No. 19: Fictions, Facts, and Fabulous Finds: The Weekly Wondrous World

Issue No. 19 - Welcome to Issue No. 19 of The Experientialist! In numerology, the number 19 is seen as a symbol of completion, carrying the combined energies of 1 and 9—initiation and fulfillment—thus representing the intriguing combination of beginnings and endings.

Now, before you roll your eyes at another numerology deep dive, hang tight because we’re going to veer off course. My mind was being busily blown at C2 and XP Fronts a couple of weeks ago, which is why this issue took a leisurely two weeks to assemble. That’s right, two whole weeks of caffeine-fueled brainstorming sessions and Zoom calls that should have been emails.

So, let’s double up on the 19 love! If you’re wondering what happens when you put 19 back to back, you get 1919—a year that decided to flip the script on modern civilization in ways that still make historians raise an eyebrow.

Why spotlight 1919, a year that seems as thrilling as a beige wall? 1919 was no ordinary, unimportant year. It was the original reboot year—when history said, "Hold my drink and watch this." 1919 was like the year that decided to play every card it had—and won. And this issue’s stories reflect the dramatic shifts in design, tech, culture, and commerce that made 1919 a year of epic proportions.

Need some convincing? Consider this:

In Design, the Bauhaus school and Dadaism burst onto the scene, shaking up the design world like a glitter bomb at a monochrome party. With its groundbreaking approach, Bauhaus was the cool kid that ditched tradition and brought a skateboard to the Louvre. (Only two years earlier, Dadaist Marcel Duchamp shocked with "Fountain," turning a urinal into a statement). The influence of these movements on today’s immersive experiences is as stylishly subversive as it gets.

In Technology, Einstein had his "told ya so" moment during a solar eclipse that confirmed his theory of general relativity. This wasn’t just an apple-falling-on-my-over-privileged-head kind of discovery. It was a mind-bending revelation by a patent clerk that made everyone rethink the universe. It was the original mic drop, setting the stage for today’s tech wonders, like cat videos and online trolling.

In Commerce, that same iconic year saw the League of Nations established, marking a milestone in global trade and post-WWI cooperation. Think of it as the world’s first international group project, where everyone tried to take credit but no one did the homework. This set the foundation for today’s experience economy, where commerce is a theatrical event starring hashtags and viral challenges.

Culturally, 1919 was a game-changer. The Treaty of Versailles ended WWI, reshuffling the global deck and setting the tone for modern geopolitics. It was like the world’s most contentious game of Monopoly, with borders redrawn and grudges started that would last a century. Meanwhile, in the U.S., the 19th Amendment was ratified, granting women the right to vote and changing the political landscape forever. It’s like the country handed the keys to democracy to an entirely new group of drivers, and boy, did the road trips get interesting.

See, reader, focusing on 1919 isn’t just a desperate attempt to sidestep numerology's seeming disinterest in the number 19. Just as 1919 redefined everything from couture to calculus, this issue is here to turn your view of design, tech, commerce, and culture upside down and shake out the loose change.

Issue No. 19 takes us from the future of fun at XP Fronts 2024, where Montreal's Grand Quay became a playground for experiential's trailblazers, to Manchester’s "Sweet Dreams," an absurd dive into fast food with a confused chicken mascot. Minecraft fans can rejoice with the real-life "Villager Rescue" adventure, while Dolly Parton’s dazzling new exhibit offers a charm and sequins overload. Meanwhile, Las Vegas preps for mischief with Superplastic’s new Area15 attraction, and London’s "War of the Worlds" experience offers a thrilling mix of Martian mayhem and cocktail therapy. Plus, Barcelona’s "POP AIR" exhibit turns inflatables into surreal art and an AI-powered Pinocchio in Italy adds a high-tech twist to classic tales.

Are you ready, reader, to journey into Issue No. 19, where the peculiar and the marvelous are best friends and always up to something, and where your imagination might just get a cramp? Let whimsy and the surreal be your tour guides through a world where Design's coquettish charm incessantly targets brainy but oblivious Technology, and Culture's constant pranks keep gullible Commerce endlessly duped and bemused. If these stories don’t make the Age of Enlightenment seem like a dim bulb and the Renaissance look like a school play, I’ll personally refund your astonishment.

