Ascendio 2012

Let’s have some holiday fun.  What was your favorite Christmas moment in the Harry Potter films? Read More…

Thanks to RemotelyUniversal for inviting our PR chair, Heidi Tandy, to talk about all things Ascendio on their most recent podcast! You can download it on iTunes here, or listen to it streaming on their website here.  The RU team is planning to attend Ascendio, and podcast right from the Portofino Bay Resort! See you then, guys!

Grab your brooms, your Quaffles and Bludgers and your running shoes – and if you’re Seeker, try to grab your Snitch! The world-famous International Quidditch Association is going to be bringing Quidditch to Ascendio at Universal Orlando Resort from July 12 – 15, 2012!

Quidditch was a hit at Infinitus & will be even bigger at Ascendio!

At our last event, Infinitus, the IQA helped sponsor the event, gave a Quidditch presentation and donated Alivans brooms for the charity auction. They’ll be returning again, this time with more panels, swag, IQA teams leading demo matches and a handful of pick-up games for those who want to give IQA Quidditch a try.

HPEF is thrilled to include the IQA as part of Ascendio, because their mission of fostering creativity and creating, connecting, and enhancing our communities are well-matched by HPEF’s own goals and objectives.

All Full registrants can participate in Ascendio Quidditch on any day, and day pass-holders can get involved on the days covered by their passes. Scheduling information will be announced this spring.

To learn more about the IQA, visit their website or watch the video to get a sneak peek (either the World Cup 2010 Documentary or MTV Quidditch Promo or CBS coverage on Quidditch World Cup 2010.)

We’re celebrating Harry Potter and its influence on music with a musical review! The Wands by Wands by Wizards Revue will be on the main stage on Saturday night. The revue is being coordinated by fan and composer Lena Gabrielle, who put on The Final Battle at Infinitus. We can’t put on this musical revue without YOU, the attendees!

Ascendio is seeking talented singers and musicians to help assemble a program of music inspired by Harry Potter. Here is your chance to perform your favourite Wizard Rock song, create an original dance with HP music, present a short theatrical sketch of HP-inspired material, or put together an ensemble of “Double Double” complete with croaking frogs!

The Wands by Wands by Wizards revue will require a couple of rehearsals, but our goal is that most people will arrive prepared and we will not need to use the whole con to rehearse! Acts may not last more than 6 minutes, including any setup or teardown required. For more detailed information, see here!

To participate, please fill out the short form!

Please provide a link to a video of your performance at the bottom of the form by uploading a PRIVATE video to youtube (or to a personal server if you wish.)

Lena Gabrielle and her staff reserve the sole right to decide who will be performing and who will not. Failure to come prepared or to attend rehearsals may result in being cut from the performance. Performers may be asked to form duets or small groups if there are multiple requests for the same number. Performances must adhere to Ascendio’s ratings standards (PG-13). Please email Lena with any questions!

Ascendio is VERY excited to be hosting the premiere of a new fan-written Harry Potter musical!

On Friday, July 13, a new Harry Potter inspired musical will be put on on the Ascendio main stage! Mischief Managed is a fan-written musical by Jessica Milne, which sees the Next Generation discovering James Potters journals, and learning all about the Marauder’s story — all set to original music written by Jessica!

Mischief Managed is currently a one-act musical (but may expand if there’s interest and a big enough cast!), so while it will involve some rehearsals at Ascendio, the time commitment is not huge. So if you’re an aspiring singer, and plan on attending Ascendio, auditions are open as of NOW!

All auditions and almost all rehearsals will be held entirely online! Through Youtube and Skype, anyone from anywhere can take part in Mischief Managed. The only “locational requirement” is that you be a registered attendee of Ascendio (ie: you’re coming to the con!). MMtM is casting all sorts of people and voices, so even if you don’t see your dream character on the list, audition! Characters and parts may be added in the coming weeks (such as Scorpius, Lucius, Regulus, Albus Severus, etc.), and some roles may be cast with the opposite gender (ie: a girl may play a male part, and vice versa).

How can you audition?

• Check out the list of characters and their nuts & bolts
• Record a video of yourself performing a song of your choice — something that showcases your voice & range
• Upload your video to YouTube and title it something along the lines of “Mischief Managed Audition Round One”
• Fill out this form (be sure to provide the link to your YouTube video

Auditions end on January 1!

For more information, you can email Jessica at mischiefmusical@aim.com, check out www.mischiefmanagedmusical.com and join the Mischief Managed the Musical Facebook Group!

December is the time of year where we seem to celebrate eleventy-billion holidays. We pondered doing Twelve Days of Ascendio Announcements and Eight Days and Nights of Ascendio News, but instead have decided to do an entire magical month of Ascendio news and reminders (because we’re non-denominational like that)! All month, stayed tuned for announcements such as:

• Start of sale of tickets for our private park event
• More special guests
• New and exciting programming
• Podcasting flashbacks & our new YouTube channel
• Adding Wizard Rock bands to the Wrock day Thursday line up
• Calls for auditions/entries for the musical revue, fashion show and more!

Plus, we’ll be posting reminders of upcoming deadlines and hosting chats with a bunch of our Committee Chairs – we know you have questions!

So enjoy Ascendio’s Month of Magic… and deck the halls with con news!