Culture
Nerds Rejoice! Ratha Con Returns this Weekend
< < Back toRatha Con, Athens’ own pop culture convention, returns to multiple venues around town this weekend.
This year’s event kicks off on Friday, May 8 at ARTS/West with a pop culture art exhibit from 6-8 p.m. After the art opening, a screening of Brian Morlean’s short film Mining Moon will be presented, followed by the sci-fi comedy classic Galaxy Quest. Donations will be accepted.
A full schedule has been planned for Saturday, May 9 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Athens Community Center, including an appearance by special guest Chalet Lizette Brannan, an up-and-coming child film and television star. Brannan has already been in many projects, including several shows for the Syfy network, and has just signed to star in the new Star Trek project.
Brannan’s presence is a big deal for organizer Kelly Lawrence, who launched the convention in 2012 with former ARTS/West Director Emily Prince. Since then, Ratha Con (the name is a nod to the Star Trek movie The Wrath of Khan) has grown steadily each year.
“This year we’re hoping for a big crowd because we finally have a celebrity guest: Chalet Lizette Brannan. That’s the mark of a convention that has made it…celebrity guests,” said Lawrence.
Another special guest will be John Marks, a special effects makeup artist and sculptor from Indianapolis. Several comic/graphic novel artists, including Travis Horseman, creator of Amiculus, will also be on hand. Cassandra Morgan, writer of the Chartile series, will give a presentation on self-publishing.
There will also be several vendors selling comics and collectibles, plus Lego zip line races, lightsaber choreography, bullwhip demonstrations, a Steampunk presentation, model making, RPG games, food vendors and a costume contest with trophies for winners.
New to this year’s convention are Quidditch matches with the help of the Ohio University Flying Bobcats. Quidditch is a sport featured in the Harry Potter book series.
Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 12-17. Children 11 and under will be admitted free with a paid adult.
Following the day’s activities, there will be a night of fun at Casa Nueva and Cantina on West State Street. Attendees are highly encouraged to wear their costumes. Music will be provided by Sector7G and Thoughtbeat, featuring a mix of classic dance music, eight-bit video game samples and sci-fi themes, accompanied by video projector visuals.
The music at Casa will begin at 10 p.m. Admission is free for those 21 and over and $2 for patrons under 21.
For Lawrence, the success of Ratha Con is proof that comic conventions can thrive outside of big cities.
“Emily and I both love geek culture,” she explained. “We were always sad to not make it to Comic Con in California, the original comic convention. So we decided that we would try to have one for ourselves. And word of mouth has been very positive. We have more and more people liking our Facebook page and we’re getting calls at ARTS/West all the time from people wanting to know more.”
For information about Ratha Con, visit www.rathacon.blogspot.com.