COMING SOON: HALLOWMASS; EXPURGO!

It’s not so much that Thee itchy-O defies description so much as it almost defies belief, even as it is defined by it. A massive musical collective that uses elements of ceremonial magic and a whole lot of drums to create participatory spectacles that open ecstatic pathways for the audience.

Honestly, you just kinda gotta take a look and listen.

This year’s annual Hallowmass, dubbed EXPURGO! is promising to be no different, save in the fact that it unfolds in its fullness over three nights at Denver’s Truss House at the RINO Artpark, Oct. 31 — Nov. 2. (← Ticket Link right there.)

We got the lowdown from Itchy-O’s Communication Liaison Benjamin Beardsley, about this year’s Hallowmass.

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NO PROSCENIUM: Tell us a little bit about your experience! What’s it about? What makes it immersive?

Benjamin Beardsley: EXPURGO! is the tenth anniversary of our annual flagship concert-ceremony, Hallowmass.

For Coloradans, and many who travel in from abroad, Hallowmass is a portal to a liminal world where real-life memories mingle with a mythical realm we call the Exocosm to feed a spirit we call the Egregore. Myth intertwines with reality through ritual and celebration. It is both a communal catharsis and a profoundly personal letting go.

With a corps of over sixty members across seven divisions, itchy-O’s Hallowmass packs more power than any Halloween party or haunted house. Hallowmass transcends traditional concerts and immersive performances, creating a maximalist, other-worldly ceremony. This is a celebration of impermanence, a deep embrace of the transient nature of life here on Earth; a full-fledged, post-punk primal-futurist rite of passage and just one of the few times a year our dimensional realm converges with the physical plane.

At each event we invite celebrants to bring personally meaningful offerings to be burned in a free public ceremony the following week. Participants will also be gifted a paper Mandorlah. This consecrated head covering represents the conjunction of realities–upon which they can write or draw their intentions for self-liberation and a freer future.

NP: What was the inspiration for your upcoming experience?

BB: Of course, we draw inspiration from the Halloween season and its ancient antecedents, as well as global festival traditions and holiday observations like Day of the Dead, Samhain, All Souls, and others.

Our goal is to bring community together in celebration and release. In our increasingly fragmented world, we believe new myths can transcend cultural barriers and speak to our fundamental humanity.

NP: What do you think fans of immersive will find most interesting about this latest experience?

BB: Many immersive experiences aim at blending boundaries between reality, audience, and performance. Itchy-O’s Hallowmass goes further, allowing participants to merge deeply personal narratives with itchy-O’s Triad of Impermanence, its lore, and its symbology, generating a powerful sense of immersion that blurs the lines between reality and the Exocosm. Hallowmass; Expurgo! is an inclusive space where new myths meet attendees wherever they are culturally. If you are vested in any culture, religion or spiritual tradition Hallowmass will meet you there. It is an open space of exploration, accessible to anyone of any background with no conflict.

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The complete rite is comprised of the Three Pillars of Impermanence:

1. The Egregore’s Birth: Mayat Ōm (October 31)

The Egregore is born of collective energy, given life by memories, influences, and the souls of those who have touched us and passed. Participants contribute to the Egregore’s creation by making a symbolic offering.

The Ritual: The participants place their offerings on the Altar of Gna, an archetype from itchy-O’s sacred codec, symbolizing the Egregore’s formation from the essence of the departed. How we process the loss of these relationships creates the foundations of who we are, giving rise to the lives we lead on this mortal plane. The night is imbued with associated fragrances, adorned with specific symbolism.

And then we dance.

1. The Egregore’s Growth: Mayat Öd (November 1)

This phase represents the evolution of the Egregore as it grows and gains complexity, nourished by the remnants of what has been — places, institutions, systems, jobs, possessions; things that have shaped our worlds and have now been absorbed into history.

The Ritual: Participants continue to feed the Egregore with offerings, with their energy, with intentions written on the Mandorlahs placed on the altar, and so on. The Egregore evolves, growing in force and in the understanding of the transient nature of all things. The night is again imbued with associated fragrances and adorned with the Mayat Öd symbols.

1. The Egregore’s Release: (Ō) Expurgo (November 2)

The night is, again, decorated in its specific fragrances and adorned with its symbolism as the Egregore’s cycle culminates in a final cathartic release. The Egregore leads the participants in a collective act of letting go — of ideas, attachments, outmoded patterns, behaviors, relationships, and even the Egregore itself. The ultimate expression of love in sacrifice; recognizing that all things come to an end and must be let go to create space for growth and renewal.

The Ritual: Participants write down those things they wish to release, offering them to the Egregore. The offerings, including the ceremonial Mandorlahs, are then collected at the end of this third and final celebration to be burned the next week at a free public event, symbolizing the unbinding, release, and dissolution of the Egregore and all that it comprised.

Attending any one of these celebrations will deliver a level of ecstatic release, but the ceremonies taken together contain an interlocking synergy, unlocking unseen levels of transformation.

NP: Once you started designing and testing what did you discover about this experience that was unexpected?

BB: Over the last fifteen years, itchy-O has become something of an institution, with our first Hallowmass in 2015 becoming a Denver tradition. What we keep coming back to, with ever-increasing urgency, is the need for new myths and ceremonies that unite us as a community and speak to the soul-deep drives and longings that secular materialism cannot satisfy.

What started as a celebration in service of others has evolved, revealing more facets and nuance than we could have ever anticipated. In the course of the evolution of Hallowmass, itchy-O has also undergone the shock and trauma of sudden loss, and Hallowmass has been instrumental in our collective processing.

We also continue to be floored by the depth of commitment our community invests in this event. It is truly astounding.

NP: What can fans who are coming to this, or thinking about coming to this, do to get into the mood of the experience?

BB: Prepare an offering, either something that honors a spirit or ancestor that has influenced your path, an artifact or representation of something inanimate bound to your memories, or leave behind habits or behaviors that no longer serve you in the form of writings, doodles, or whatever does the job. Leaving these offerings on the altar can either be a veneration or a shedding. Either way, Hallowmass is a vehicle for release. It is about letting go of energy that binds and keeps us from living in the moment — delivering the ultimate gift; one-ness with the transient, fleeting, ever-impermanent present.

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