Ringer Celebriel sends this pre-con report:
Just over a week to go!
Fans start gathering next Thursday night for the 21st annual Dragon*Con convention in Atlanta, which runs through Labor Day. Tolkien Track programming this year covers art, costuming, music, literary discussion, live action role play, film screenings, fan fiction, collectibles, and New Zealand travel, not to mention Saturday morning’s Parade, Friday night’s Evening in Bree with Emerald Rose
and the Brobdingnagian Bards, authors Peter S. Beagle and Sherrilyn Kenyon, Tolkien scholar Anne Petty, and “Making the Hobbit Happen,” led by TORn founders William Thomas, Chris Pirrotta and staffer Larry Curtis. (Corvar, Calisuri and MrCere respectively).
Many of the panels will be given twice during the weekend, to accommodate your wish to see the Weasley twins over on the Young Adult track or check out the Miss Klingon Beauty Contest on TrekTrac.
The main Tolkien Track room (except for parties and such) is the Clayton Room on the second floor of the Atlanta Hilton. Also, we are trying to get a few copies of Kristin Thompson’s “The Frodo Franchise” to give away as prizes!
Highlights include:
Meet & Greet: Find old friends and make some new ones before An Evening in Bree! (5:30PM Friday)
TORn panel: Join William Thomas, Chris Pirrotta and Larry Curtis for “Making the Hobbit Happen” (Saturday at 2:30PM and Sunday at 1:00PM)
Music: Emerald Rose, with their new “Con Suite” CD, plays Friday night at “An Evening in Bree” (8:30PM) and Sunday night at the Yule Ball (8:30PM)
The Brobdingnagian Bards play at An Evening in Bree and at Sunday’s late night Pirate party (11:30PM)
Film: Saturday night’s film program (10:00PM) includes “Ringers: Lord of the Fans” and MARS Productions’ “Middle Earth Idol,” along with some surprises!
Peter Beagle and Felix Silla talk about Ralph Bakshi’s animated Lord of the Rings (1972) at 4:00PM on Saturday. Catch Peter showing The Last Unicorn on the Young Adult track at 8:30PM on Saturday.
Dragon Smackdown: Come prepared to support your favorite dragon in Anne Petty’s discussion of Glaurung vs. Smaug. (Friday at 2:30PM and Sunday at 11:00AM)
Costuming: Join professional armor and sword maker Michael Cook of Celebrate Studios and award-winning master costumers Marcia Banach and Jules Kelly for their Saturday afternoon double session on “Bringing Your Costume to Life.”
(Oh yeah, and watch for Marcia’s new LOTR costume this year – A Return of the King character you’ve never seen before!)
Art: Discuss artists who have brought Middle Earth to life in a panel discussion featuring LOTR and Star Wars artist Sarah Wilkinson. Saturday at 5:30PM
and Monday at 10:00AM.
FanFic: Join Zhie and friends at the FanFiction Luau, Sunday night at 10PM. Age 18+ or with parent/guardian – IDs will be checked!
Travel: Thinking about New Zealand or been there and want share your story? New Zealand IS Middle Earth – Sunday at 1:00PM
Parade: The Dragon*Con parade is Saturday morning at 10:00AM. If you haven’t registered yet, please do so at the Parade Table when you arrive in Atlanta. You’ll see it when you pick up your convention badge.
Some Essential Links: Print your Tolkien Track Dragon*Con schedule at: tolkientrack.queencheetah.com/cale2007.htm
Anne Petty: www.annepetty.com
Arms of Middle Earth: www.armsofmiddleearth.com (Atlanta area Tolkien group)
The Brobdingnagian Bards: thebards.net
Celebrate Studios: www.celebratestudios.com
Dragon*Con Main: www.dragoncon.org
Emerald Rose: www.emeraldrose.com/mainpage.htm
Peter Beagle: www.peterbeagle.com
Sarah Wilkinson: www.sarahwilkinson.net
Andy Serkis has swapped the technical difficulties of playing characters such as Gollum in Lord of the Rings, and the giant ape in King Kong, for a role as Hoodwink, a tough local kingpin on a rundown London council estate in Sugarhouse. “He’s a very visceral character and he’s a very physical character. I suppose the fact of the matter is I’m surprised that more people aren’t like Hoodwink,” says Serkis. “I think most people live on the edge. How many times have you got into a car and someone’s beeping their horn behind you – there’s only that much between them getting out of their car and doing serious damage? The thing is [Hoodwink] doesn’t have a limiter.” [
On Saturday night Sir Ian McKellen entered the stage at Auckland’s ASB Theatre as a regal king draped in ceremonial costume. He left as a broken man, in an unequivocal and heart rendering performance as King Lear, a monarch whose course of suffering is sparked by his blind, proud affection for his three daughters. From the elaborate opening scene, McKellen and his velvet-gravel voice carry the audience through Lear’s journey of sadness and disbelief at the betrayal of his two eldest daughters, through the haze of madness, to new hope in his youngest child, then down to the deep pit of eventual despair. It was a gripping ride. [