So off we are, here were go, let's dig in...

The Fun House of Future Experiences

Sharp-eyed readers probably caught that I skipped last week's issue—blame it on my mind being so busily blown away at XP Fronts at C2 in Montreal that I forgot what day it was. Erica Boeke and the XP Land team deserve a standing ovation (and probably a nap) for pulling off XP Fronts 2024. Imagine a gathering where many of the world’s top creatives brainstormed like it was their job—which, conveniently, it is. XP Land and C2 turned Montréal’s Grand Quay into a hub of high-fives and hearty laughs, bringing many of the experiential sector's most creative people together to trade ideas and punchlines with equal enthusiasm. The result was three days of inspiration, laughter, and many moments of pure genius. From impromptu comedy sketches to deep dives into the future of experiences, every moment was a highlight. I for one left with new collaborators, fresh ideas, profound insights from industry-leading creators, jaw-dropping showcases of what's next, and a mild addiction to artisanal lattes. Thank you Erica Boeke and the tireless, brilliant XP Land team. If anything you read in this newsletter interests you at all, then for the love of all things inexplicable you need to subscribe to XP Land's newsletter! XP Land (4 minutes)

Deep-Fried Delusions

This summer, prepare for a mind-bending trip down the rabbit hole of our eating habits. Welcome to the absurd world of "Sweet Dreams," where MARSHMALLOW LASER FEAST and Factory International team up at Aviva Studios to tackle the tangled mess of fast food and human desire. Marshallow Laser Feasts latest brainchild serves up a surreal satire on the fast-food industry's meltdown, starring a confused chicken mascot, Chicky Ricky, voiced by Munya Chawawa. Ricky's quest to decode human cravings takes him on a wild journey through a world where consumerism meets absurdity. As Ricky navigates a crumbling fast-food empire, encountering quirky characters like Penny Peckish and The Boss, the experience raises uncomfortably deep, but graciously hilarious, questions about desire.

Scoops up, peeps! "Sweet Dreams" runs Jul 11 - Sep 1, 2024 at The Warehouse, Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester, M3 4JQ. Get your tix here.

Unleashing the Blocky Adventure

Minecraft is getting a glow-up for its 15th birthday, with Mojang Studios teaming up with Netflix and WildBrain to create a new CG-animated series. While details are hush-hush, the show promises an original story and new characters, much to the delight of fans. And that's not all! Hold onto your enchanted swords! Starting September 20, 2024, Minecraft fans can dive into "Villager Rescue," a real-world quest debuting in Dallas and touring to biomes everywhere. This interactive adventure lets players of all ages team up to solve puzzles, battle mobs, fend off creepers, rescue villagers, and celebrate your heroic feats at the Trading Post. Under the creative development of Olivier Goulet's all-star team at Supply & Demand Studio, and led by Kayleen Walters, Head of Franchise Development at Mojang Studio (not to mention the expert counsel of Wendy Heimann-Nunes), for the first time ever, you can experience the blocky world of Minecraft in real life!

Scoops up, peeps! This September 20, Minecraft Experience: Villager Rescue will spawn for a limited time into 2712 N Central Expressway in Plano, just North of I-635 adjacent to DART’s Parker Road station. For more information, including tickets, presale waitlist, and future tour city updates, please visit here.

Sequins, Songs, and Southern Charm

Welcome to The Dolly Parton Experience at Dollywood, where sequins and charm collide in a glitter explosion. From interactive exhibits to a tour of her blinged-out tour bus, it’s like getting a backstage pass to the world's most fabulous hoedown. Folks, there is nothing more immersive than a place that is the IRL equivalent to stepping into Dolly's rhinestone-encrusted boots. It's a delightful mix of nostalgia and the kind of charm that only Dolly can deliver... plus, there's enough sparkle to make even a disco ball jealous.

