True to form, the shadowy masterminds of the Dark Arts Festival had all sorts of excitement planned for the ten-year anniversary, beyond live music and DJs. Every night of the event had a theme, and Friday’s was “Ancient Egypt”. We really didn’t know what to expect when we got to Area 31, a two-story nightclub that keeps SLC’s alternative party people out of trouble with nights of 80s, Electro, Pop and everything in between. Would there be sphinxes? Mummies? Sophisticated irrigation systems everywhere? What wonders awaited these weary travelers?

Though I was a little sad to find no pyramids and few attendees dressed in white linen, there was no shortage of wigs, eyeliner, or mummies. That’s right, mummies. One the night’s scheduled events was a mummy-wrapping contest. This too, of course, could have meant anything. Having never been to Salt Lake City I didn’t know how hardcore this was going to be.

It certainly didn’t ease my impatience to know that SLC just happens to be home to Summum, a religious group, one of whose chief sources of income just happens to be, you guessed it, modern mummification. Anticipation mounted as the scheduled time drew near. Watching a cute girl in a scant Egypt-inspired outfit carry and arrange a dozen rolls of what appeared to be white gauze, I wondered whether this could turn out to be a bondage show.

The true nature of the situation began to dawn on me when I got close enough to see the aforementioned gauze rolls. Nothing more than household TP, my friends.

Yes, the Dark Arts Festival’s mummy-wrapping contest was far more innocent than I had imagined, and its main objective was maximum paper coverage within a minimum amount of time. Contestants paired off with each team having a mummy and a mummyfier [Mummer? Mummy-master?]. After a few minutes of deliberation the clock was ticking and paper ribbons were flying. Hypnotized, I documented.

After witnessing this spectacle [enhanced by black lights and pounding base], I can report that there is nothing quite like seeing someone try to wrap a 4-inch-tall-mohawk in toilet paper.

I hope they recycled.

Words and photos by Zoetica Ebb