A  SECRET SOCIETY INITIATION RITE  and  DINING EXPERIENCE
Intense, exciting and stirs things up!
~  The Sunday Times (UK)
No other dining concept offers such an insightful, enjoyable, amusing and, at times, shocking look at the human condition.
~  Londonist

The Betrayers Banquet is an exclusive, secret society initiation rite that plunges guests into a world of fine dining, thrill, and cunning. 

Black-tie guests dine around a candlelit table and use their wit and intuition to navigate a game of betrayal and deception. Their decisions will determine the quality of the food they receive during a sumptuous 8-course meal, ranging from exquisite to disgusting.

This genre-bending fusion of fine dining, immersive theatre and strategy creates an unforgettable evening of intrigue and delight. No two nights are the same.

Think David Fincher’s The Game as a dining experience.

how it works
Mystery
AND
Secrecy
Upon securing tickets, an intriguing email is sent to each attendee, revealing that their application to The Cognitio is under consideration. To unravel the enigma, a captivating puzzle must be solved – successfully doing so unlocks limited details for the evening of their initiation.

On the day-of, a mysterious car arrives to pick up attendees. As the car approaches the venue, a surge of anticipation affirms that this must be the correct destination – figures cloaked in formal attire gather around a flickering bonfire, exchanging hushed conversations, setting the stage for an evening of intrigue.

A doorman, grasping a deck of cards, stands at a peculiar entrance, a concierge of sorts. "I'm sorry, Tanya Jacobs does not appear on our list," he states, giving an awkward pause, "but we do have..." With a flourish, he plucks the Two of Cups. For the remainder of the night, each guest's identity will be tied solely to the card they are given.
From the very start, the Betrayers Banquet experience is executed down to the finest detail as a secret society.
The
EXPERIENCE
Inside, beyond a velvet curtain, an enchanting sight awaits: a grand candlelit table elegantly prepared for 48 guests. Guided by hooded ushers, each guest is led to their designated seat. Across from them, another diner awaits, their gaze sparking curiosity. The dress code demands formal black tie attire, with every participant dressed to impress.
... What unfolds next and how each diner navigates the ensuing events determines their passage into the exclusive ranks of The Cognitio.
The Arbiter now appears and the night begins in earnest. Throughout the course of the evening, diners facing each other will be confronted with a pivotal choice ("The Trial"). As they look into the eyes of the individual opposite them ... will they:
Co-operate  or  Betray ? 

Each Trial's particular combination of

(1)  Co-operate  /  Co-operate,
(2)  Co-operate  /  Betray,  or
(3)  Betray  /  Betray

... will determine the two DINERs' changed position – moving them UP or DOWN the table of 48 guests.

This is the Prisoner's Dilemma – that of trying to game whether others will co-operate with you or betray you. If you both co-operate, you both stand to gain and will move up the table of 48. If one person betrays while the other chooses to co-operate, the individual betraying gets the largest potential gain. If both betray, both lose, moving down the table.

The iterated Prisoner's Dilemma is famous for creating complex social dynamics, which keeps conversation lively and generates a high eagerness to continue playing.

A guest's position at the table, at the time of a course being served, determines what food they will be presented with ...

   In Partnership With a Visionary Executive Chef 

An Incredible 8 Course Dinner

Will be served to 48 guests

32 dishes are created EACH NIGHT

Each guest is served dishes based on their seat at the table

During each of 8 courses:

12  guests get --- Exquisite Food

12  guests get --- Fine Food

12  guests get --- Good Food

12  guests get --- Disgusting Food

THE
Secret
society
Experience

The Details Are Everything – They Amplify The Thrill

The
Cognitio

Since the fall of the Roman Empire, there have been rumours of a secret society – a shadowy global elite who control every aspect of our lives. Secrecy is the air they breathe. They call themselves The Cognitio. 

RITE of  INITIATION

Membership in The Cognitio is carefully guarded. But there is an initiation rite – it is The Betrayers Banquet – and only the most cunning will get to join.

 VEry
ExclusivE

Deepening the secret society narrative and the aura of exclusivity will take the following shape: hard-to-get tickets; tightly-held event information; extravagantly hosted events that create word-of-mouth, unexpected star performances.

Human
Nature

The Betrayers' Banquet is a visceral study of human nature. The potential rewards are great if you can navigate the instincts of total strangers. Even the most storied secret societies are made of people whose politics led them to both trust and betray.

ATTENTION
to DETAIL

As with all great secrets, successfully crafting the brand's aura of mystery is all about Attention To Detail: considerable event planning, script-writing, under-the-radar web + media presence, and culturally-smart rollouts in cities around the world.

5
Levels

The Betrayers Banquet is just the 1st of 5 Tests or Levels. Winning participants move on to face new challenges in levels 2 - 5 that test their skills, loyalties and initiative, all the while deepening their connection to the secret society story + brand experience.. 