Tomfoolery Takes Over Area15

Though details remain scarce, Las Vegas is about to get a whole lot more mischievous with SUPERPLASTIC® ’s upcoming attraction at Area15, blending art and hype culture into a unique experience. My ever-amazing friend, Jennifer van Dijk , CEO of Superplastic, continues to astound with her knack for leading cooler and cooler companies. And then there's my buddy Winston Fisher of AREA15 , who would be insufferably smug if he weren't so genuinely thrilled about watching millions of visitors interact with global brands like Superplastic’s digital character universe in completely new and engaging ways. Las Vegas Review Journal (1 minute)

Martian Mayhem

Imagine being chased by Martians, soothed by cocktails, and emotionally wrecked by virtual reality—all in a day’s work at London's "War of the Worlds" experience. The actors navigate you through a fire-razed common and bombed-out streets, blending terror and humor with ease. For a couple of hours and a not-so-modest ticket price, the combination of live action, detailed sets, and VR creates an unforgettable journey through into H.G. Wells' classic tale.

Scoops up, peeps! You can visit Martian-invaded London at 56 Leadenhall Street, EC3. Tickets start at £45.

Art Gets Airborne

The fabulously inventive Andrea Lucentini, Andrea Giombini, Caterina Calò and the rest of the good folks at Lux Holding, the powerhouse team blowing up Balloon Museum World, have transformed Barcelona’s Victoria Eugenia Palace into a bouncy castle wonderland with “POP AIR,” an inflatable art exhibition that is part funhouse, part surreal art gallery. Crafted by fifteen artists who seem to have ignored the laws of physics, this exhibit invites you to touch, play, and engage all while whimsically contemplating the deeper meaning of air as an art form. So whether you're swinging from colorful clouds or diving into ball pits, you'll float through a fantastical realm where fun and art float hand in hand, literally.

Scoops up, peeps! POP AIR runs May 1-September 15. Get your tix.

Tech Meets Timber

But wait a moment! My friends at Lux Holding are not quite done. Just when you thought AI couldn’t get any weirder, Pi School and Humans.tech have created a Pinocchio that would make even Gepetto’s head spin! The first AI-powered Pinocchio, complete with a personality and the ability to hold a grudge if you call it a marionette. This puppet doesn’t just lie, it chats, remembers your name, and might even develop a complex if you make fun of its wooden nose. The marionette debuts at the whimsical “This is Wonderland – Pinocchio, Back to Wood” exhibition, part of the Lux Holding's Wonderland series, an expansive world of lights, music, and interactive art, transforming into real-life fairy tales inspired by Alice in Wonderland, Pinocchio and others. Amidst the breathtaking installations and scenic art, characters like the Mad Hatter and the White Rabbit will blur the boundaries between reality and fantasy, making it easy to lose yourself in the magic, and now with the addition of Pinocchio it’s clear that the future of AI is certain to be both charmingly nostalgic and slightly unnerving.

Enlightenment in a Trailer

I accidentally stumbled into The Black Hole Experience at C2, and let’s just say, it was a trippy detour from your average conference schedule. This mobile exhibit run out of an expandable trailer takes you through an otherworldly LED tunnel into a black hole projection chamber, because what's more immersive than facing a cosmic abyss on wheels? Created by Age of Union, the exhibit aims to turn your midlife crisis into a meditative voyage through spacetime. It’s part spiritual awakening, part light show, and entirely designed to make you feel like an enlightened astronaut. Think: Burning Man but with fewer sandstorms and more spiritual epiphanies. Catch it touring North America’s festivals. I'm pretty certain that it's the only cataclysmic astrophysics event that that leaves you feeling more whole, rather than sucked into oblivion.

Explore the Final Frontier at Le Space

Looking for something a little less obliterating? Le Space has landed at INSPIRE Entertainment Resort in Incheon, with the promise of the most high-tech, space-themed art experience South Korea has ever seen. Courtesy of Hyundai Futurenet, this digital wonderland features 18 zones packed with LED lights, holograms, and lasers that make you feel like you’ve stepped into a high-budget sci-fi film. Think of it as the ultimate escape room, but instead of solving puzzles, you’re just trying to find your way back to reality. Blooloop (5 minutes)

