Biography

Marcos Krivocapich, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1996, is an author, puppeteer, and theatre artist. He studied Linguistics at the University of Buenos Aires. His work often delves into political satire, collective intelligence in art, and the impact of new communication technologies on society. Between 2014 and 2018, he was a member of the multidisciplinary collective Selección Sub 23, which produced over 15 unique shows in prominent venues like Centro Cultural Recoleta and ND Teatro. In 2019, he co-founded estudio qp with Teo López Puccio, Lula Fenomenoide, Donna Sanguinetti, and Micaela Amaro, serving as co-author, co-director, and puppeteer/performer. With estudio qp, he created innovative performances such as Quiero Pertenecer (2019), a cabaret about an alien conquering Earth through entertainment; PIRAMIDAL (2023), a musical satire on Argentina’s Ponzi schemes; and EL SUCESO (2024), a technological fable exploring hyperconnectivity. His show Dirección Desconocida won the 2022 Production Award at the BA Biennial of Young Art. In 2023, he participated in the R-Evolution residency, collaborating on The Virgin Walk. Additionally, his project dam.nation received a Canada Council for the Arts grant in 2024. Krivocapich is also a published author, with novels like Pedir amor a gritos (2019), Esta ciudad es hermosa (2021), and Actualización pendiente (2023).

Artistic project

Unreal state is an IRL RPG (In-Real-Life Role-Playing Game) manifested as an immersive urban performance controlled through a mobile application. Players navigate a digital map overlaid onto actual city locations, transforming the urban environment into both stage and game board.

Guided by the King CEO, a fictional authoritarian figure who claims to know what players want before they do, participants assume various roles such as tenants, landlords, developers, and activists, each starting from different points in the city with distinct privileges and constraints. Along the way, they carry a printed “choose your own adventure” booklet that offers analog narrative detours, creating a counterpoint to the digital authority of the system.

As they explore sites marked by housing speculation, gentrification, and urban neglect, players encounter stories and events that reveal the invisible logics shaping the city. Through location-based storytelling and collaborative role-playing, the project critically examines how algorithmic governance, real estate speculation, and corporate influence affect contemporary urban life, often benefiting few while displacing many.

The mechanics are designed to simulate agency while gradually exposing players to the system’s closed nature. The experience culminates in a final collective gathering at a high vantage point, where participants see the “game board” from above for the first time and discover the collective outcome of their actions. By repurposing tools commonly used for tourism and urban management into instruments for critical reflection, unreal state transforms the gamification of city life into a performative space for questioning our role within it.

Format: walkabout performance role playing game

Size of audience: 30 people maximum

Specific location: outdoor space (urban center)

Timing / duration: it depends on the players, but it's thought to be around 2 hours of daylight