Joyful Terror

12/07/2021

It’s beginning to look a lot like….?

10/12/2021

A few shots from that time we opened a portal into a Fae Realm... Fall Phantasm, October 2nd, 2021 Lakenenland.

09/08/2021

Another misadventure with Edward Grayson Stone. Recently his journal was exhumed and what was readable was examined and posted. Follow the story with us and MQT Fringe here for now, then into Lakenenland on October 2nd to find out what happened...

08/23/2021

CALLING ALL WRITERS!

Marquette Fringe in partnership with Joyful Terror and Pyre Publishing are making a call for submissions for an upcoming event in October. Strap in for a phantasmic phenomenon of fantastic proportions!

Submissions due on September 18th, 2021, 11:59PM
Story word limit 1500, poetry 70 lines, word documents only (no PDFs).
Submit to [email protected].
Under subject: "Phantasm."
Include a bio: Word limit 50.

05/07/2021

After a long hiatus we got our hands into some decorating for a well needed 'May Day' event with Upper Peninsula Shakespeare Festival

So much fun and great job with costuming and performing across the board! Glad to be a part of this amazing energy. 🎭🌿

Shout out to Christopher Scott Leith for some of these great photos!!!

03/23/2020

Demons of Apathy

We all have personal demons, it helps to name them so that we might banish them.

F**k it. Whatever. Who cares. Why bother? Maybe you tried before and it didn’t work out. Maybe you never learned to try at all. Perhaps at one point life had meaning to you but now you just don’t see the point.

The spirits of apathy are there for you, they cozy up and protect you like a warm blanket. There is no failure if you do not try. There is no sadness if you do not care. The troubles of the world cannot effect you at all. It’s easy to see the draw! However, there is also no joy, no excitement, no passion, no triumph from achievement, no sense of purpose and no love. Which are arguably some of the best parts of life!

Demon of Apathy

If you are afflicted with the spirits of apathy the first step may seem hard but since their nature is indifferent they are relatively easy to expel. Stand up, shake them off and do something! Anything!

The next step is personal and different for everyone. What do you (or did you at some point) care about? Whether it’s an activity or a philosophy dedicate a moment to that care. If you can’t get off the couch, find and watch a film about it! Whatever it is find a way to work it into your daily life.

Finally and most importantly, don’t be afraid to try! Failure is just part of the learning process and a part of living- There is not a single person who has not experienced failure, join the rest of humanity!

Every time you try, experience feeling an emotion or take part in an activity, you are a little less desirable to the spirits of apathy. If you have welcomed them in the past they are however likely still hanging about your space, they may sluggishly creep toward you if you are still welcoming them… eventually they will wander off when you no longer need them.

Why bother? -Because your worth it!

Who cares? -Everyone you know!

Whatever? -Exactly! Whatever you want, it’s your life!

F**k it? -Why not? Do you;)



Above is Reposted from January of 2018.

Note on March 23rd, 2020: We are Reposting this because as many of us are now stuck at home in isolation or quarantine the Demons of Apathy are definitely a danger! Personally I thought that I had expelled these demons permanently, but over this last week I could feel them cozying in. For myself, like many of you this pandemic shows signs that society may be quite different for me even after the virus plays out. Will the career goals I once had even be viable in the post pandemic economy? Maybe and maybe not. Goals that seemed so reachable just last month, seem some what far fetched right now. So I pressed pause. Our economy is on pause, why not also my life and goals? I binge watched three seasons of a show (roughly 50 hours of television) and started playing a video game. On top of that I spent most of the rest of the time on the couch staring at my phone, reading articles and obsessing on social media. In fact, I am super glad we decided to repost this demon of apathy, because I had almost forgot about it!

Right now, many of us in isolation are being given a gift- even if it REALLY does not seem like it. The gift is time. Time at home, with our families or ourselves. Time to think, time to catch up, time to plan, time to learn, time to try something new, time to work on that project that we have been putting off for years, time to help! Time. I am not saying don’t binge watch a show or play a video game, for some of us that is an excellent use of our time because it’s something we haven’t allowed ourselves to do while busy being productive members of society. What I am pointing out is that we have options. Once you grapple with the gravity of the situation at hand, take a moment to recognize the opportunities before you. Consider using this time productively, in what ever way feels best for you.

https://joyfulterrorpresents.com/demons-of-apathy/

03/23/2020

DEMONS OF DESPAIR

We all have personal demons, it helps to name them so that we might banish them.

