I first met Dr. Kitsune Scribe when I was doing some photography around his sim. A friend of mine frequents The Bondage Puppet Theater, and I decided to take a little walk on the Wild Side and see what it was all about. What I saw was not only worthy of several photographs (full disclosure: I have recently submitted some of those photos to the website), but it was filled with scenes and equipment that most people don't know even exists in Second Life. Hanging trees, guillotines, and sex beds are set against backdrops of insane asylums and abandoned circus tents. The Bijou Theater is the potential setting for some very brutal performance art. Underneath the sim itself is a labyrinth of tunnels that hold all manner of depraved sex acts. This certainly wasn't your average BDSM sim.
As I continued to explore, I began to wonder what kind of person would put together such a sim, and why. Since I am certainly no stranger to the psychological (as well as physical) aspects of fetishes and D/s, I found myself really wanting to talk to Dr. Kitsune about his own reasons for creating The Bondage Puppet Theater. The conversation that follows is intelligent, candid and very enlightening.
October Poe: So...first off...when did you build BPT and why?
Dr. Kitsune: I guess it was a little over three years ago when I first built something that turned into the Bondage Puppet Theater. I was offered someone's basement. So I made it into a little puppet making laboratory.
October Poe: Puppets? Can you elaborate?
Dr. Kitsune: The emphasis has always been on the process... the abduction of unwilling victims, the forced enslavement, the anticipation around the transformation Even back then, it was more like a prison than a theater.
October Poe: Why do you call it a theater now?
Dr. Kitsune: The basic narrative is that women get enslaved, transformed, brainwashed into living puppets, who then go onstage to perform lewd sex acts against their will. But "theater" is really a metaphor for SL role playing in general. I provide my whole sim as a stage for people to act out their forbidden fantasies.
October Poe: Okay. I have done some exploring on my own around the sim, and I was really impressed by all the nooks and crannies that are in that one area. Some of the "equipment" is very much geared towards transformation (I even went through one myself to see what it did). What, if I may ask, is your personal interest in this kind of role play?
Dr. Kitsune: You're asking the typist I take it? I've been into BDSM in RL for 20 years, it is a defining characteristic of my sexuality. SL seems as close as we have to a holodeck in our current technology. As soon as I came here and saw what could be created with words and prims and animations, it was natural for me to exterior-ize my fantasies, just like I do in RL. The only problem is I have no aptitude at all for SL skills like building or animation. But fortunately, just like in RL, I met some amazing collaborators who somehow tolerate working with me.
October Poe: As you know, there are is an entire culture in SL that has been built around BDSM, and D/s in particular. There are people that look at the acting out of rape and torture, even killing as kind of...how shall we say...creepy. How do you see it in a sexual/BDSM sense?
Dr. Kitsune: (laughs) You're talking about my target audience. I chose the latest build, "The Madhouse", exactly because of its crossover from BDSM into horror. In RL you can construct non consensual sex scenes that are mutually rewarding for both top and bottom. But in SL, you can really dig deep into your fantasy back-brain. Instead of rape, you can be raped by demons. But keep in mind, that really like any environment, the narrative is just a backdrop for interaction between people. Everything about it is optional. You can wrap your play in deep Lovecraftian horror, or just spank your partner, or anything in between.
October Poe: I know most women have a rape fantasy: some tall, dark stranger takes them by force in a back alley or something. Lots of women also have bestiality fantasies or anthropomorphic fantasies. Really, these aspects of human sexuality are par for the course. Why do you think most people cannot acknowledge these fantasies, even in a safe, consensual environment?
Dr. Kitsune: I've given this a lot of thought. One thing that I come back to time and again is that s/m is transgressive in its nature. Its power as a fantasy is that it is outre, liminal. If you bring it into the daylight and take all the sharp edges away, it loses its romance. Take for example the queer movement last century. Some wanted to portray gay men as normal, saying "we're just like you." And there was a backlash that wanted queer culture to have its own identity. "We're here, we're queer, get used to it." I think with S/M, you'll never see a million person march for leather rights or leather pride. Because people don't want it mainstream, or it loses its potency.
Dr. Kitsune: In SL? No, never. I think with SL it's easier to not log on than to try to hold a moral line. I've felt that kind of anger but not in SL. The mute button is handy for people prone to outrage.
October Poe: BPT has tons of options, as you said, including simple spanking up to torture and death. Are there things that are anathema to you when it comes to S/M or any kind of similar RP?
Dr. Kitsune: Do you mean at the Theater, do I offer sets for stuff I'm not into personally? I will not destroy the ozone layer for profit.
October Poe: And we thank you for that!
Dr. Kitsune: Seriously... there are a lot of kinks I don't enjoy, too many to list. Diapers comes to mind. But I respect the craziness people try to actualize as long as they do it with consenting adult partners. At the theater, I encourage kinds of play that I don't do myself. I wouldn't want to limit the Theater to me. Recently I changed the main group from "Dr. Kit's Bondage Puppet Theater" to "Bondage Puppet Theater" for exactly that reason. It's not my show, it's yours.
October Poe: Aside from the usual griefers and malcontents, there anything that you would never allow in the sim?
Dr. Kitsune: No underage anything, even among adults. I also really can't stand poachers. I want owned subs and their tops to feel safe playing at the Theater, without worrying about someone coming along and trying to take advantage of the immersive role-play and make off with the slave.
October Poe: This ain't Gor!(laughs)
Dr. Kitsune: Nope! And at the relationship level, I do have some pretty desirable submissive women who play there. They really lose their head-space fast when some digital Casanova comes along trying to "hey baby" or "get on ur nees bitch".
October Poe: Okay, last question: if someone were to come into your sim for the first time, what are three things you would want them to know?
Dr. Kitsune : First, this is an adult, BDSM, and horror role playing sim. If that's not your cup of tea, please keep it to yourself. Second, everything is free. Third, make your own story. This is SL, not TV. You are writing the script.
Many, many thanks to Dr. Kitsune Scribe for agreeing to the interview.
http://bondagepuppet.com/
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