Disney’s Immersive Mandalorian Experience

Disney's latest immersive experience lets you live out your wildest Mandalorian fantasies by hunting down "treasonous" targets within the park. Armed with lifelike blasters and accompanied by Din Djarin, you can pay extra to have Grogu join your bounty-hunting mission. Dissenters, including incorrigible YouTuber Jenny Nicholson, consider yourselves warned: your next critique might turn future park visits into a bounty-hunting adventure, dodging fervent Disney superfans with a dark-side vendetta. Hard Drive (2 minutes)

TUNDRA's Synesthetic Odyssey

Tundra's ÉXÕ installation is like the world's most sophisticated Rubik's Cube, only instead of solving it, you get lost in an endless loop of cultural echoes. This hypnotic haptic experience will probably make you feel like a monk doing laps around a mystical monolith, but with better lighting and sound effects. The sensory spectacle combines echoes, Greek philosophy, and Cyrillic flair into a mesmerizing ritual that makes circumambulation the new trend in meditative practices. The platform beneath your feet vibrates with low-frequency rumbles, intending to ground you in a primal experience, reminiscent of ancient gatherings where the earth itself seemed to communicate. And there you have it. Each side of the cube hums and glows independently, which begs the question: Are you in an art exhibit or auditioning for a high-tech cult. Learn more here.

Amoeba Chic

Scheduled to open in 2025, the Hainan Science Museum is where your sci-fi dreams meet your tropical getaway fantasies. Designed by Ma Yansong / MAD architects, the museum’s structure is like a giant, friendly amoeba, with 843 pieces of fiberglass-reinforced plastic creating its unique look. Nestled in Hainan Province, this museum will offer a blend of cutting-edge science exhibits and lush, natural surroundings, ensuring that learning is both enlightening and entertaining for visitors of all ages. Parametric Architecture (5 minutes)

Mirror, Mirror

Brands have been hopping on the Yayoi Kusama "Infinity Mirrors" bandwagon, using mirrored walls and repeating shapes to create eye-catching visual loops that trap guests in a never-ending theme park of their own selfies. Back in 2016, the illuminated minds over at Go2 Productions Inc., led by my friends Adrian Scott and Gemma Scott, unleashed their genius at Metropolis at Metrotown, British Columbia’s largest mall. They dazzled the poor, unsuspecting shoppers with 360-degree projection mapping, creating an infinity room so mesmerizing it probably caused a few existential crises. This is just one mind-bending example in a sea of infinity room spectacles. kate spade new york transformed COACHELLA MUSIC FESTIVAL, LLC into a floral fantasy, while Nike’s STEEZY partnership had dancers strutting their stuff in what can only be described as an infinite shoe box. Christian Dior Couture’s pop-up at #NYFW turned into a millefiori wonderland, and Meta’ s Creator Lounge at VidCon made content creators feel like they were trapped in a funhouse mirror maze. Even Microsoft couldn't resist, creating an infinity room to prove that nothing screams “look at me” quite like an endless loop of data and your own reflection. See how these brands are creating eye-catching visual loops.

The Mad Hatter of San Francisco’s Party Scene

Barron Scott Levkoff is the Willy Wonka of San Francisco's art scene, throwing brain-bending parties that make Burning Man look like a knitting circle. His recent Candyland-themed extravaganza was a psychedelic circus of costumed madness and interactive artful debauchery, where even the most seasoned partiers found themselves awestruck. The Experientialists, ever so eager to bask in aura of serious talent, had a tiny part in the fun, mostly by knowing the right genius to befriend. Thanks to Scott, San Francisco’s party scene remains delightfully unhinged.

Interested in donating or volunteering to help make future amazing art projects in San Francisco? How can you do that? The Mystic Midway, Scott's carnival of the unimaginable, and a 501(c)3 affiliate of Independent Arts & Media, is a Social Theater of The Marvelous dedicated to teaching prosocial behaviors through immersive art, technology and deeply interactive performances. They are gratefully accepts tax-deductible donations to continue their programming, so please consider supporting them. In addition, The Mystic Midway is seeking collaborators, ally orgs and funding for San Frantopia, an amazing experiential series wildly supported by The Experientialists. Deck available upon request, please feel to reach out to Scott at  [email protected]. Finally, the Mystic Midway store is up and filled with groovy fashions and accessories made with art created over the past 20 years by various artists and assembled by IfnWhendy

More? please join the GOLDFIRE RISING community in meaningful conversation with the new card game developed by Scott. And if nothing else, please follow @goldfirerising on Instagram for details on meetups and Goldfire Conversation Salons Join the Mystic Midway mailing list to find out about future events and offerings!

