We sat down for an exclusive chat with Christopher, co-creator and director of Fight For America. Playing at Stone Nest until 7th July this is a groundbreaking participatory installation inspired by tactical tabletop wargames. Based on the storming of the Capitol on January 6 2021, the team invite you to come along and choose a side, confronting the tension between patriotism, protest, and power.
If Uncle Sam’s your gamemaster, does that make this the most patriotic board game night ever—or the most ironic?
We’re embracing the absurdity. Uncle Sam as gamemaster is directly inspired by “Uncle Jam,” one of the many costumed individuals who stormed the Capitol on January 6th, fervently supporting the false claim that the 2020 election was stolen. Putting that figure in charge isn’t about celebrating the chaos – it’s about exposing it. So is it patriotic or ironic? Maybe both. Or maybe it’s a mirror, reflecting America’s contradictions as it performs its ideals even while they unravel.
With over 10,000 miniatures and a giant Capitol model, what’s been the most unexpectedly fun or absurd moment during rehearsals?
Honestly, there haven’t been traditional rehearsals. The players are the performers, and the game unfolds spontaneously in real time. The absurd part is probably deciding to hand-paint 10,000 miniatures and 3D print a 14-foot Capitol model. But the most unexpectedly fun part? Playing a game with 20 strangers and watching a community form almost instantly.
What kind of player thrives in Fight for America! — the strategist, the chaotic wildcard, or the peacemaker?
All of them have their moments, but the players who seem to thrive are the ones willing to set aside politics, surrender to the experience, and fully engage. You play to win – but more importantly, you confront how far you’re willing to go to win, and what that reveals about the state of democracy.
How do humor, spectacle, and snacks collide with the gravity of insurrection to create a space that is both unsettling and deeply engaging?
That collision is part of the point. You’re invited to think about America, about democracy, and how far you’re willing to go in support of your beliefs. Then you step into a room with 20 strangers and 10,000 miniatures. There’s music, there are snacks – and Uncle Sam invites you to play a game about a recent national trauma. That tension forces a reckoning: are you just playing a game, or are you participating in something larger? One moment you’re laughing; the next, the room goes still. That friction – between play and consequence – is where the real engagement begins.
What surprised you most about how players behave once they take on a role from the “other side”?
How quickly people surrender to the role – and how far they’re willing to go to win. It doesn’t take long before strategy overtakes ideology, and suddenly players are justifying actions they might never consider outside the game. That shift is revealing.
In reimagining the Capitol riot as a live, playable scenario, what conversations are you hoping audiences will continue after the game ends?
Democracy, like a game, only works when people show up. On January 6th, people showed up ready to fight for their version of America – right or wrong. This experience asks you to consider how far you’re willing to go in support of your beliefs, and what that means for the future of democracy.