“Magic is the art of creating false (but funny or beautiful) cause-and-effect relationships.” ~Teller
Welcome to the spellbinding world of Mister Mysterrio and Miss Direction, where magic meets mayhem, and every moment is a marvel waiting to unfold! Picture this: the lights dim, the crowd leans in, and suddenly, the ordinary becomes extraordinary. Mark Mysterrio, the maestro of mirth, has been dazzling audiences for over three decades with his unique blend of magic and comedy. Known as “The Funniest Magician on the Planet,” Mark brings a touch of Chris Farley’s wild energy and Nathan Lane’s sharp wit to every performance, making each show not just a spectacle but a riotous journey into the absurd.
His partner in trickery, Miss Direction – Taylor Lanick – adds an enchanting twist with her mastery of close-up magic and mentalism. With a flick of her wrist, she transforms everyday objects into portals of wonder, leaving audiences both baffled and delighted. Taylor’s Northern charm and quick humor make her the perfect foil to Mark’s antics, creating a dynamic duo that’s as unpredictable as magic itself.
Together, they are not just entertainers; they are creators of moments that linger long after the final bow. Their performances are a whirlwind of interactive magic where you might find yourself part of the act, holding a card that vanishes or guessing thoughts that only you should know. Whether it’s a birthday bash, a corporate gala, or a community festival, Mark and Taylor tailor each event to make it uniquely unforgettable. They’ve graced occasions from St. Joseph Community Festival to Halloween in Stroudsburg, embedding laughter and magic into the heart of these celebrations.
But their magic extends beyond the stage. Mark and Taylor are award-winners at the Brad Ross It Factor Live, showcasing not only their performance skills but their savvy in magic marketing, ensuring that their magic resonates far and wide. Their commitment to community and joy has seen them at the forefront of local events, turning everyday gatherings into extraordinary experiences.
And when they’re not pulling rabbits out of hats or making your watch disappear, they’re exploring new horizons. Mark, with his ownership of Amazing Cruise Vacations, invites you to embark on magical journeys beyond the stage. This duo doesn’t just perform magic; they live it, breathe it, and share it with a passion that’s infectious.
So, if you’re ready for an adventure where the line between reality and illusion blurs, where laughter is the magic word, and every moment is an opportunity for wonder, then step into the world of Mister Mysterrio and Miss Direction. Here, magic isn’t just seen; it’s felt, in every gasp, every giggle, and every magical moment that’s waiting just for you. Welcome to a place where the impossible is possible, and the mundane becomes magical. Welcome to our world.
Dive into the adrenaline-pumping world of the “Slay The Dragon Axe Throw” at Wonderplace Alpha, where the thrill of the throw meets the allure of fantasy. This isn’t just axe throwing; it’s an epic battle against mythical foes in a setting that transports you from the everyday into realms of legend. Or at least, the satisfaction of hurling edged weapons at representations of giant flying lizards. (Flight not inclided.)
Every throw here is a chance to prove your mettle, to become part of the saga where every participant is both hero and warrior. The atmosphere is charged with the camaraderie of fellow adventurers, the clang of steel, and the roar of applause. Safety is paramount, with expert guidance ensuring every throw is as safe as it is exhilarating. Please aim at the Dragon.
“Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.”
Fae by Jay Mooers is a unique tabletop RPG where players take on the roles of monsters, creatures of the night known as Fae. Set in the modern world where social media and internet connectivity abound, the game explores the hidden lives of these mythical beings who must navigate human society while keeping their true nature concealed. The central theme of the game is the tension between living as a monster and surviving in a world that would shun or fear you if your identity were revealed.
In Fae, gameplay revolves around a d10 system, with mechanics that utilize Affinity Cards to define each monster’s powers and abilities. These cards add depth to character creation and gameplay, allowing players to customize their Fae with unique traits and abilities. The game encourages players to engage in storytelling where the morality of their actions as monsters can vary; Fae can be benevolent or malevolent, reflecting the duality of human nature.
Jay Mooers, known for his work in illustration and writing for various high-profile projects, brings a rich narrative and artistic flair to Fae. The game’s Kickstarter campaign successfully funded, highlighting its appeal with rewards like original artwork and comprehensive guides for both players and game masters. Fae stands out for its innovative approach where players explore the darker, hidden corners of our world through the eyes of the creatures that go bump in the night.
