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Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern

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Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern
Company
GenreActual play, improv, immersive theater
Date of premiereMay 5, 2024 (2024-05-05)
LocationStage 42
Creative team
DirectorMichael Fell
Carriers of ChaosDavid Carpenter, David Andrew Laws, Sarah Davis Reynolds
The Tomb of HavocDavid Carpenter, Michael Fell, Conner Marx
Other information
Characters
SettingForgotten Realms
Based onDungeons & Dragons

Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern is a stage production which combines actual play, improv, and immersive theater as the player cast navigate a Dungeons & Dragons adventure set in the Forgotten Realms. Audience participation ranges from select members joining the cast on stage to browser-based voting software to determine cast actions. The first adventure scenario, Carriers of Chaos, was created by David Carpenter, David Andrew Laws and Sarah Davis Reynolds. The show's second adventure, The Tomb of Havoc, was created by Carpenter and director Michael Fell with additional writing by Conner Marx.

It officially opened on off-Broadway on May 5, 2024, after previews began in April, at Stage 42 in New York City.[1][2][3][4] In December 2024, it opened at the Sydney Opera House's Studio venue in Sydney.[5]

Premise

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Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern is set in the Forgotten Realms, an official Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting. The show combines actual play, improv, and immersive theater with the Dungeon Master, supported by the Tavern Keeper, running an adventure for the player characters. The player characters consist of various archetypes.[2][3][4] The audience selects different versions of these characters "from a shortlist pulled from 33 total characters designed for the show".[6] The adventure outcome is impacted by audience voting, improv by the onstage performers, and Dungeons & Dragons game mechanics.[3][4][7]

Production

[edit]

Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern is the first licensed Dungeons & Dragons theatrical production.[8][9] The show was created by David Carpenter, David Andrew Laws (also known as DAGL) and Sarah Davis Reynolds.[3][4][10] It utilizes Gamiotics software for audience participation.[2][4] Reynolds explained that the split between the Dungeon Master and the Tavern Keeper puts one "in charge of the story" and the other "in charge of the game".[11] She also commented that it allows the Dungeon Master "to be playfully antagonistic" while "the Tavern Keeper can come in and" state the exact mechanics, adding that "puppy dog eyes" will not change the game rules.[11]

Both the New York City and Sydney productions were directed by Michael Fell.[5][12][13] The first adventure, Carriers of Chaos, was created by Carpenter, Laws, and Reynolds. The second adventure, The Tomb of Havoc, was created by Carpenter and Fell with additional writing by Conner Marx.[13]

Development

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The Twenty-Sided Tavern was first performed at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival in 2021, prior to a run Off-Off-Broadway at Asylum NYC. At the time, it was marketed as a "Dungeons and Dragons-style" production, due to lacking an official license.[14][15][16] Reynolds explained that during the COVID-19 pandemic, as a game designer with DAGL as a writer, they worked on "Zoom shows" that utilized "interactive technology to be a little bit more engaging than watching another Shakespeare reading on Zoom".[17] They also requested that one of these shows feature Dungeons & Dragons, as both of them were long-time players of the game, and the concept "immediately clicked".[17] From there, they "started doing development in front of an audience at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival" followed by "a lot of development here in New York".[17] The full production premiered at the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera in 2022, followed by runs in Chicago and at Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[18][19][20]

It then became an official production by Hasbro, Curious Hedgehog, Showpath Entertainment, and Wizards of the Coast.[20][14][16] In May 2024, after previews began in April, the off-Broadway show opened as Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern at Stage 42 with a new adventure.[21][2][22] In December 2024, the show opened at the Sydney Opera House, in the Studio venue, with a local cast under the direction of Michael Fell.[5] It is scheduled for a U.S. tour in the summer of 2025.[23][24]