Growth Strategy

B U I L D
P O P U L A R I T Y
T H R O U G H
E X C L U S I V I T Y 

1.  Partner with a world-class chef to further develop the experience as Executive Producer of the show.
2.  Select and launch a beautifully immersive Betrayer's Banquet experience in a priority market (e.g., Toronto or Brooklyn).
3.  Expand to additional cities across the planet featuring regionally known top chefs.
Mask

By
Invite
Only

Impossible
to get a
ticket

Leverage
Celebrity
participation

Leak
Stories &
Select Info

Luxury events

Rarified locations for high net worth individuals  =  Aura of Exclusivity

luxury geometry bb

KEYS  to  SUCCESS

The Betrayers’ Banquet has significant potential to expand to multiple cities

Multiple
Cities
Opening in more than one city ensures a full recouping of productions costs, with increased ROI for investors + producers as more cities are strategically opened.
Endlessly
Re-playable
Betrayer's Banquet is a platform for an endlessly re-playable game, with a variable set of rules and the ability to change those rules, night after night.
No Two Nights
Are The Same
A truly interactive experience, The Betrayers Banquet proceeds organically with the participation and choices of each guest. Players use cunning, wits, and charm to advance their position. It's a real time study of human nature.
Unpredictable
Play
Players only know a fraction of what is required of them and will be attempting to puzzle the rest out. At any time, organizers can change the "Nash Equilibrium" – the point in Game Theory when players have no further reason to change their strategy.
Seeding
The World With
The Cognitio
The Betrayers Banquet secret society experience can be made to be remarkably convincing – could The Cognitio actually exist? We want attendees to question reality. Wikipedia entries, social media channels, reddit forums, and other real world details referencing The Cognitio will exist and hopefully take on a life of their own.
Under the
Radar + Viral
Marketing
An under-the-radar marketing strategy is essential to the integrity of the brand's exclusive, secretive personality. Organic word-of-mouth, amplified through social media, unaided by traditional advertising, is always the goal. 
Coveted Live
Performances
While not essential to the evening’s success ... dance, music and song are typically integrated into the night. Discovering that a celebrity will be performing at your BB evening would be a thrill indeed.
Sky Is
The Limit
Elite hosts could organize highly exclusive BB events: incredible locations and experiences that become the stuff of legend. Exciting business partnerships could also be a means of crafting highly unique offerings.

the
CREATORS

David
Galpern

Charles
Roy

David Galpern and Charles Roy are award-winning creators and producers with a track record of over 100 productions in various genres over the last two decades. Their work includes acclaimed Broadway-level musicals, immersive theatre, groundbreaking art and technology experiences, and collaborations with major music label and film studios. They are leaders in theatre for teen audiences and have founded successful entertainment companies, state-of-the-art venues, and a cutting-edge tech lab. They are co-CEOs of ArtsDistrict Studios, a pioneering immersive entertainment IP generating studio.
One of Canada’s leading theatre artists, Charles has directed and produced over 100 productions for such companies as Pleiades Theatre, Mirvish Productions,  and the World Stage Festival. His adaptation of the Sanskrit classic Shakuntala, which he directed, was invited to Vancouver as part of the 2010 Olympics. In 2014, three of his films were produced in LA. In 2015, he signed a two-picture deal with Netflix, optioned a screenplay with Warner Brothers, and signed a multi-film deal with Unreal Media.
With over 15 years experience as an entrepreneur in entertainment, David has developed and produced over 100 projects seen by more than a million people. His theatre productions have toured North America and garnered numerous awards including New York Times Critics Picks. David has worked extensively as a producer, artistic director, executive producer and board member of commercial and non-profit companies.

Edward
SAPERIA

Edward Saperia is an experiential artist and entrepreneur based in London, UK. A multimedia and transmedia auteur, he has devised and directed projects as diverse as a secret language of flowers, a members’ club focused on the application of technology to politics, a toy that makes your bike sound like a horse, the official global conference for Wikipedia - and The Betrayers’ Banquet. He cites his inspirations as the fuzzy boundary between platform and content, game design, cybernetics, and complex systems.

CAM
GAUTIER

Often described as a creative swiss-army knife, Cam has served as Creative Director, Creative Technologist, Narrative Director, UX Director and Producer for the likes of Bell Canada, the University of Toronto and the Canadian Broadcast Company (CBC). A passionate storyteller, geek, artist, maker and dreamer, his sizzle reel includes founding a tech start-up, producing short films and web series, building six Augmented Reality experiences, writing and developing a number of story-worlds for games, and mastering making bacon.

Be A Part of This

There are up to  20  $50,000 units available

maximum raise: $1 Million

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