Stream “In & Of Itself” It’s A Masterpiece

Hello friends, this is a time traveling message.

I’ve written this on November 18, 2020, and scheduled it for this specific date, because as of today, Hulu is streaming the movie version of In & Of Itself… and you must watch it.

Some Background

Back in April of 2017, Lisa and I attended a live performance of In & Of Itself. It was magnificent. At the time, I remember thinking it was a masterpiece of storytelling.

I wrote a review of it. That was the review that made us define the line that we use to decide if an experience provides enough agency to a participant that we would write about it on Room Escape Artist. In & Of Itself was right on the line, and even today, I’m not sure which side of the line it actually sits on, but I didn’t care. I needed to tell as many people about it as I could.

And I still don’t care. I need you to know about it.

Flash Forward to Today November 2020

Last night we watched the early release of the In & Of Itself movie and it was just as powerful as I remembered it… maybe even more powerful than I’d recalled.

I can’t tell you if it was the knowledge of where the show was headed that revealed extra layers of meaning, or if the closeups of Derek DelGaudio’s expressive face added details that I hadn’t been able to see from my near back-row seat. Maybe it was the stellar editing of the audience-driven portions. Whatever it was, for 90 minutes I was back in that theater, and it felt so damn good.

I don’t think that I’d fully appreciated how much I needed an experience like In & Of Itself.

A Closing Thought

I often talk and write about my deeply held belief that the future of escape rooms and immersive gaming is in storytelling. In & Of Itself shows why.

Various magic acts have been around since before recorded history, but without the emotional through line, they are just illusions. Any sufficiently talented stage magician can perform most any magical act… only Derek DelGaudio can perform In & Of Itself.