The true origin of Mr. Fang and the Fangtones is, like the darkling undead horror planet whence they come, is shrouded in darkness and mystery. We can’t tell you precisely, for none but they know, and they tell no-one.
Except for those who listen to their lyrics, of course.
But to our understanding, The Undead Planet was once alive, and once very much like this Earth. None know the cataclysm which slew its inhabitants, but it must have been murder, for its inhabitants have not gone to their rest; no, all things on that planet, every bird, every tree, and surely every human, isunalive, animated through the malign force of Mr. Fang’s dark Citadel.
None who live know the rest of the tale, but at Wonderplace Alpha, you might acquire just a little of the Lore…
Rising to an awe-inspiring 5 1/2″ feet above the ground stands the awe-inspiring 200 ton solid gold statue small stuffed shark toy which lies at the heart of the great Temple.
Visitors often come to bring gifts of Sharks of all kinds – plastic ones, paper ones, toy ones, real live ones – to High Priestess of the Sharks, Lizzie Smash. Lizzie, in turn, takes the items with a slightly bemused look and then attempts to sell you a dried scorpion oddity.
Don’t forget to take a picture of the Shark and send it to Source @ WonderplaceAlpha.
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“How many scientists have written The shark is gentle as a kitten! Yet this I know about the shark; His bite is worser than his bark.” -Ogden Nash
Gracing Fable with her Selachimorphic presence, Lizzie Smash is a Goddess of Goddities and a Mistress of Oddities.
Absolutely nobodynobody we know nobody you know has been eaten by sharks after purchasing her wares; And if anybody disappeared, well– nobody cares.
ODDITIES HERE
“There were sharks before there were dinosaurs, and the reason sharks are still in the ocean is that nothing is better at being a shark than a shark.” -Douglas Adams
Some oddities are found, Some are made All her wares are wonders, Artfully displayed.
Megan is from Massachusetts. Most people assume that this is the place in New England, and not the place in Atlantis. That’s probably true.
As Megan says of herself:
“I am a bisexual artist and photographer, originating from and currently residing in central New York (NY), US. In 2016, I received my BFA in Photography at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt).
I use digital and film photography to make one of a kind, handmade photomontages. I am inspired by cubism, surrealism, and fiction/fantasy literature. Using imagery ranging from floral to figurative, I build new worlds by cutting and reconstructing photographs, which I see as a palette of sorts.”
Megan’s grandiloquently enthralling photomantages are probably not portals to other Universes. (Okay, we’ll be honest: they are, but none of us quite knows the magic words. Do not buy them on this basis. They’re probably destined to be inherited by your grandchild who saves the Universe, or used in the case of cosmic emergency.)
Until such time, Megan’s work ought generally be purchased, not for its mystical properties, but for their visual sorceries.
So, again, we’ll reiterate: This is totally part of a game. Do not attempt to walk into one of the photographs. You will bump your nose and damage the art.
Lore of Megan
Imagine a world where every photo tells a story and each image is imbued with a touch of magic—that’s where Megan Joubert comes in. As a celebrated phototapestry architect, she weaves the art of photography with enchantment, creating breathtaking visual tapestries. Joubert’s unique technique involves capturing the essence of the moment and infusing it with elements of fantasy and wonder. Her work often features mystical landscapes, ethereal beings, and hidden symbols that invite viewers to look beyond the surface and uncover deeper meanings. Joubert’s phototapestries are not just images; they’re visions of the essence of a thing.
Darkling / Fable
“Everybody has a secret world inside of them. I mean everybody. All of the people in the whole world, I mean everybody — no matter how dull and boring they are on the outside. Inside them they’ve all got unimaginable, magnificent, wonderful, stupid, amazing worlds… Not just one world. Hundreds of them. Thousands, maybe.” ― Neil Gaiman, The Sandman, Vol. 5: A Game of You
Megan’s magic captures and opens worlds.
Visit her for strange, odd, magical, eventide knowledge.
“Carcharadon carcharias. Six thousand pounds of muscle powering a hoop of butcher’s knives. The only animal that ate its weaker siblings in the womb. Immune from cancer. Constantly awake.” ― Mark Haddon
“It’s art, man. Who put vodka in your cornflakes?” ― Puck
Funky Sharky is a Founding Creator. We’ll write a great deal more about her soon.
