Nebula’s Portals to Immersive Experiences Rise from Cafe Nordo’s Remnants
Clue marker from citywide scavenger hunt
The Evergreen Echo
In the winter of 2022, Cafe Nordo, a company who created beloved immersive theater and dining experiences within Pioneer Square’s Nord Alley, closed its doors and set its gaze to a dream of the future. After thirty original productions hosted in its two venues, the Culinarium and the Knife Room, the company decided to seek out a larger, more accessible home to produce and sustain boundless creativity.
As they searched for real estate with sufficient accommodations, the dream world began to take shape. A rift, so to say, opened beneath Cafe Nordo, and out emerged Nebula. They devised a multi-dimensional realm in the cosmic dust of their rebirth and opened the first access portal within the Georgetown Steamplant: an immersive experience titled, The Ghosts of Nebula, where audiences unraveled a story about six detectives who sought to uncover the haunting secrets of the mysterious Steamplant.
This site-specific performance sowed the seeds of their next project: a city-wide scavenger hunt hosted by ‘The Odd and The Curious.’ Followers of Nebula were invited to find eight clues hidden throughout the city. QR codes waited on engraved wooden markings which bore the symbol of The Odd and The Curious, luring explorers in. When collected in entirety, the clues led to the location of an immersive party, otherwise deemed the “ninth anomaly.”
Should any adventurers wish to explore the curious nooks of the city in the aftermath of the rifts or pay homage to the locations who joined in on the creation and execution of the journey, the adventure proceeded thusly:
The first clue hung from a rail which overlooked the docks of South Lake Union. Before arrival, travelers received an email from a mysterious personage named Rain (written by Opal Peachey Rosso) who told of the Mayer Clocks, pirates, and an industrial museum. Participants could click the email image upon arrival and listen to an auditory narrative which fleshed out the story behind each rift and gave a bit of historical context to the location. Once found, participants followed a link at the bottom of the email and received the hint for the next clue’s location.
The second correspondence hinted at a creature tucked under the Aurora Bridge. There, the Fremont Troll guarded the rift in the concrete abutment behind its head. When scanned, the code on the wooden placard opened an augmented reality experience, designed by MXT Reality and made possible by a grant from the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture. Within this augmented world, a rift cracked open in the ground beneath one’s feet, and a stanza of a poem bubbled out, each word a fragment of the key to the ninth anomaly.
The third clue was hooked to a rail within Gas Works Park. Participants were guided to the park by a tale of lovers meeting on the hillside among the rusted, towering pipelines. This one proved difficult to find, as the hints were vague and the area vast, but through a bit of teamwork on the Field Archive’s Forum, where participants posted their findings and proofs of arrival (and some extra hints from Rain), the small, dangling clue could be located.
Detective Drew Quinn (Jacquelyn) inquiring about dreams to a Pursuer of The Odd and The Curious
Bruce Clayton Tom / Courtesy of Opal Peachey Rosso
The fourth hint led down an ominous staircase in Pioneer Square toward the hidden remains of the underground city left unburied in the basements of the surrounding buildings, abandoned after the Great Fire of 1889. Luckily, no exploration of the subterranean level was necessary. The rift took shape at the threshold, just outside a chained and locked door.
Hints at this point grew more abstract and less recognizable, encouraging participants to explore the lesser traveled places of the city. Temple Pastries harbored the fifth link to the rifts. For those who arrived later in the evening, employees at Sacro Bosco Pizza and Wine allowed travelers to wander about in search of the clue during dining hours once the bakery had closed.
The sixth clue sat as a center piece on a table deep within the Panama Hotel and Tea House. Fueled by a warm cup of tea and delicious pastries, participants could embark upon this rift accompanied by a small, feline dream guardian named Miu-Miu, who resides at the shop.
The seventh clue sat shaded among the ghoulish All Hallows decor of the Fireside Room at the Sorrento Hotel, a cozy lounge space with good drinks and kind staff who were eager to be a part of the adventure.
The eighth rift opened beside a polar bear stuffy in the Arctic Club Hotel, revealing the final fragment of the poem which contained the location of the ninth anomaly. When put together, the stanzas led to Pike Place. Guesses of the location were submitted privately on the forum, and those who got it right were sent an invitation and details about the event to come.
On November 11, Nebula took over The Rabbit Box in Pike Place Market. Pursuers of The Odd and The Curious flocked into the eatery and set upon one final puzzle together. It began with a Poet, played by Akrasia Arbogast. Arbogast took the stage in an elaborate and ethereal costume designed by House of Daggers Design. She sat at a displayed typewriter and began to clammer at the keys. Guests approached in a single file line, and each handed the Poet a dime. Once paid, the Poet withdrew a sheet of paper with a riddle on one side and a blank space on the other where she wrote a customized stanza of poetry.
The riddle guided guests around the space where multiple activations, designed by James O’Donnell, such as a tarot deck, a map of all the clue locations, a video game, and a box, unveiled the answer. All the while, Detective Drew Quinn, played by Jacquelyn Miedema (who had been featured in the Ghosts of Nebula production and in video content filmed by Scot Breitbarth on the instagram page), inquired over recent dreams and experiences had by wandering guests.
Once solved by sufficient parties, the rift of the ninth anomaly cracked open. Singer and musician, Rachael Beaver, was brought blindfolded to the stage where she took up an electric cello, set the bow to its strings, and lifted her voice with a rapturous beauty. While Beaver sang, the Poet performed a stunning piece upon a lyra which had been rigged up between guests’ tables. Various circular prop elements attached to the rig represented the common themes of the dream world and the narrative of the rifts: time, cycles, and portals.
The performance duo brought incredible local talent front and center. It was both a taste of the high end performance quality often only attributed to the entertainment capitals of the nation and a representation of a uniquely Seattle artistic flare.
Poet (Akrasia) receiving a dime from a Pursuer
Courtesy of Opal Peachey Rosso