Set design

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The set features a tavern bar which hides various monitors and other technical controls for the Tavern Keeper and Dungeon Master to use during the show. This includes a "script monitor with pages of potential beats to follow" as a guide and a "sequence chart" monitor with "a branching list of possible scenarios that can play out dependent on each decision or dice roll".[6] Christopher Cruz of Rolling Stone explained that "what begins with a simple flowchart rapidly expands as the game progresses" and becomes "a dizzying web of hundreds of potential outcomes for the narrative".[6] In addition to the physical set, there is a video wall which provides various backgrounds and overlays along with character and item cards.[25] The Tavern Keeper and Dungeon Master can use this wall to depict the adventure and include dynamic information such as "hit point meters and visualizations of the combat effects onscreen".[6]

Original casts

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Character Original Off-Broadway Cast[2] Original Sydney Cast[5]
Dungeon Master David Andrew Laws William Kasper
Tavern Keeper Sarah Davis Reynolds Zoë Harlen
The Warrior Tyler Nowell Felix Atlas Adams
The Mage Madelyn Murphy Trubie-Dylan Smith
The Trickster Diego F. Salinas Eleanor Stankiewicz

Guest stars

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The show has rotated in various guest stars as players: Felicia Day (September 2024), Aabria Iyengar (September–October 2024, and February-March 2025), Travis McElroy (November 2024 and March 2025), Erika Ishii (December 2024), Jack Lepiarz (January 2025), Neil Newbon (February 2025), Darin De Paul (March 2025), and Anjali Bhimani (April 2025).[26][27][28] Iyengar was also the show's first guest Dungeon Master.[29]

Critical reception

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Off-Broadway

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Time Out[4]
IGN6/10[3]

Elisabeth Vincentelli of The New York Times noted that the off-Broadway show is not a "straightforward fantasy tale" as it "is basically a play session" of Dungeons & Dragons where "three actors try to pull off a mission by reacting to prompts, solving riddles and, naturally, engaging in fights"; however, she did not feel that was a "restrictive" format since Dungeons & Dragons "has been undergoing a startling renaissance".[2] Shaye Weaver of Time Out wrote that the audience does not "need to have played D&D to enjoy or understand the show" but Dungeons & Dragons fans would "get a kick out of the gamer tropes peppered throughout the show and the Easter eggs that scenic designer K.C. McGeorge has built into his set".[4] Vincentelli commented that "as with the tabletop version, the show relies heavily on a combination of scripted shenanigans, chance (those dice rolls!) and improvisation – getting into the plot details of the mission I saw makes little sense here as each performance is different".[2] Weaver highlighted that the show "puts the audience in control of where the story goes" leading to different performances and that the three player characters are each "controlled by a third of the audience" for "decisions" and "support at critical junctures".[4] Joey Sims, for IGN, noted that audience participation – such as "Mario Party-esque fast-tap challenges" – is "strictly volunteer-only basis" and that the "browser-based voting software, designed by Gamiotics, is smoothly integrated and thankfully bug-free".[3] Sims opined that the show "coasts on creative design, strong performances, and stimulating crowd work for most of its running time" but that it "forgets" the "key element of both a great D&D game (and great theater): a meaningful story" which left him "feeling ultimately unsatisfied".[3]

On the improv aspect of the show, Vincentelli thought "the lively, quick-thinking [Madelyn] Murphy clearly stood out, but all four actors threw themselves into the ambient silliness".[2] Weaver similarly highlighted Murphy as "a standout among the talented improvisers".[4] However, she thought DAGL, as the Dungeon Master, "was perhaps the best of them all—reacting quickly and humorously to the crowd's crazy decisions and call-outs, with new character voices at the ready to go along with whatever disheveled wig he may have on his head at any given moment. He was adept at keeping the crowd in line and on task while also making it feel like we were all in it together—the mark of a good DM".[4] Sims stated DAGL was both an "endearing guide" and a "commanding storyteller", Reynolds was "enjoyably wry" and a "grounding presence" as the Tavern Keeper, and the players "are charming and likable".[3] However, he felt that "energy tends to dip during the actual gameplay" and "without enough reasons to invest in the characters or the outcome of their quest, these portions of The Twenty-Sided Tavern suffer further".[3]