Yes! Arguably the greatest portable custom-pizza stall in the known Galaxy comes to Wonderplace Alpha to fill our hearts with good cheer and our stomachs with good pizza.
“Pizza makes me think that anything is possible.” -Henry Rollins
Disclaimer: Our entire team is addicted to these pizzas.
I mean REALLY addicted to these pizzas. We’re not trying to convince you because we like these people (we do) or we want them to succeed (we do, but we also want you to be happy with the food you acquire.) We REALLY love these pizzas. They really are individually, personally, quite specifically handcrafted—right in front of you, in fact, if you happen to want to watch. Otherwise, you place your order, and in ten to fifteen agonizing minutes, you get true oven-cooked artisanal pizza to which the term ‘pie’ has never felt so appropriate.
We lived off these pizzas for a good part of our October show (the food at Blackthorne is wonderful, but we were doing a LOT of running around) and in some ways, between the two, it was culinarily our best show ever.
___
A Random Note On Pizza & Dungeons & Dragons
There is a certain debate as to whether or not pizza is appropriate in Dungeons and Dragons. We say the following:
Very few dungeons will let you order pizza.
Very few dungeons will let the guards order pizza, as this is the #4 way that guards get knocked out and have their keys stolen.
There ARE dungeons large enough to house Dragons.
But most Dragons prefer huge caverns filled with gold, or aeries maintained by nearly-vanished ancient sorcerers, or rent-fixed penthouses on the Upper West Side.
So: Results are inconclusive, but as none of us appear to be Dragons, and our Dungeon is currently making us a fortune in the “themed” section of AirBnB, we figure: Eat all the pizza you want!
“Unless you are a pizza, the answer is yes, I can live without you.” – Bill Murray
The Backyard Wood-Fired Pizza Team are Founding Creators. As culinary experts, they’re in the Marketplace. Probably. There may be a bidding war over their locations. I mean, you can steal our gold, warp our spells, beat our sports teams, change the fonts on our laptops…but if you mess with our pizza, WATCH OUT.
“And sometime lurk I in a gossip’s bowl In very likeness of a roasted crab, And, when she drinks, against her lips I bob, And on her withered dewlap pour the ale. The wisest aunt, telling the saddest tale, Sometime for three-foot stool mistaketh me; Then slip I from her bum, down topples she, And “tailor” cries, and falls into a cough, And then the whole choir hold their hips and laugh, And waxen in their mirth and neeze and swear A merrier hour was never wasted there.”
– William Shakespeare*
Some people will tell you that this is silly: Puck, after all, is a well-known historical Immortal who is busy gallivanting about the known Galaxy with a bunch of starry-eyed nogoodniks. He’s not real, and he’s certainly not going to show up here, of all places.
Actually, Puck always enjoys our Markets and has decided to fly in for the weekend. His wings would be very tired, if he had them.
But given the overall theme of our event, we are OF COURSE pretending to inform you that some sort of fictional character is going to be impersoned by some talented ordinary** human. It’s not ACTUALLY that Robin Goodfellow who has that persistent habit of throwing a girdle ’round the world’
Puck’s Tribal Affiliations
You will presumably be shocked to hear that Puck is generally affiliated with Fable. Not that we tell Puck where he can’t go. Not that we tell ANY of our guests where they can’t go, in general, at least not socially. (We’re not likely to say, “Don’t spend time in Albion.” We might say , “Don’t have kippers with Jack the Ripper.” You can hang out where and with whom you desire, so long as it’s not too likely to get you inhumed.)
You may have heard that Puck rules Fable. This is ridiculous. No-one runs Fable. Besides, it’s all well and good for Puck, who is fictional, to run something real, but what about our real panelists? Are we to require them to run something fictional, just to keep up?
IF Puck were secretly the ruler of a segment of our society, he would probably spend much of his time in Fable. He would probably host a little get-together on Friday night for both his existing coterie of fey and tricksters, and for whatever visitors from The Benightedly Normal World feel like hanging out. (Don’t be shy. We’re not going to suggest that everyone from Wonderplace is nice; but it’s a Marketplace. The people who don’t want to throw parties and meet people are busy at home plotting Revolution and Rebellion, although, since we’re not sure who’s in charge back home, we’re not sure against whom they’re rebelling.)
