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It matters not if you鈥檙e a seasoned dungeon crawler who鈥檚 rolled a twenty-sided die more times than they鈥檝e seen the sun, or if your Dungeons & Dragons knowledge is fledgling: everyone is invited to enter The Twenty-Sided Tavern, an interactive comedy show spearheaded by queer talent that brings the world鈥檚 most popular tabletop role-playing game to life, feeling reassured that they鈥檒l have a great time.聽

Following a critically and commercially successful run in New York City, The Twenty-Sided Tavern is now touching down in Sydney to delight both fans of D&D and improvisational comedy.聽

Audience members each night will be able to make key decisions that control the outcome of the show with their phones and some on-stage interaction, while the wickedly talented performers on-stage respond accordingly for an unpredictable night of comedy.聽

The queer importance of Dungeons & Dragons

It鈥檚 no exaggeration to say that Dungeons & Dragons is more popular than ever, and its importance as a safe space for queer people to express themselves is no small contributor to its enduring success.聽

Trubie-Dylan Smith, an actor from New Zealand and proud queer man who plays the Trickster archetype each night in The Twenty-Sided Tavern, explains why he thinks Dungeons & Dragons is so popular with the 17c起草社区I+ community: 鈥淥ne of my theories is that a queer lifestyle is already so off-script. Getting married, buying a house, having kids; that blueprint doesn鈥檛 completely match for us.鈥�

鈥淪o when you鈥檙e presented with this world where you can be whoever you wanna be, live whatever kind of life you wanna live, that鈥檚 very attractive,鈥� he continues. 鈥淵ou can also look however you want to look, so I think for people who don鈥檛 see themselves represented in life, it鈥檚 this awesome place that you can be in with your friends.鈥�

Director of The Twenty-Sided Tavern Michael Fell, a fellow openly gay man who鈥檚 come from the New York production of the show, adds to Trubie鈥檚 point: 鈥淸Queer people] aren鈥檛 born into families or social settings in which we are able to inherit the lineage of queer tradition. We have to seek and find it ourselves, and that鈥檚 what brings people together to play games like D&D. It seems like a curse when you鈥檙e young, but it becomes the biggest blessing of your life.鈥澛�

Interested in Dungeons & Dragons? The Twenty-Sided Tavern is for you

For a taste of how D&D works, The Twenty-Sided Tavern is a splendid introduction to this gameplay system. Michael explains: 鈥淢y key takeaway is that I want someone who knows nothing about the game to see the show and have an amazing time. They may not learn how to play D&D in its entirety, but they鈥檒l have a sense.

鈥淚 know from personal experience in New York that people have come to see the show that don鈥檛 know anything about it, and are now in regular weekly games,鈥� he continues. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 exactly what I want to do 鈥� give people a sense of what it could be and allow them to dive in.鈥澛�

Trubie reinforces the similarity to the game: 鈥淓veryone鈥檚 seen an improv show before, for or worse鈥� but it really is like a D&D session. We鈥檙e playing a game, and the audience are both a player and DM at the table. Everyone in the room is agreeing to go on an adventure, and none of us know exactly where that goes. That鈥檚 exciting for me as a player, and I hope it is for the audience too!鈥�

Like a good D&D session, expect the unexpected at The Twenty-Sided Tavern as it rolls into the Sydney Opera House for an unpredictable night of hilarious roleplay spearheaded by queer excellence.聽

When? 18 December – 8 March
Where? Sydney Opera House, Studio Room
Tickets?