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About Futurism and the Hopscotch Play Project
“The future is not something we enter, the future is something we create.” — Leonard Sweet
Now that you know what kind of Futurist you are, we want to invite you to join us in the park for a unique, live, safe theater experience about the Future. It’s called Hopscotch: Pop-Up Plays about the Future. Experience visions of the future from ten diverse local writers, brought to life by 17 of the Twin Cities’ finest actors. Bring a picnic and be a part of creating the future we want.
Learn more about this special event and reserve a spot here.
Preview this audio play before you come. Can you find all five Futurist-types inside the drama?
About ALL the futurist types
Romantic Futurist: You probably think people are generally good (or at least trying and improving), that technology is cool, and robots can be our friends. When you picture the future, you probably think about ways we can all do better if we work together. A lot of leaders are romantic futurists because they can persuade others that problem-solving is worth trying. Some folks might think you’re naive or not doing tangible things to improve the world or fight injustice, but it’s probably in your nature to not let those folks get you down. Better futures need folks like you to cheer us up when we’re losing hope and bring us together when we can’t find a common purpose. Be careful, though, not to oversimplify and convince yourself that it will all just fix itself.
Revolutionary Futurist: The bumper sticker, “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention” might have been made for you, and you probably think the whole system needs to be burned down if we have any hope of surviving this dumpster fire of our impact at all. But you’re probably also the one informing yourself the most and trying to affect change. Some folks probably wish you’d chill out and stop making them feel bad, but it’s not in your nature to placate or pacify folks when things need to change. Better futures need people like you to propose big ideas to push us outside our status quo thinking and to keep pushing for change or we’ll probably just watch TV right through the apocalypse. Be careful though not to let your anger undermine your own ability to see and live what it’s all worth living for though.
Fatalist Futurist: You probably gave up on humanity a long time ago, but somehow you can’t seem to stop doom-scrolling and trying to figure out what will destroy all of us first. But you’re also probably the one who will keep us laughing (and stocked up with canned goods) when the apocalypse comes. Some folks might call you a Chicken Little or a Cassandra (look them up if you don’t know, maybe you’ll relate), but you’re probably the most realistic about expectations and don’t get thrown when things go sideways. Better futures need people like you to help us see the just how serious problems might get or already are. Be careful, though, not to let your fears become so certain that you get stuck in apathy and miss out on a chance to be part of making things better (or get left out of the call from the escape pod because you keep bumming everyone out).
Institutionalist Futurist: You fundamentally believe in thoughtfully built and carefully managed systems to create both safety nets and gradual positive change. You probably have retirement savings and get your car tuned up on a regular schedule and read the instructions all the way to the end. You’re also the one that friends and family probably ask for advice from before making big consumer purchases or dealing with the government. Some folks might consider you a sellout or naive or just plain dull, but your patient tenacity helps you rise above their impulsive assessment of you. Better futures need people like you to keep things going, stay the course, and help think through all the ramifications that ripple across our complex systems when we make big changes. Be careful, though, not to let your trust in systems keep you from seeing the people who get left out or hurt by those systems.
Chill Futurist: You don’t get bogged down worrying so much about this lifetime or this form of life you find yourself in, as it is but a passing phase and the whole illusion of “I” and “we,” “now,” and “then” is a bit arbitrary anyway. You probably consider the best future to be one made of an accumulation of best presents and presence – moment to moment, breath to breath, sunrise to sunset. Some folks might consider you passive, “checked out,” or even self-indulgent, but you’re also the one most likely to stay calm in a crisis and to help other folks find enough peace and clarity to actually think and do better. Better futures need people like you to help us see and feel beyond immediate gratification or placation, and to help us call in power and perspective beyond our own. Be careful, though, not to be so busy introspecting that you get isolated from true need around you.