Event Profile: Cafe Casablanca

Dae's Cafe Casablanca

There was no one there except for the host when Lou and I arrived at Cafe Casablanca. He was dancing alone in the corner of the club and was very friendly with his greetings as we came in. The place didn't bring in many more people over the next hour, but Daedalus Lemuria never lost his positive and welcoming demeanor. He put on a translator for a single guest who spoke only Portuguese and was not doing the trivia. He tossed out teasing banter with the other customers in between the questions. He never let on that he noticed that there were never more than six people in the room at once.

The topic was Big Band Trivia, you see, and, well... it's what we might call a highly specialized area of expertise. I don't know how much of a crowd Dae gets for his non-trivia events -- normally he holds live music and DJed dances -- or for trivia nights with less specific topics, but he was happy to see those who were there and did not seem at all self-conscious about it being a smaller group.

Daedalus Lemuria at "his little gin joint"

The trivia was conducted by way of a trivia machine, but unlike most trivia orbs, it seemed completely controlled by the host, in terms of timing and questions. Dae even had some of his music stream designed to complement the questions. Nonetheless, you had to have exact spelling and the precise versions of the answers for the machine to pick it up. But when it did, it shelled out a generous L$50 per question. Dae sometimes gave clues to help people along, saying "Steal" to indicate that someone was close but didn't have the exact answer.

I was never quite sure why he was using the trivia machine. At one point one player squeezed in with an answer that he'd wanted to pay someone else for knowing first, and he asked the former to pay the latter, saying the game would continue once she did. On another question that everyone was struggling with, he offered a hint in exchange for half of the prize money back from the person who answered it. Each of these could have been much more easily handled if he were managing the prize money himself instead of filtering it through the trivia machine. Trivia machines are useful for busy events when the trivia is only a side-attraction, for instance at a DJed dance or live music event, when the host might have other things he or she needs to attend to. When the questions are as much as L$50 each, the trivia becomes the focal point of the event, and when the trivia requires as much attention as a notecard full of questions to copy into chat, it seems like it would be easier for the host to do the asking and the judging and the paying.

Yes, he is all about Casablanca. Even quotes the movie during the event. And he has hidden on the grounds "The Letter of Transit." Find it and you win L$200!

Aside from the awkwardness arising from the superfluous use of a trivia machine, though, the questions and the game were pleasant enough. I don't have enough background in the subject matter to judge the difficulty level of these questions, but they were all answered eventually. Sample questions:

[2009/05/26 17:05] Trivia Master v1.30: Question: 5. What was "Count" Basie's real first name?

[2009/05/26 17:19] Trivia Master v1.30: Question: 8. Duke Ellington's famous theme was "Take The A Train" where did "The A Train" go?

[2009/05/26 17:27] Trivia Master v1.30: Question: 13. Earl Bostic was famous for this instrument?

These are actually on the easy side, since they're the ones I either got or was close to getting, but they give you an idea.

Dae also does movie trivia sometimes. The club has been open for two years and at its current location for one. Although none of us there on this occasion had ever noticed it listed before, he intends to have trivia nights twice a month. Movie trivia will have more questions at a lower payout (there were twenty questions in this game). He also presents music trivia that is not Big Band-themed but typically sticks with various genres of jazz. The group to join to make sure you don't miss the announcements next time is Cafe Society. Dae's a nice guy, and if these topics are your cup of tea, make the effort to pay him a visit at a future event.

Genevive, me, Lou, Zarya, and a whole lotta Ingrid Bergman.

The Specs:
=> Time/Days: Once every two weeks. Probably continuing on Tuesdays from 4:30 to 5:30, but check Events to be sure.
=> Location: Cafe Casablanca, http://slurl.com/secondlife/Valtor/30/64/22
=> Host: Daedalus Lemuria
=> Prizes: Twenty questions, L$50 each

Answers to sample questions:
=> Bill
=> Harlem
=> saxophone

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