Do eat and drink before the Friday night gathering; Puck does tend to want to throw a fest, but he also tends to eat and drink everything before you get there. Oops. We’d like to say that this is a very secret gathering, but as we did just put it on our website, it’s less “this is a very secret gathering” and more “now we’ve got to tell Puck about it.” We’d like to tell you that this gathering will reveal the deepest secrets of Wonderplace Alpha, and it MIGHT, but we hope not, because we don’t know what they are, and most of us are just way too busy on Friday evening trying to keep the Hobbits out of the mushrooms.
Do come prepared to meet other people. Although we suppose that’s likely at most parties. Depending, at any rate, on your definition of ‘people’.
But Puck will be around everywhere, of course. (Not all at once; we hear that’s a movie, and we can’t afford the rights.)
We’re not actually sure what programming Puck will do, but as he is a largely fictional character, and we therefore find it relatively less terrifying to dictate his programming***.
The Great Guest of Honor Gathering
Yes! The famous event wherein we mix together as many of our Guests of Honor as we can manage to lasso convince to attend out of the obvious pleasures involved in meeting fans old and new and discussing various important matters of art, science, and pickle-formulating.
We always find it helpful to have this moot managed by someone fictional, like Puck, Anansi, or that drunken Monkey who keeps stealing our Peaches of Immortality; ordinary mortals are sometimes overawed by the sheer talent on display. Puck doesn’t really have that problem.
With anyone.
Ever.
Glamourbombing for Fun and Profit: Unleash Your Inner Magic
Welcome to our enchanting class, “Glamourbombing for Fun and Profit,” where we invite you to step into a world of wonder, creativity, and a touch of mischief. This unique course is designed for those who wish to explore the art of glamourbombing—a delightful practice that blends the whimsical with the extraordinary, leaving a trail of magic in everyday life.
What is Glamourbombing?
Glamourbombing is the act of creating and leaving behind small (relatively small; Wonderplace Alpha maaaaay be a very pointy, seven-acre glamourbomb)…leaving unexpeced, interesting magical surprises in public spaces to evoke a sense of wonder and enchantment in those who encounter them. Imagine stumbling upon a beautifully decorated note in a library book, a tiny fairy door on a tree, or a mysterious message that sparks curiosity and joy and, if you need kindling, sparks. These are the hallmarks of glamourbombing, where the mundane is transformed into the magical.
Course Overview
In this course, you will learn the fundamentals of glamourbombing, from its origins and philosophy to practical techniques and creative ideas. Our experienced instructors will guide you through each step, ensuring you have the skills and inspiration needed to create your own magical moments.
Course Highlights:
Introduction to Glamourbombing: Understand the history and purpose of glamourbombing, and how it can bring joy and wonder to everyday life.
Creative Techniques: Learn various methods for creating glamourbombs, including crafting, writing, and using natural elements.
Materials and Tools: Discover the best materials and tools for your projects, many of which can be found around your home or in nature.
Inspiration and Ideas: Get inspired with a plethora of ideas for your glamourbombs, from simple notes to elaborate installations.
Ethical Considerations: Discuss the ethical aspects of glamourbombing, ensuring your creations are respectful and considerate of others.
Sharing and Community: Connect with fellow glamourbombers, share your experiences, and become part of a supportive and creative community.
Why Join This Class?
Glamourbombing is more than just a hobby; it’s a way to spread joy, spark imagination, and remind people of the magic that exists all around us. By joining this class, you’ll not only learn a new and exciting skill but also become part of a movement that celebrates creativity and kindness.
Whether you’re an artist, writer, or simply someone who loves to make others smile, this course offers something for everyone. No prior experience is necessary—just bring your enthusiasm and a willingness to explore the extraordinary.
Enroll Today!
Ready to embark on a magical journey? Enroll in “Glamourbombing for Fun and Profit” today and start creating moments of wonder in your community. Let’s make the world a more enchanting place, one glamourbomb at a time.
* Poor Bill. All those penguins.
** Relatively normal.
*** This programming will almost certainly happen, even if Puck isn’t there.
