Actual Play, Actual Stories of Joy and Resistance

For thousands of years, art has been an accurate—if abstract—depiction of our history. In making art, we create a snapshot of our history as it is in the moment and preserve it in amber for the generations that will follow, hoping that our work speaks for itself. Every time we create something, we add another building block to the bridge between past, present, and future. Actual plays have become a form of art unto themselves and offer people a way to to exist, loudly and without shame, in a time of increasing political tension. Representation isn’t just about equity in art, it’s a chance to see the best of ourselves and our cultures, not just our tragedies.

AltHaven’s Blackness and Dragons recognizes the struggles across the Diaspora yet wields joy as a form of resistance with ease, grace, and a sense of humor that allows its cast of all-Black players to simply enjoy the game rather than concerning themselves with code-switching or tone policing or the number of ways in which they might be deemed “too much”.