces full of vendors and interesting people. You’ll need to do a bit of walking to get around. (There are some golf carts available for rental.)
Some of what we are is rather more complicated. You never know who, or what, you’ll encounter at Wonderplace Alpha…and honestly, neither do we.
We hope that’s comforting.
You’ll be able to go back and forth between our various places, and will probably want to explore our whole grounds. (Although if you just want to spend the whole time hanging around the Pub or the Barnyard Market, who are we to stop you?) They are functional spaces and decoration is variegated but the inhabitants are…colorful, to say the least. (Would you like to assist us? If you want to volunteer to be part of the heroic team of pioneers who’ll be helping us decorate in the days before the event, do get in touch.)
In each area, you’ll see many people wearing the garments and gear of their assorted persona and stations.
You’ll also see people wearing normal everyday clothes, because all are welcome at Wonderplace Alpha.
But thing might get a little weird.
Albion is our Steampunk, Mad Science, and Eccentric Weirdness area. Do say hello to one or more of the Mad Hatters, would you?
In this area, you can expect to see things that are medium-tech. But there’s a lot an Artificer can do with 19th-century tools. Given that engineering insanity is involved, it can be hard to predict what you’ll see here.
Dress has rather a whiff of 19th century Great Britain, at least as viewed through the eyes of Young Dr. Frankenstein. It’s a quirky blend of technology and hand-labor here. Some clothing is quite elaborate, with suits and dresses (though dresses are terribly impractical for our terrain, but they’re just grand for tea) and some clothing is very simple.
A number of our attendees from Plain Boring Regular Earth tend, by choice or through the difficulty of acquiring good anti-phlogiston goggles in the average Home Depot, to wear basically everyday clothing with a few accessories. And that’s more than fine, as well.
Your vendors are particularly likely to have offbeat, ‘punk, alternative, and other strange gear.
Fable is our Fantasy, Medieval times, Faerie area. Ask the Green Man where he comes from; ask the cup that’s filled with red.
Dress is likely to be anything ranging from the human Middle Ages and Renaissance, to Fae fashion. It’s where you’d be most likely to see nonhuman folks. It’s where you’re most likely to BE nonhuman folks. Titania has a secret for you.
You know, we do sometimes encounter Faeries. And it’s very difficult to predict what they’ll wear or or do. Some are very traditional, some are very punk rock.
When the going gets weird…
The Barnyard is our general marketplace, gathering area, and communal hall.
It’s the friendly gathering area of our outpost.
The Wasteland is our post-apocalyptic, scifi, future, and Gods-only-know-what.
We’re not saying that everyone here is a misfit, a punk, a loner, or a trickster. Some of them are also a little weird.
Darkling is a haven for souls who celebrate the night, and its oddities.
Dress is generally (but not invariantly) with an eye towards that which is darkish, Halloween, Samhain, midnight, Gothic. They’re not necessarily evil, any more than anyone else; just the Winter Court.
Darkling has no leaders and no special missions.
Honest.
While Darklings, like the Goths of other places and times (both the Peter Murphy kind, and the sacking-Rome kind) often wear black, black and also, for variety, black… like all Elements, they do value individual freedom, and you can wear what you want. Those who want to keep in theme often tend toward looks like those found in Villains, the Undead, the Zombie Zoo, and pretty much how we tend to dress from about August first to about November 23rd.
The Wasteland, as seen by Mr. William Broad (you might know him as Billy Idol.):