The Isthmus wrote:
At 2 pm this Saturday, October 22, the waking dead will infest the heart of downtown Madison, looking to bring their message of brains and rot to the unsuspecting. Titled Zombie Lurch 2005, this gathering organized by Maddie Greene will feature the slouching shuffles of the animated undead will begin at Capitol Square. Along the way, the hordes will stop at State Street establishments to guzzle foods and beverages, their final destination being UW Memorial Union. Moreover, this will also be a protest for zombie rights, intended to give the Lurch a Madison flavor. This kind of public gathering is a concept similar to Santarchy (or SantaCon) with its surrealist spectacle, and also comparable to a flash mob.
Though flash mobs appeared to an ephemeral trend (at least in the U.S.) from the summer of 2003, they've been reanimated over the last several months. Other cities that have experienced the horror of lurches include Montreal, Vancouver, Austin, and San Francisco. For those interested in attending, the zombies "are encouraged to supply their own zombie makeup and clothing. But zombies are 80% attitude, so feel free to show up no matter what state of decomposition you're in."
The press release announcing the lurch is posted in its entirety on Green’s LiveJournal, as well as on TDPF. Also, via Dane101, is Zomploitation, where Green and her partner blog movies about zombies, ranging from 1920's The Cabinet of Dr Caligari to this year's Land of the Dead. A brief interview with Greene about the Lurch appears beneath the fold.
The Daily Page: Who organized this? Was it just you, or are more people responsible for next week's mass reanimation?
Greene: Zombie Lurch is my fault. It was a jealous reaction to the amazing zombie marches taking place in other cities. Friends have been invaluable with logo design and enthusiasm, though.
The Daily Page: Where did you get the idea from? The other cities, the online attention, both?
Greene: Montreal's zombie walk was my primary inspiration. Two images stand out: zombies menacing confused medieval cosplayers, and a throng of zombies in line at McDonald's. If you take any terrifying monster and put him in a public space during broad daylight, something ridiculous occurs. I love that absurd juxtaposition.
I'm also a huge zombie fan. A zombie scholar, if you will. My fiancé and I keep a blog called Zomploitation that tracks the zombie movies we've watched. Our tally stands above 40 right now, with many more waiting. I love to track the origin of this modern horror archetype and see how it evolves through film, comic books, and flash mobs. Zombies are nearly the only evolving monster in modern media. You've got epidemiological threat combined with the possibility of great personal loss—every zombie movie features a loved one dying and returning as something unlovable. It's terrifying. I had a lot of zombie nightmares before I began force-feeding my psyche zombie films. Now I'm a fan.
The Daily Page: How do you expect the living to react?
Greene: Madison has an interesting audience vibe. A lot of us -- and I think it's found predominantly in the above-college-age crowd -- shy away from audience participation. I think that Midwestern reticence is going to keep people on the other side of the street. But everyone likes a public spectacle! I hope we amuse, entertain, and don't make too many children cry.
Maybe someone would be so inspired that he would join us on the spot and shamble with us. That would be lovely.
The Daily Page: With its proximity to an increasingly big holiday, the costumes, and the element of imbibing, this reminds me of Santarchy, in which there are a profusion of Santa gangs throughout the world bar-hopping and such in December. Is this something of a descendant of that?
Greene: Santarchy is a great comparison, though it's mostly coincidence that Zombie Lurch is happening so close to Halloween. I think the events differ in their origins -- Santarchy is a reaction to excessive capitalist zeal while zombie walks grew out of flash mobs, which are more interested in public surrealism. Our protest signs ape a purpose, but we really just want to spread some weirdness.
The Daily Page: What zombie rights are you pressuring for?
Greene: The protest idea was inspired by a1988 zombie movie called The Dead Next Doorr, which was quietly bankrolled by Sam Raimi. A scene with pro-zombie protesters seemed perfectly Madisonian. Personally, I'm lurching for higher profile roles for the undead in customer service positions. I have some friends who resent the lack of safe brain buffets in a city otherwise full of varied food choices. At the heart of our varied political hopes, of course, is an abiding wish to eat your brains.
The Daily Page: How do you hope for this event to turn out?
Greene: I want to politely descend upon a State Street business and enjoy the inevitable weirdness of a chomp of zombies sipping coffee. ("Chomp of zombies" is my preferred term for a group of the undead.)
I suppose what I want most is license to discover my inner zombie and then walk her down State Street.
The Daily Page: Where will the corpses return to following their lurch?