Curled up on the couch, in a dark room in the corner, under the blanket still in bed. Alone. Crying. Sobbing. Perhaps silently so as not to attract attention.

It’s ok. No, I’m not telling you to smile, I’m saying It’s ok to be sad. Life is hard. Sometimes it’s even horrific and terrible. Whether you are experiencing this anguish due to death, separation, abuse or injustice- Sadness is a real-time reaction to real events that have occurred in your life.

I’m also not going to try and reason away your sadness by telling you how much worse it may be for someone else in some other place who is experiencing some other atrocity. Though some perspective can often be helpful, the truth is your suffering is relative to your individual human experience. No matter what other injustices may be occurring elsewhere in the world, that in no way negates from that fact that this is how you feel about what is happening to you, here and now.

Go ahead and feel it. It’s healthy and important that you do.

If your anguish is deep then your mourning may take longer.

However, if you then begin to feel that you will never again not feel this way and have lost hope in your very existence, than it is likely that you have attracted a Spirit of Despair.

The Spirit of Despair feeds on your sorrow. They commiserate. Their very existence is hopelessness, if you agree that yours is as well, they will leach onto you and reassure you that you are correct.

Feeling deep immense sadness for your suffering is real. Where it starts to get tricky is how you perceive your suffering. What sort of negative thought patterns are you and the Spirit of Despair developing? Do you hear any these thoughts repeating in your mind like a broken record?

I am alone, nobody cares

I can’t escape this, this is is just my life

Its useless to try, I’m useless

Everything sucks, life sucks

I just want it to end, I should just die

Are these thoughts true or is it the Spirit of Despair whispering in your ears, reassuring you that this is truth? Is your situation really hopeless? If your not careful to distinguish the difference between reality and negative thought patterns, the Spirit of Despair can pull you so far into its line of thinking that you become like your shadow. In the shape of yourself, devoid of light and life. In the worst case scenario you may choose to join with the Spirit of Despair and choose to leave life completely.

Once in the grasps of the Spirit of Despair, it can be hard to escape. The longer you listen to these whispers of hopelessness the easier it is to believe them. The sadness is real but the hopelessness is not. To emerge you must break the negative thought patterns. What would you tell a loved one who was feeling this sad? You might tell them that you love them. That you understand their pain. That though things are currently terrible, eventually, if you are willing to try, things can get better.

Love yourself and tell yourself these things. Stop listening to the negative whispers of the Spirit of Despair, it can only keep you in its pit as long as you allow it to.

They follow death like mice might follow a grain cart. They mass to areas of the less fortunate. Some areas are so overpopulated with the spirits of despair you can literally feel them! They are like a weight pulling you down, a dark cloud that hides the sun and casts a shadowy vibe over the very soul of a house, a neighborhood or even a whole city!

Death, loss, abuse, neglect and all of the injustices that occur in this life, are going to keep occurring. You may not be able to control any of that (though it is certainly worth a try!) you can however control how you deal with it. If your sad, go ahead and cry for as long as you need to. But don’t give up hope. There is a big wide world out there full of options and possibilities! Whenever your ready, step out of your shadow and explore the light.

It’s also worth mentioning that the pit of despair can be deep, it’s ok to ask someone to lower a rope so that you may climb to safety. This may be your individual experience with suffering, but chances are there are many other individuals who have gone through or who are going through very similar sufferings. If you have friends or family you can talk to, you should! Just speaking things out loud and hearing a response that isn’t from the Spirit of Despair can be helpful to break the pattern. Their are also individuals and support groups that want to help you and activist groups that would be more than happy to help you turn those tears into positive change!