Saadiyat’s Sensory Spectacle

Abu Dhabi’s newest attraction, teamLab Inc. Phenomena, has the look of a cloud that's had a midlife crisis and decides to become an art gallery. Nestled in Saadiyat Cultural District, this multisensory space will have you questioning whether you’ve had an epiphany or just a sensory overload. Featuring a building that looks like a cumulonimbus and acts like it’s alive, this project is what happens when art and technology decide to collaborate instead of compete.

All Aboard the Art Boat

Modulo Pi just made the impossible float—literally—with the launch of ARTEXPLORER, the world’s first museum boat. Taking the concept of a museum to uncharted waters, ARTEXPLORER is a 47-meter-long catamaran with an LED tunnel that’s got more pixels than a Marvel movie and, thanks to AKUMENDO and ArScénique, enough tech to make a NASA engineer misty-eyed. From now until 2026, ARTEXPLORER will cruise the Mediterranean, proving that art, culture, and seasickness can indeed co-exist harmoniously.

Desert Speakeasies and Sailing Fantasies

From Porsche AG's high-voltage garden at the The Metropolitan Museum of Art Gala to Chrissy Teigen and John Legend hosting a celebrity pet party that put the Westminster Dog Show to sham, Claire Hoffman reviews a line-up of May's events that were as eclectic as they were extravagant. Over at Stagecoach, Jameson and Malibu Events Promotions created desert escapes that made the heat almost bearable. Meanwhile, Shondaland brought Bridgerton’s Regency era to life. Not to be outdone, SailGP turned Hall des Lumières into a sailing fantasy land. Bizbash (5 minutes)

Does Your Biophilia Feel the Extinction?

"Tree of Life" is like an IMAX movie for your soul, starring endangered species in a sensory spectacle that might just make you rethink your priorities. It's a genius blend of art and science from my amazing friend Bear Kirkpatrick, aiming to make you care about the invisible problems we tend to ignore by hitting you right in the feels. If you want to help save the world and look cool doing it, email [email protected].

Glitter Storms and Optical Illusions

POST Houston’s new Art Club is featuring “Solar Dust,” an installation by the Roman art collective Quiet Ensemble, led by Bernardo Vercelli and Fabio Salvo. It is like your weird cousin mounted a rave-themed art project inside a snow globe and forgot to invite gravity. This psychedelic snowstorm, where lasers flirt with chicken wire, creates the illusion of dancing light particles. Apparently, the result is so mind-bending that even the ticket page warns you might need a motion sickness bag and a waiver just to survive.

Explore the Depths of Art

Forget pirate glow golf. Fathom has arrived in Portland with an immersive art experience that makes you feel like you’ve dived into a neon ocean. Brought to life by Roboto Octopodo, the geniuses behind the Portland Winter Light Festival team, Portland’s latest pop-up art show offers an undersea escape filled with black-light creatures and interactive installations. Thie exhibit combines whimsy with a touch of the bizarre, including everything from a laser harp, scavenger hunts and room-sized video games. It's like stepping into a low-budget, high-fun version of Atlantis. Learn more here.

Beyond Games and Into Your Nightmares

The ever-insightful Oliver VanDervoort, tech enthusiast and writer who specializes in virtual and augmented reality, argues that the future of AR and VR technology hinges on the development of interactive stories. Acknowledging that AR and VR are the drama queens of tech—always promising a big debut, then ghosting us—VanDervoort notes Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest 3 are hoping to break the cycle with interactive stories that go beyond gaming. Experiences like Eli Roth's "The Faceless Lady" on Meta Quest 3, are turning these headsets into the Broadway of virtual horror, where you’re part of the show (but can’t change the plot). Is this just the latest prediction that story-driven experiences could significantly boost user engagement and device adoption, or is XR like Moses, never getting a shot to enter the zeitgeist promised land? Pocket-Lint (5 minutes)