Sydney

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Guardian[5]
The Sydney Morning Herald[30]
Time Out[31]

Cassie Tongue of The Guardian called The Twenty-Sided Tavern a "perfect summer activity" with an "all-are-welcome-here vibe".[5] Alice Ellis of Time Out explained that no "prior knowledge of D&D" is required "to get swept up in the magic that is Dungeons and Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern. If anything, this show is probably the best way I've found so far to get a better grasp on the complex game that is D&D".[31] Michael Idato of The Sydney Morning Herald stated that "this isn't just watching people play the Dungeons & Dragons game, though there is dice-rolling, nail-biting thrills and gasps galore. It's more akin to an improv comedy show in which the cast play D&D character archetypes, the outcomes are decided by dice roll (and audience intervention), and the cast share the stage with a 'dungeon master' (William Kasper) and a 'rules lawyer' Zoe Harlen".[30] Ellis called Kasper "charismatic" and that the player actors "are likeable, funny and sharp".[31] In particular, Ellis commented that Eleanor Stankiewicz "commands the stage, holding the audience's gaze even at times when she's not the focal point".[31] Tongue thought Harlen "delightfully performed" as the Tavern Keeper.[5]

Tongue stated that the show is "an uncomplicated and boisterous good time that isn't afraid to be silly" and that "the options are too wonderfully ridiculous to be spoiled but expect big choices, dubious accents and charmingly lo-fi props".[5] Tongue highlighted that the Dungeon Master and Tavern Keeper "grant the audience, at critical moments, chances choose our own unique adventure with the press of a button" with the Tavern Keeper taking "on some of the rules-explaining and game-running of a traditional Dungeon Master".[5] Idato noted that The Twenty-Sided Tavern is "very much for the mainstream, though there are small details to tickle the hardcore fans", and called it an "unpredictable hoot" and "delightfully bonkers" with "some curious creative notes".[30] Ellis stated that she had "never seen anything like" The Twenty-Sided Tavern and that "the magic of this show" comes from the "unexpectedness and chaos of dice play".[31] Ellis also highlighted other aspects that made the show a "very immersive experience" such as "amazing digital artwork displays of the buildings or landscapes the characters were in" and "changing lighting and runes that lit up around the stage when characters perform certain actions".[31]