Greene: After a comfortable sojourn at the Terrace, I think it would be delightful if many zombies took a bus right back up State Street. Because zombies on a bus seem to me to be full of visual hilarity. Maybe some will head over to the Homecoming game, or maybe State Street bars will call us back. I doubt too many of us will be eager to head back to the grave!
Though flash mobs appeared to an ephemeral trend (at least in the U.S.) from the summer of 2003, they've been reanimated over the last several months. Other cities that have experienced the horror of lurches include Montreal, Vancouver, Austin, and San Francisco. For those interested in attending, the zombies "are encouraged to supply their own zombie makeup and clothing. But zombies are 80% attitude, so feel free to show up no matter what state of decomposition you're in."
The press release announcing the lurch is posted in its entirety on Green’s LiveJournal, as well as on TDPF. Also, via Dane101, is Zomploitation, where Green and her partner blog movies about zombies, ranging from 1920's The Cabinet of Dr Caligari to this year's Land of the Dead. A brief interview with Greene about the Lurch appears beneath the fold.
The Daily Page: Who organized this? Was it just you, or are more people responsible for next week's mass reanimation?
Greene: Zombie Lurch is my fault. It was a jealous reaction to the amazing zombie marches taking place in other cities. Friends have been invaluable with logo design and enthusiasm, though.
The Daily Page: Where did you get the idea from? The other cities, the online attention, both?
Greene: Montreal's zombie walk was my primary inspiration. Two images stand out: zombies menacing confused medieval cosplayers, and a throng of zombies in line at McDonald's. If you take any terrifying monster and put him in a public space during broad daylight, something ridiculous occurs. I love that absurd juxtaposition.
I'm also a huge zombie fan. A zombie scholar, if you will. My fiancé and I keep a blog called Zomploitation that tracks the zombie movies we've watched. Our tally stands above 40 right now, with many more waiting. I love to track the origin of this modern horror archetype and see how it evolves through film, comic books, and flash mobs. Zombies are nearly the only evolving monster in modern media. You've got epidemiological threat combined with the possibility of great personal loss—every zombie movie features a loved one dying and returning as something unlovable. It's terrifying. I had a lot of zombie nightmares before I began force-feeding my psyche zombie films. Now I'm a fan.
The Daily Page: How do you expect the living to react?
Greene: Madison has an interesting audience vibe. A lot of us -- and I think it's found predominantly in the above-college-age crowd -- shy away from audience participation. I think that Midwestern reticence is going to keep people on the other side of the street. But everyone likes a public spectacle! I hope we amuse, entertain, and don't make too many children cry.
Maybe someone would be so inspired that he would join us on the spot and shamble with us. That would be lovely.
The Daily Page: With its proximity to an increasingly big holiday, the costumes, and the element of imbibing, this reminds me of Santarchy, in which there are a profusion of Santa gangs throughout the world bar-hopping and such in December. Is this something of a descendant of that?
Greene: Santarchy is a great comparison, though it's mostly coincidence that Zombie Lurch is happening so close to Halloween. I think the events differ in their origins -- Santarchy is a reaction to excessive capitalist zeal while zombie walks grew out of flash mobs, which are more interested in public surrealism. Our protest signs ape a purpose, but we really just want to spread some weirdness.
The Daily Page: What zombie rights are you pressuring for?
Greene: The protest idea was inspired by a1988 zombie movie called The Dead Next Doorr, which was quietly bankrolled by Sam Raimi. A scene with pro-zombie protesters seemed perfectly Madisonian. Personally, I'm lurching for higher profile roles for the undead in customer service positions. I have some friends who resent the lack of safe brain buffets in a city otherwise full of varied food choices. At the heart of our varied political hopes, of course, is an abiding wish to eat your brains.
The Daily Page: How do you hope for this event to turn out?
Greene: I want to politely descend upon a State Street business and enjoy the inevitable weirdness of a chomp of zombies sipping coffee. ("Chomp of zombies" is my preferred term for a group of the undead.)
I suppose what I want most is license to discover my inner zombie and then walk her down State Street.
The Daily Page: Where will the corpses return to following their lurch?
Greene: After a comfortable sojourn at the Terrace, I think it would be delightful if many zombies took a bus right back up State Street. Because zombies on a bus seem to me to be full of visual hilarity. Maybe some will head over to the Homecoming game, or maybe State Street bars will call us back. I doubt too many of us will be eager to head back to the grave!
I'm going to have to march in this to support it.
Greene wrote:
I want to politely descend upon a State Street business and enjoy the inevitable weirdness of a chomp of zombies sipping coffee. ("Chomp of zombies" is my preferred term for a group of the undead.)
I'm so ganking that. "Chomp of Zombies" I love it.