Later this month — March 29, to be precise — I will be joining Paul and Storm for a show at Largo, here in Los Angeles. This show will be a sort of concentrated w00tstock, expanding my 20 minute set of one story to about 60 minutes of probably 3 stories, and doing approximately the same for Paul and Storm. There will also be as much Captain's Wife's Lament as the audience can stand.
Look:
Tuesday, March 29 – Wil Wheaton vs. Paul and Storm
Largo at the Coronet, Los Angeles, CA – 7:30 pm
Tickets: http://bit.ly/h2vuPk
I'm excited for this show, and if it's well-received, we'll know that we can take it on the road with a reasonable expectation of success.
See, w00tstock is awesome, but it's expensive and complicated to produce. The four of us who are in the core of the show have busy schedules that don't always compliment each other, so blocking out a few days where we can all go to the same place at the same time isn't exactly the easiest thing in the world. If we can produce shows with some of us, instead of all of us — a sort of w00tstock presents kind of thing — then it significantly increases the chances of a w00tstock-style show coming to your town.
Yes! Your town! Can you believe it!? It's just that easy! Act now!
Um.
So, to the point: I've loved performing the same two stories at the various w00tstocks we've already done, but it's time to retire them and do something new. This is where you come in: if you're familiar with my published work, it would be really helpful to me if you would tell me what story or stories you would like to see performed live, with musical madness provided by Paul and Storm.
Here are a couple of examples from w00tstocks past, to inspire and entertain you.
Rocky Horror Picture Show at Chicago (w00tstock 2.2)
The Trade at w00tstock San Francisco (1.0)
Wow, watching about 5 minutes of those clips made me simultaneously nostalgic for those shows, proud as hell of what we already did, and positively giddy with excitement for what we're going to do in the mysterious future.
If you're in or near Los Angeles on March 29, I hope you'll come out to see us. It's no secret that Los Angeles sucks balls for live shows, because people just won't come out to see shows unless you tell them things like, "Hey, San Francisco sold out two shows, and you can't even sell out one?" and "What happened to you, Los Angeles? You used to be cool." Or maybe just, "This is a new show, different from the last one you saw, and I promise you'll have fun."
So, tell me, potential-future-w00tstocker: what would you like to see me perform at a w00tstock near you?
Wow. That is a tough question. You’ve got so much good stuff to choose from. No wonder you’re looking for help. Is there any way you could do anything from Memories of the Future? Perhaps you could bring in some TNG clips and do excerpts from the essays with musical punctuation from P&S. It’d be that much more MST3K than even the podcast was.
Yeah, I'm actually working on that already. *crosses fingers*
Firecrackers!!! In ATX, of course!
Wil, i’m moving to L.A from Tucson sometime in the next few weeks (just waiting on tax refund), I am so going to try to catch this! Stories and such a la Memories of the Future would be super rad.
Let me just say – if you ever bring Chris Hardwick in again, you guys should do hilarious “The Stupid Things We Did When We Were Young” sketches. That Nerdist podcast was hilarious… you guys could probably be hilariously awesome onstage together.
I’m not so familiar with your other hilarious stories to really put any other input (my favorite stories from my copies of Happiest Days and Just a Geek are the more heartwarming tales, not necessarily w00tstock material). I know what you read at PhxCC last year was pretty awesome, though, and pretty geeky! Maybe more video games/D&D hilariousness like that?
(Also: w00tstock in Phoenix. Just saying)
I agree totally with Melimsah, The nerdist stores were gutbustingly hilarious and interesting.I love hearing creative people I follow talking about their crazy antics which may or may not be related to the actual work that they do. Just my two cents, Big fan, I was at w00tstock pdx heretofore known as (i think) the longest w00tstock ever, and hope to see you this weekend at ECCC. Are you doing the rockband thing again this year?
DUH. Your Clash of the Geeks story. With heroic musical accompaniment, IT WILL BE EVEN MORE AWESOME.
I am biased, however.
I think you're onto something, Mister I Am Totally Not Biased.
No Rockband, but I'll be around the con all day Friday and Saturday.
Awesome, see you there on classoline alley saturday
I’m buying a hat for the occasion.
The best thing, Wil old boy, that you could possibly do… is come to London (UK) with Paul and Storm and give us distant cousins a full run down of your greatest hits. We haven’t seen/heard any of them live and (I called everyone and asked) would just LOVE to see you. Feel free to bring JoCo and the rest if you like but speaking personally its all about P&S & Wil afaik.
Well, when (yes, dammit, I said, WHEN, not IF (hope springs eternal, and all that)) you come to Boston, feel free to use your old material because when W00tstock was here last, it was Wil-less (no, I’m not (too) bitter, it was a good show even without you and I understand schedules, etc, etc).
However, NathanielS’s idea with the TNG clips would be awesome.
I nominate “Lying in Odessa” and “The Day After.”
Also I just Demanded you on Eventful; that might be a good way to test the waters for this project.
RHPS story. Cause I <3 RHPS. Also, you owe those of us in Austin, TX a visit!
Awesome!
I read that TNG is coming to Netflix Instant Watch in the next few months, and that had me thinking about Memories and hoping that new volumes were forthcoming. I know you’ve been super busy lately, but any progress on that front?
Also, Wootstock Minneapolis was amazing, so here’s hoping you and P&S make it out here if you’re able to take these on the road.
*crosses own fingers*
I can’t speak for others, but I’m a sucker for any stories involving D&D or gaming. Adam Savage’s “first kiss” w00tstock story and your story about “the most advanced computer system ever made” are awesome, for example.
It’d be awesome if you did “The Day After”.