References

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  1. ^ Moreau, Jordan (February 15, 2024). "'Twenty-Sided Tavern,' First Official Dungeons & Dragons Theater Show, Sets New York Premiere". Variety. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Vincentelli, Elisabeth (May 17, 2024). "'Dungeons & Dragons' Review: Community Building One Dice Roll at a Time". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Sims, Joey (May 6, 2024). "Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern Review". IGN. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Weaver, Shaye (May 17, 2024). "Review: Dungeons & Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern". Time Out Theater. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Tongue, Cassie (December 19, 2024). "Dungeons & Dragons the Twenty-Sided Tavern review – interactive adventure that's nail-biting fun". The Guardian. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
  6. ^ a b c d Cruz, Christopher (May 14, 2024). "Dice Rolls, Flow Charts, and an Undead Cowboy: Inside Off-Broadway's Fun New Take on 'D&D'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 6, 2024. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  7. ^ "The Twenty-Sided Tavern". Gamiotics. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
  8. ^ Ezekwe, Nnamdi (February 18, 2024). "First-Ever Dungeons & Dragons Live Theatrical Production is in the Works". CBR. Archived from the original on February 25, 2024. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  9. ^ Hoffer, Christian (February 15, 2024). "Dungeons & Dragons Gets Official Theater Experience". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  10. ^ "Dungeons & Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern". Playbill. Archived from the original on January 26, 2025. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  11. ^ a b Stretch, Andrew (April 11, 2024). "DAGL and Sarah Davis Reynolds Talk D&D Stage Show The Twenty-Sided Tavern; Writing For Stage, Interactive Technologies, And Herding Audience Members | TechRaptor". TechRaptor. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  12. ^ Kerwick, Josh (December 15, 2024). "Get A Queer Taste Of Dungeons & Dragons At The Twenty-Sided Tavern". Star Observer. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  13. ^ a b "Cast and Creative". Dungeons & Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern. Archived from the original on December 10, 2024. Retrieved December 6, 2024. 'The Tomb of Havoc' Created and Written by: David Carpenter & Michael Fell. Additional writing by: Conner Marx. Previous Campaign 'Carriers of Chaos' Created by David Carpenter, David Andrew Laws and Sarah Reynolds
  14. ^ a b Rabinowitz, Chloe (November 8, 2021). "THE TWENTY-SIDED TAVERN to Open in NYC Tomorrow". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on December 7, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  15. ^ Rabinowitz, Chloe (January 28, 2022). "Gamiotics Technology Presents THE TWENTY-SIDED TAVERN". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  16. ^ a b Moreau, Jordan (May 3, 2024). "'Twenty-Sided Tavern' Brings Dungeons & Dragons Improv, Audience Voting and Real Tequila Shots to Off-Broadway". Variety. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  17. ^ a b c Tyrrell, Caitlin (May 22, 2024). "Twenty Sided Tavern Cast Talk Dimension 20 & The Adventure Zone Inspiration In Unique New D&D Experience". ScreenRant. Retrieved March 18, 2025.
  18. ^ "Dungeon drag: Role-play show 'Twenty-Sided Tavern' is too shallow to be immersive". Chicago Sun-Times. November 11, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  19. ^ Fortune, Ed (August 21, 2022). "The Twenty-Sided Tavern – Edinburgh Fringe". Starburst. Archived from the original on August 21, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  20. ^ a b Hall, Margaret (September 6, 2024). "Dungeons & Dragons All-Stars Felicia Day, Aabria Iyengar, and Erika Ishii to Join Twenty-Sided Tavern Off-Broadway". Playbill. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  21. ^ Rosky, Nicole. "Interactive Dungeons & Dragons Stage Show Will Arrive Off-Broadway This Spring". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
  22. ^ Moreau, Jordan (February 15, 2024). "'Twenty-Sided Tavern,' First Official Dungeons & Dragons Theater Show, Sets New York Premiere". Variety. Retrieved December 10, 2024.
  23. ^ Radulovic, Petrana (March 4, 2025). "Twenty-Sided Tavern is headed on national tour — but there's still time to the see the original". Polygon. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  24. ^ Moreau, Jordan (March 4, 2025). "'Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern' Sets Final New York Performances Before National Tour". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  25. ^ Rusak, Rotem (April 18, 2024). "Here's a First Look at the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Interactive Stage Experience, THE TWENTY-SIDED TAVERN". Nerdist. Archived from the original on January 10, 2025. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  26. ^ Radulovic, Petrana (September 5, 2024). "The Twenty-Sided Tavern invites special guests to join the party". Polygon. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  27. ^ "Ify Nwadiwe, Jack Lepiarz, and Neil Newbon to Join Twenty-Sided Tavern Off-Broadway". Playbill. Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  28. ^ Moreau, Jordan (March 13, 2025). "'Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern' Sets Guest Stars for Final Shows (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  29. ^ Zeoli, Rowan (January 22, 2025). "Aabria Iyengar back on Broadway as Twenty-Sided Tavern's first guest DM". Polygon. Archived from the original on February 11, 2025. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  30. ^ a b c Idato, Michael (December 19, 2024). "Expect the unexpected from a delightfully bonkers night at this pub". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on January 26, 2025. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
  31. ^ a b c d e f Ellis, Alice (December 20, 2024). "Dungeons and Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern". Time Out. Archived from the original on September 10, 2024. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
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