Go!

Yesterday, it was beautiful outside. I parked myself on a low wall in Chicago's Near North district, peppered with hotels, chain restaurants, and deep-dish pizza joints. At a "don't walk" sign, a man started asking bystanders to help him get to State Street. "I dunno," said one guy. "Umm..." another started to point the opposite direction. I pointed him in the right direction, and realized that was in a tourist district. State is one of the main streets through downtown, and one of the easiest to find.

I was downtown with my banjo, not just busking, but playing a role in The Go Game.

The Go Game is a San Francisco-based company that designs large-scale games, clue hunts, and scavengers hunts (usually, but not always, for corporate clients sending their staffs on team-building or training retreats). 

Teams were told my location, told to look for a street performer, and to dance to his music. Once they had danced enough, I gave them a clue. Simple enough. Most teams did fine.

One team, however, tore off down the block as I noodled around on a blues figure. Two of them slowed down, looked at me, and kept going. They crossed the street as the red hand blinked, waited for the next "walk" sign, then crossed back towards me.

They watched me play for a minute, then some of them started dancing. One of the team members said "Wait. You're not just a random guy on the street? Or... wait? Are you?"

That moment is what these games are for: The dawning realization that looking entails looking at everything. 

Once someone starts wondering who is in on it, the whole urban scene becomes a rich field, planted with conspirators in the fun. That is how it should always be.