Wednesday, February 16, 2011 at 11:02PM 
Harold Arts and J Ashley Miller present MODERN HEROISM ACT I : AVATAR NINJA
Saturday March 5th 2011 8PM
Secret Location
Compete : $10 (free beer)
Feast : $50 limited seating available
A message from J Ashley Miller :
Under the scrutiny of intelligence, the Hero's Shadow is the primordial villain.
In order to catch some of your Shadow you need three basic things: speed, stealth, and awareness. Each of these gifts are attainable, though the means of their acquisition are usually drab and repetitive. Lucky for us, there is a holistic practice which both cultivates these three skills AND is actually fun. This practice is called Ninja. Now, you may think that a ninja is a hackneyed cultural artifact, a traditional private agent of death and deceit which provided espionage and mercenary service to the feudal Japanese elite. But I am talking about Ninja, a new form of school-yard-style game. Like all truly fantastic games, the rules of Ninja are simple:
- Only one Ninja may move at a time, clockwise according to the position of the player at the beginning of the game. An offensive move out of turn calls for disqualification
- If your hand is touched by another Ninja, you lose
- Ninjas must uphold their own Honor
Interpretations of Honor vary from community to community, and player to player. However, there are a basic set of honorable understandings which most ninjas seem to uphold.
- At the end of your attack, you should instantly freeze.
- If you recoil before another Ninja has attacked, you return to your previous position.
Simultaneously physical, poetic, proper, performative, and preposterous, Ninja is poised to be the training tool for a new breed of contemporary hero. For AVATAR NINJA, competitors will play in six distinct styles demonstrated by visiting masters. Ninjas participating in the open tournament will be accompanied by a pit of musical avatars, including Jeff Kimmel, David Moré, Frank Van Duerm and more.
Don’t want to play? Enjoy a feast courtside. A portion of your meal ticket goes to feed hungry residents attending Harold Arts’ 2011 Residency Programs. Our chef Sy Barsheshet will be preparing an Olympic feast of festive treats.
Including:
- International Antipasto
- Moroccan Chicken
- Braised Short Ribs
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Chinese Broccoli
- Seasonal Broth
- Chianti and homemade cider courtesy of Joe Grimm
The tournament's champion will more than likely spring unseen from the masses, and so we call to you, secret champions. Are you a MODERN HERO? You can be. As you have always been. We are all free. Play Ninja.
