Step 2.5 – What Will You Do?

Before continuing, you should first decide what you are going to do when you are doing GFFA living-history. In other words, what form will it take?, and how involved will you be? When people are involved in these pursuits for non-fictional settings, we can usually group them in two types: ‘reenactors’, and ‘historical interpreters’. What’s the difference between these? As Master Townsend explains,

“A reenactor, in the truest sense of the word, is like a bit-role actor in a movie. They help fill out the set. Reenactors typically have no speaking role. They usually have limited direct public interaction.
Reenacting is a great entry point into Living History for beginners. You don’t have to develop a specific individual persona to reenact. While it can be the easiest method of Living History, it can be an expensive direction to go*, depending on the persona type one chooses to portray.”

*See the 501^st for walking examples of this—a set of stormtrooper armor will set you back several paychecks, but once you assemble and put it on, all you have to do is walk around and you’re in business.

The analogy to background characters in a movie is especially apt in this case, as the background characters in Star Wars films are excellent inspirational examples. These extras don’t interact with the ‘public’—the film audience—but they really help sell the illusion that the Galaxy is a living, breathing, vibrant setting (now there’s a good homework assignment: pick a SW movie and pay attention only to the background characters! I’ve found this is easier with a foreign audio track turned on – if you’re not focused on the dialogue, you can use more ‘brain bandwidth’ for looking at details!).

Townsend’s explanation of a reenactor sounds very close to what a costumed fan already does at a convention—they are an appropriately-costumed warm body that stands around and gets photographed, and the depth of public interaction is shallow. When was the last time you asked a cosplayer what planet they were born on, or asked them what they’re carrying in their utility-belt pouches?
However, think of a rank-and-file Redcoat at an American Revolution reenactment. He’s marching and ‘burning powder’ out on the field with his unit, and not directly interacting with the public. But if you called him over to the sidelines and asked him to open his haversack, what would you find inside? If he’s worth his salt and has done his research, he should be packing period-appropriate food and the tools necessary to maintain his musket. If he opens his haversack and reveals that it’s just filled with a bunch of foam blocks, then he’s just wearing a costume. This example hopefully illustrates the difference between a Star Wars costumer/cosplayer, and a GFFA reenactor—they both may not have much interaction with the public, but if the latter opened up his/her backpack, we should expect to find functional gear (or at least something approximating it!).

Our second option is to be an “Historical Interpreter.” As Townsend again explains,

“This term is even newer than “reenactor,” and it seems the Living History community is still settling on a definition. Most reenactors incorporate historical interpretation into their persona, as they try to understand how the people they are portraying conducted themselves and engaged the world and circumstances in which they lived. The line that delineates an historical interpreter from a reenactor seems to depend on how engaged the individual becomes with the general public. Drawing upon our movie metaphor, an historical interpreter has a speaking role. An historical interpreter often sees his or her role with the public as one of educator.

There are differing degrees of historical interpretation. In an effort to keep things as simple as possible, we are going to focus on two that are more widely accepted: third-person interpretation, and first-person interpretation.”

 On this last sub-division, in short, in their interactions with the public, third-person interpreters will speak of “What they did”, while first-person interpreters will speak of “What I do”. (Members of the 501^st or Rebel Legion may have more direct interactions with the public—I’ve seen stormtroopers fist-bump with children, or let children pose with their blasters—but I’ve never seen one do a Q&A with the public about the day-to-day life of a stormtrooper, in either third- or first-person.)

(I am lucky* fortunate enough to live fairly close to an excellent history museum that has a high-quality first-person interpretive program. Because this venue allows me several educational opportunities with a public audience (summer campers in grades 3-6), I have been able to push my GFFA interpretations into the first-person. Without this venue, I likely would have never developed this hobby to the extent that I have.)
*“There’s no such thing as luck!”

Now that you know roughly the forms this adventure might take, here are some ideas to help get you thinking about what this might look like:

-Attend a convention, reenacting as a Rebel Honor Guard—an off-the-rack costume, and no speaking required! Team up with someone portraying an important member of the Alliance High Command, and act as their bodyguard all day!
First-person: attend a convention as a generic loyal Imperial civilian, and every time you encounter an Imperial trooper, pilot, or officer cosplayer, thank them for their brave service to the Empire.
Third-person: At a convention, book a ‘fan booth’ in the exhibit hall, and set up a display of Sandtrooper field gear and equipment, and give a 5-minute talk about it.
First-person: On the West Coast? Go on a hike in Redwood National/State Parks and reenact a patrol on Endor’s moon. Treat other hikers as Imperial or Rebel troops and practice observing while remaining unseen.
Third-person: At your local history society meeting, give a short lecture on moisture farming (it’s basically just hydroponics!).
First-person: At a midnight movie release, hand out pamphlets and ‘recruit’ for the Rebel Alliance.

Hopefully these seeds give you an idea of what authentic ‘Star Wars living history’ can look like! Do you have more ideas? Leave them in the comments below!

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