I also second the notion of teaming up with Chris Hardwick for more “Stupid Things We Did When We Were Young”.
I have to second Athene here. C’mon, man, show us some love here in Austin! While Neil Gaiman was and is undeniably awesome, I’ve met the guy before and I haven’t yet had the chance to shake your hand. Would love to see you make it here for a concentrated w00tstock with Paul and Storm.
As for what you’d like to read us, I like reading all sorts of variety from you. TNG stories, heartwarming stories like the one that gave “Dancing Barefoot” its title, tales of D&D, reminiscences of great voice-acting gigs past, and so on. Anything and everything, basically.
The four of us who are in the core of the show have busy schedules that don’t always compliment each other…
I am taken with the vision of a round table of day planners (though, doubtless, you all use new-fangled things like iCal and Google Calendar instead) saying things like, “Oh, good show, old boy, you have an absolutely fine binding!” and “Goodness, but your pages are well-ordered, aren’t they?” And then one drunken malcontent stumbles into the room and mumbles something deeply offensive like, “You’re all six months out of date!” before wheeling in a sloppy pirouette and staggering out again.
Or, perhaps, you meant “complement?” Sorry, I couldn’t resist sharing the image. It made me giggle.
Doh. You got me. This is why writers have editors.
No worries.
I make more egregious errors than that all the time. Especially understandable since you were, I imagine, excited while writing this, and the sort of typos where you use a homonym are the hardest to catch.
What are the chances you’ll be somewhere on the Atlantic coast for a wootstock anytime soon?
I have a venue in Harrisonburg, VA which I’d love for wootstock to light up.
If you haven’t done so already, get thee to Eventful.com. Demands = higher chance of getting shows in the UK.
IMHO, the work in Memories of the Future is the best you’ve done so far. Your performance of “Justice” at the Phoenix Cactus Comic-con a few years back is embedded on my iPod.
I like the idea of TNG clips, but wouldn’t licensing be a nightmare? You could always get P&S to re-enact scenes, as well as providing the music. They already have the uniforms, after all.
I’d be for something like this coming to Dallas,TX since you missed us last time Wil. I hope it’s smashingly successful!
Fuuuuuuck, just bought tix to Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair at the New Beverly that night. Bummer. Totally agree about Memories of the Future.
I have to add a vote for The Last Unicorn (Pegasus Kitten) as well. FTW! And I would love to hear The Day After.
“There will also be as much Captain’s Wife’s Lament as the audience can stand.”
Good grief, you’ll be there all night.
Which story? The Last Unicorn Pegasus Kitten sounds fun, and Id really love to see Memories of the Future.
Hope The Largo works out!!
Aw, fuck. We're going to lose a HUGE amount of our potential audience to that show. Dammit.
w00tstock in Phoenix! [Just offering that Phoenix is the 5th largest city in the US]. Not suggesting that w00tstock playing in smaller cities is in any a slight to us, but if you came here you could learn what “it’s a dry heat” really means.
Where’s the “upvote button?”
Honestly? I’d like to see W00Tstock at least in my state with you in it. Is Florida that evil? Maybe… but the weather is ok and hell, I dont care where it is I’ll still drive to it. (though Tampa *cough,cough* would be beggars choice!)
Until that fateful day, break a leg on the 29th!
Any chance the “road” could come as far as Melbourne? (and I don’t mean Florida).
“i am the modren man” would be PERFECT for this lineup.
I would settle for you performing anything at a town near me. W00tstock Hamburg – doesn’t that sound awesome? But if you prefer an English speaking country, W00tstock London might be even better. British Museum, Sir John Soane’s Museum, Imperial War Museum and W00tstock. Perfect.
Make us EuroGeeks happy!
Wil, Come to South Florida, pleeeease. And this time – don’t get on some friggin’ boat and sail off. Anywhere between West Palm Beach and Miami will do. Fort Liquordale would be optimum. I’m sure we can find a stipper bar we might rent for the night.
I’d kill to hear “The Day After” and anything from “Memories of the Future Past”.
It would be way cool if you could do a Q&A session with P&S improvising to the mood.
Or better yet – maybe you could do some improv yourself. We throw out ideas… like: Wil attempts to act out a soliloquy from STTNG as P&S play a ragtime tune.
In any case – I still owe you a Guiness. Which I can only buy you if you’re here.
Wil, PLEASE come up to Toronto some time! Vancouver shouldn’t be the only Canadian city getting all your loving!
Couple of ideas…
I’d love to see you Memories of the Future-form the fifth season triumph that is the “The Game”… because Wesley has learned about brainscans by then, you know. AndAshleyJudd.. Ahem.
Of course when I say “see”, as I’m stuck on the other side of the planet, I mean “wait for the the youtube upload” (w00t for creative commons concerts) but never the less, something new and awesome would always go down well.
Oooh, you remember Adam Savage’s 100 wishes from the first w00tstock? Do yours.
Of course, I agree with Scalzi, Clash of the Geeks FTW.
And finally, you should totally perform Live on Stage: ‘A genuine prank call to Felicia Day’
Hope some of these don’t suck.
(PS: I love Mister Lizard’s naming “Memories of the Future Past”… you should totally call the collection of old volumes that)
Like those before me said, anything from Memories is gold.
I was also really touched by this LA Weekly post of yours. I’d love to hear you wax nostalgic about the gaming culture of your (our) youth.
Jay
Definitely vote for more Celebrity D&D! Haven’t played any D&D in over 20 years, but the adventures you and your cohorts create are reliably hilarious and wonderfully entertaining. Would be thrilled to see one live in Austin.