Imaginary Skylines

The "Atlas of Never Built Architecture" by Greg Goldin and Sam Lubell is like a love letter to the unfulfilled dreams of architects. The book showcases extraordinary designs like underwater cities in Paris, egg-shaped buildings at the Centre Pompidoua and a modern-day iPhone skyscraper, all of which never left the blueprint stage. This treasure trove of architectural what-ifs offers a hint of melancholy for the roads not taken in urban planning, but I prefer to take from it inspiration and an urging to modern-day architects to dream big and maybe, just maybe, build bigger. The Word (4 minutes)

Dragons, Gods, and Ceramics

Mononoke Kyoto showcases Takashi Murakami’s brilliant fusion of the old and new in Japanese art, set against the backdrop of Kyoto’s historical richness. His vibrant works, including a massive 50,000-piece ceramic installation, highlight the artist’s playful yet profound style. This exhibition, his first in Japan in eight years, highlights his ability to fuse historical influences with modern creativity. With pieces like a 13-meter-wide painting and depictions of friendly mythological animals, Murakami invites viewers into a world where ancient Kyoto and contemporary pop culture collide. Artnet (3 minutes)

Virtual Reel

At the 77th Festival de Cannes, "Colored" won the Best Immersive Work, making VR headsets the festival's hottest accessory since oversized sunglasses. Jury chair Marie Amachoukeli and her team dived into digital landscapes with the enthusiasm of toddlers at a ball pit. With over 3,000 festival-goers strapping on VR gear, Cannes embraced the virtual world faster than you can say "buffering." Thierry Frémaux declared, "This isn't just a festival—it's an interdimensional experience." The festival has never been so pixel-perfect. Festival de Cannes (1 minute)

Latex Wonderland

Prepare your Instagram feeds, folks! This summer, the Park Avenue Armory is transforming into a latex wonderland with "Balloon Story," an exhibition flaunting over 600,000 eco-friendly balloons. For a mere $36 to $66, you can bask in 70 minutes of inflatable art ranging from iconic monuments to magical underwater scenes, all curated by 200 artists. Expect influencers to flock like seagulls to a beach, so snag your tickets before they do. And yes, there’s a ball pit—because nothing screams viral more than an adult ball pit. Erica Domesek, the creative producer, assures it will evoke joy, wonder, and a flood of selfies. Time Out (1 minute)

50,000 Pieces of Summer

We're at the unofficial start of summer! And so, in an ode to familial grilling traditions, Rebecca Manson’s "Barbecue" at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth assembles 50,000 ceramic pieces into a chaotic culinary tableau. Her creation includes everything from a fallen Weber grill to life-like ceramic meats scattered on a bed of autumnal leaves, symbolizing the primal joy of messy eating. Texas Monthly (5 minutes)

Chasing QR Codes

Coachella has gone full tech-nerd with "Coachella Quests," a scavenger hunt that merges blockchain with real-world running-around-like-a-headless-chicken fun. Participants, who apparently have nothing better to do, completed quests for digital stamps and VIP perks, turning the festival into a massive game of hide-and-seek. With nearly 50,000 quests under their belts, Coachella has proven that you can indeed trick people into thinking they’re having more fun than they actually are. Event Marketer (2 minutes)

An Art Gallery's Ghostly Return

After two decades of hiding, Perth’s Art Gallery is back with Rone's TIME exhibit, proving that mid-century Australia is both nostalgic and terrifying. With murals so lifelike they might just blink at you and decor that whispers, “Did you hear that?”, it's an experience you won't forget—partly because the pop-up bar ensures you won't. Collaborations with Carly Spooner and Nick Batterham guarantee you’ll leave wondering if you need a séance or just a really strong coffee.

Lost Without Moving

In a literally mind-blowing study, researchers used virtual reality to convince participants they were somewhere else, making their brain’s GPS cells fire up like they were actually on the move. This study reveals that our brain’s spatial navigation can be fooled by cognitive illusions alone, without any physical movement or change of scenery... mere thoughts, no travel required. These insights could lead to revolutionary diagnostic tools and treatments for hallucinatory conditions, offering a fresh new way to trick, treat, and better understand our brain health.

