FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Awesome Con Jr Brings Fun for All Ages to Washington, D.C.
Education and Entertainment Collide at Annual Pop Culture Convention
Washington, D.C. | April 18, 2019 – Awesome Con, the Mid-Atlantic’s premier pop culture convention, is proud to present the return of Awesome Con Jr, a family-focused pavilion powered by The Toy Association, which takes over the Walter E. Washington Convention Center Friday, April 26 to Sunday, April 28. Awesome Con Jr provides hours of fun with entertaining and educational programs for fans of all ages, including interactive workshops with characters from hit shows, costume parades, art sessions with professionals, coloring contests, and more. Full details on the activities can be found at www.awesomecon.com/awesome-con-jr/. Tickets to Awesome Con include access to Awesome Con Jr and are available at www.awesomecon.com. As a special treat, children 2 and under are admitted for free.
“The Toy Association is thrilled to support Awesome Con Jr and bring the fun, magic, and value of play to families in Washington, DC,” said Marian Bossard, executive vice president of global market events at The Toy Association. “Kids, parents, and fans both young and old will have the chance to make lasting memories and engage in so many exclusive, unique, and awesome experiences!”
Families familiar with Awesome Con, now in its seventh year, will find an expanded Awesome Con Jr space complete with a kid’s stage dedicated to all ages programming each of the three-day weekend. Kids will love the highlights on stage from DreamWorks screenings of She-Ra and Spirit Riding Free to a live animal conservation showcase and will uncover exciting, educational presentations from Athletes Without Borders, T.A.G. Labs, Peaceable Kingdom, and more. The fun runs all weekend long with endless opportunities to engage in creative play.
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
Kids Costume Parades
Kids will have the chance to strut their stuff and show off over-the-top outfits in not just one but two costume parades inside Awesome Con Jr. Entry is limited to the first 30 registrants.
- Date: Saturday, April 27 and Sunday, April 28
- Time: 12-1:00 PM
Wildlife Discovery with National Wildlife Federation
Meet celebrity naturalist David Mizejewski of the National Wildlife Federation and his wildlife friends. David will host an amazing live wildlife showcase with animals from around the globe like an opossum, an alligator, and even a python.
- Date: Friday, April 27
- Time: 1:30-2:00 PM
Custom Sketches Opportunities
Comic artists such as Ron Chan, Amy Mebberson, Ron Randall, and James Silvani will each have a one-hour session where they do free custom sketches for kids in the character meet & greet areas.
- Ron Chan Sketches
- Date: Sunday, April 28
- Time: 12:00-1:00 PM
- Amy Mebberson Sketches
- Date: Sunday, April 28
- Time: 12:00-1:00 PM
- Ron Randall Sketches
- Date: Saturday, April 27
- Time: 3:00-4:00 PM
- James Silvani
- Date: Sunday, April 28
- Time: 1:30-2:30 PM
Original Character Design Live Art Contest with Art Way Alliance & Craftsman Supply
Have you created the coolest character this side of the multi-universe? Come show them off during AWA’s Original Character Contest! The character should be your own creation and have a backstory. During this event, artists of all ages will draw and shot off their own creations to panel of judges for a grand prize. Don’t have an original character in mind yet? Don’t worry! Art Way Alliance will have helpful tricks, tips, and all the material you will need to make character that pops. Participation is limited to the first 20 entrants.
- Date: Friday, April 26
- Time: 6:00-7:00 PM
Intro to Spells for Young Witches and Wizards
Our magic instructors will teach introductory lessons in spells to prepare students before they get their magic school letters or to help improve their marks at their chosen Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This is a guided imaginative play session that will engage young fans in the magic of the Harry Potter books. No previous experience reading the books or seeing the films is necessary. They will surely be excited to dive in after this session! Intro to Spells is designed and directed by Clay Dockery.
- Date: Saturday, April 27
- Time: 5:30-6:00 PM
Monster Battle Time KO!
Three teams of artists go head-to-head in the biggest Monster Battle Time of the season! This year there are three teams of stellar cartoonists to design your monsters and battle for ultimate artistic glory! Free comics to all attendees.
- Date: Sunday, April 28
- Time: 3:30-4:15 PM
Photo Opportunities
Captain Planet visits Awesome Con Jr for photo opps, along with Goku from Dragon Ball Super, Detective Pikachu, Ranger Rick, Luna from “Let’s Go Luna,” Super Why, Daniel Tiger, and Disney princess cosplayers.
Tickets to Awesome Con are available at www.awesomecon.com, where exciting programming updates will be posted before the convention. Follow Awesome Con on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AwesomeConDC.
About Awesome Con
Awesome Con is the biggest annual comic and pop culture convention in Washington, D.C., attracting over 50,000 attendees in 2016. Awesome Con celebrates all aspects of geekdom and pop culture with a wide assortment of engaging events, comic books, collectibles, toys, games, original art, cosplay and more. Awesome Con is presented in partnership with LeftField Media, an event organization company also responsible for Play Fair, Anime NYC, Rose City Comic Con, the Five Points Festival, and more.
About LeftField Media
LeftField Media, LLC is an events company focused on developing face-to-face events in a range of communities rooted in contemporary culture and shared passion. LeftField was formed in 2014 by Greg Topalian (President, LeftField Media) and is now owned by Topalian and Clarion Events Ltd. With a keen sense of the evolving needs of businesses and their consumers, as well as new opportunities created by change, LeftField takes a clean slate approach to its work. LeftField’s portfolio includes Play Fair (playfairny.com), a family-focused celebration of toys and play built with the Toy Industry Association; Awesome Con (awesomecon.com), Washington D.C.’s Comic Con; Rose City Comic Con (rosecitycomiccon.com), in Portland, O.R.; Anime NYC (animenyc.com), a Japanese pop culture festival presented by Crunchyroll; and the Classic Auto Show (theclassicautoshow.com), a vintage auto show launched in Los Angeles. LeftField Media is headquartered in historic Trumbull, C.T. (leftfieldmedia.com).
About The Toy Association www.toyassociation.org / www.thegeniusofplay.org / www.playsafe.org
Founded in 1916, The Toy Association™, Inc. is the not-for-profit trade association representing all businesses involved in creating and delivering toys and youth entertainment products for kids of all ages. The Toy Association leads the health and growth of the U.S. toy industry, which has an annual U.S. economic impact of $110.9 billion, and its 1000+ members drive the annual $28 billion U.S. domestic toy market. The Toy Association serves as the industry’s voice on the developmental benefits of play, and promotes play’s positive impact on childhood development to consumers and media. The organization has a long history of leadership in toy safety, having helped develop the first comprehensive toy safety standard more than 40 years ago, and remains committed to working with medical experts, government, consumers, and industry on ongoing programs to ensure safe and fun play.
As a global leader, The Toy Association produces the world-renowned North American International Toy Fair and Fall Toy Preview; advocates on behalf of members around the world; sustains the Canadian The Toy Association; acts as secretariat for the International Council of Toy Industries and International Toy Industry CEO Roundtable; and chairs the committee that reviews and revises America’s widely emulated ASTM F963 toy safety standard.
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