Pod Dancing is a game about gender norms, and how society limits, labels, and controls people. We will explore these themes through role-play and dancing. Set in an alternate world with four genders in the early stages of its Industrial Revolution, Pod Dancing investigates how gender roles and relationships adapt to a rapidly changing society. It is a Nordic re-design by Julia Pilowsky of an American LARP written by Sharone Horowit-Hendler, Kate Fractal, and Alon Levy.

In the game, players will build a new set of four genders together, with guidance from the game-masters. Then they will play characters of these genders at a Victorian-era courtship ball, like those in Pride and Prejudice. This way, they will get to experience what it is like to live and love as someone of the gender they just created.

Pod Dancing will run on the 12th of May 2019, from 13 to 19 at the Zoological Museum in Copenhagen. It is a game for 14 to 28 players. All play and materials are in English. Light food and drinks will be served in game, but we recommend you eat lunch beforehand. It will cost 20 kr to attend.

You can sign up for the LARP here. Sign-up closes on the first of May.

The game-masters, Julia Pilowsky and Hjalte Ipsen, are dedicated to including players of different needs, abilities, and backgrounds. First-time players are welcome, and no experience or talent with dance is needed.

The venue has automatic doors, and the LARP is located on the ground floor, which we hope will help players with mobility issues. If there is anything else you need to know about the venue’s accessibility, please contact the game-masters.

Julia has adapted the dances used in Pod Dancing to accommodate the needs of disabled players before, and will be happy to do so again. There is a dedicated section of the sign-up to make these requests.

The game-masters want you to ensure you will not play on any themes that may upset or trigger you. Therefore, we would like to provide some content notes.

The following themes will be part of the game for all players, and if they are not for you, this is not your game: gender stereotyping, religion, shame and repression of sexuality, strict enforcement of gender norms, oppressive class systems, and romance.

The following themes are part of the game for some characters, but you can request a character that avoids these themes if they are not for you: PTSD, gender dysphoria, mourning a loved one, disability, and xenophobia.