Arr, Sip 'n' Swashbuckle

Ahoy, mateys! Dive into the Stray Pirate in Las Vegas, where cursed buccaneers-turned-dogs serve grog that'll have ye barking for more. These scallywags were once fearsome pirates, lured by a siren's song into a grotto of riches, only to emerge with paws and tails. Not a spot for ye landlubbers, the cocktails here are as quirky as a parrot's last joke and the backstory more tangled than a mermaid's hair. With portholes and pirate pooch portraits, a treasure trove of cocktails and a tale of loyalty, this be the place for a jolly good, shipshape adventure straight to the bottom of your rum glass.

Scoops up, peeps! You can hop aboard the Stray Pirate at 1321 S. Commerce St., Las Vegas, Nevada 89102

‘What If…?’ You Could Join the Avengers? Now You Can!

Marvel’s “What If…? — An Immersive Story” lets fans dive headfirst into alternate superhero realities with Apple’s Vision Pro headset, finally giving us license to throw on overpriced tech and save the multiverse before breakfast! This experience promises to be so immersive, you might forget you're not actually part of the Avengers and try to open portals at your next staff meeting. Imagine battling alongside a teenage Hela and an ever-sassy Wong, all while navigating a world that makes your last video game look like Pong. It’s like getting a front-row seat in your favorite comic book, but now you get to wave your arms around and pretend you're Doctor Strange. The only thing missing is a cape that actually lets you fly – maybe in the next update. Variety (6 minutes)

On the Horizon

World Experience Summit 2024: Get ready for the WXO - World Experience Organization's World Experience Summit 2024, James Wallman's brainchild and the epicenter of everything insanely cool and imaginative in experientialism!

I'll be moderating the following panel:

The X-Stack: Your Blueprint For Experiential Excellence

Say hello to the Experience Stack (or X-Stack), your new BFF for crafting mind-blowing immersive experiences. It’s like the tech stack’s cooler, edgier cousin. First up, Capital: the financial lifeline, because let's face it, dreams don’t pay the bills. Then Real Estate, the stage that sets the scene, whether it is a traveling circus or a permanent wonderland. Up next, Creative/IP serves up the gripping storylines and themes, followed by Operations, keeping everything running like a Swiss watch. Finally, Marketing, the megaphone that makes sure everyone and their grandma knows about your experience. Validating all layers of the X-Stack optimizes performance, reduces risk, and opens doors to prime venues and funding. This panel features industry leaders, each representing a layer of the X-Stack, ready to spill their secrets and unveil their insights. Get ready to take notes—and laugh a lot!

 And here is my distinguished panel!

Capital – Adam Jaffe, Managing Director at Solomon Partners

Real Estate – Joshua Strauss, Co-President, Retail and Entertainment at Dreamscape Companies

Creative/IP - Michael Jung, VP, Creative Development Walt Disney Imagineering

Operations - Talia Spera, SVP, Live Experiences at Superfly 

Marketing - Bibi Brown, Chief Operating Officer of Tencue

You wouldn't want to miss this, right? So get tix!

Odyssey Works Family Reunion: Abraham Burickson Odyssey Works Family Reunion is an annual gathering offering a blend of creative skill-shares, serene swims, creative exchanges, grilling, group meditations and strategic board games, all set in a nurturing, sauna-equipped enclave. It is open to anyone who has participated in any kind of Odyssey Works programming in the past. Register here.

Let's Dive Deeper Together

Hey there, I'm Lou Pizante , the curious mind behind "The Experientialist." This newsletter is my playground, a place where art, technology, culture, and commerce dance together. But it's not just about what I have to say – it's about sparking conversations, learning from each other, and growing our collective knowledge.

I'm always on the lookout for fascinating new experiences, innovative ideas, and intriguing perspectives. If you've got a story, a project, or a brainwave that you're itching to share, or if you're just keen to chat about the latest in immersive art or groundbreaking tech, I'm all ears.

Why not reach out? Let's connect and explore these fascinating intersections together. Drop me a message, and let's see where our conversation takes us. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!