Above is Reposted from February of 2018

Note form March 22nd 2020. We decided to repost this because of what is happening in the world right now. Whether you are out there on the frontline as a health care worker dealing first hand with death and hopelessness, working at a grocery store (or one of the other newly recognized vital positions in society) concerned with possible infection, or one of the millions of people in isolation worried about dealing with the possibility of death and feeling helpless- these are uncertain and therefor scary times. Isolation especially can create a perfect storm for the demons of despair who whisper only darkness, make sure you are reaching out to community for some light! Consider joining a group of helpers online, making phone calls to or using technology to meet with friends, family or community members virtually. If you know someone who may be dealing with this demon, please reach out to them frequently during this time and let them know you are there. Join them by listening to their concerns and sharing yours- along with your light, love and hope.

The information below was copied from the National Su***de Prevention Life Line https://su***depreventionlifeline.org

NATIONAL SU***DE PREVENTION LIFELINE
We can all help prevent su***de. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.
We can all help prevent su***de. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.

1-800-273-8255

https://joyfulterrorpresents.com/hello-world/

03/23/2020

THE HUNGRY GHOSTS

We all have personal demons, it helps to name them so that we might banish them.

The cravings are insatiable. You’ve tried to fulfill them with everything … but nothing helps. You feel terrible but you keep trying to fill that empty space inside of you. You beat yourself up about your relapses. You chastise yourself for your weakness. And the hungry ghosts feed on your negativity. The reason you can’t satiate yourself is because it’s not your hunger. It belongs to the hungry ghosts that have attached themselves to you. Their stomachs are bottomless and your self loathing draws them to you. You can fill that hole, with love. Love for yourself. Starve the ghosts or join them in the afterlife in your continued effort to satiate your desires…

Above is a Repost from March of 2018.

Note on March 22nd 2020: When this post was published it was after losing too many people to the opioid epidemic, but really this is a subject that is always relevant. It seems particularly important right now as people are stuck home in isolation. It is sometimes easier to swallow your worries than to face them head on. This extra time at home, though unasked for, can be a time of healing and taking care of things that have been put off for years. But don’t be too hard on yourself if you aren’t adhering to lists and plans, just try to be aware of what you are doing and why and then push forward. Personally, I am usually a production machine… but for the last week I have found myself spinning. Obsessing over articles about the pandemic around the world and how it might effect the economy. I have caught myself more than once stuffing my face with sugar and drinking more wine than necessary. But I recognized it as compulsive behavior that I was using to cope and then told myself ‘oops, thats enough’ and moved on. We are human after all. Sometimes we have to relearn a lesson. That is ok. Recognize the relapse and love yourself anyway.

If you are suffering and thinking of relapsing and swallowing your concerns, try some self care to practice instead. Take a bath, cook yourself a healthy meal, stretch, exercise, read a book, write a book, create something etc. If you are ready to face yourself head on, try this exercise; Look into the mirror for ten minutes without looking away. Be mindful of the sort of thoughts you are having. Are they negative? If yes than how and about what? Are these thoughts about things that you would like to change about yourself and can but have not? Or are these negative thoughts about things that you cannot change? What ever it is, take note and either face it or let it go. Both are a processes. Some days will be good and some will be bad, cause that is how life goes. Learn to love yourself everyday either way, you will be surprised at how much easier this journey through life becomes.

Also you do not have to do this alone! The information below is copied from AMERICAN ADDICTION CENTERS –

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/alcohol-drug-hotline

FREE HOTLINE RESOURCES
The following hotline resources are free, confidential, and available 24/7:

Al-Anon and Ala-teen hotline line: 800-356-9996 – Counselors provide support to teens and adults who are negatively impacted by alcohol addiction and provide resources to group therapy nearby for ongoing support.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): 1-800-662-4357 – English/Spanish speaking counselors provide referrals to treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based services.
NATIONAL SU***DE PREVENTION: 1-800-273-8255 – Support to help those in crisis process their emotional distress and prevent su***de.
Boys Town: 1-800-448-3000 – Over 140 languages can be translated; they also provide a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) line for the speech and hearing impaired (1-800-448-1833).
Drugfree.org: call 855-378-4373 or text 55753 – Counselors provide support and education and guide you to the best course of action.

https://joyfulterrorpresents.com/the-hungry-ghosts/

12/30/2019

So you were wondering what else happened in immersive experiences this year?

Ihttps://noproscenium.com/nopros-best-shows-experiences-of-2019-90178e1716de

Looking back on the best productions of the year