Fan conventions are interesting animals. These people take their HP VERY seriously. Not only do they know the books and movies inside and out (and hold strong opinions about which is better and don't hesitate to analyze every part of the plot), but they also follow (or produce!) the resulting fan fiction, music, and offshoot performances, including puppet shows, musicals, and rock operas. Costumes abound (I especially liked Professor Sprout and her little mandrake), from house ties to full-out character reenactments. It's pretty wild.
For all that, though, the general feel is one of acceptance, friendliness, and a shared sense of purpose. It is apparent that everyone here is united in a single passion - all things Harry Potter. My daughters were very excited to be there. They even bought special fingernails for the occasion. Emily's depicted Ravenclaw House; Sarah's, the Deathly Hallows.
Registration on Wednesday was a total mess. Problems with technology took its toll, as materials for more than half of the 3,000+ registrants could not be found. It took four new printers and an entire day to resolve all the issues. When it was apparent that two of our three registrations were messed up, we left to do touristy things (rather than wait in lines that snaked through the halls), and came back several hours later, hoping it would be fixed. Still, opening programming was delayed by an hour while the final glitches were smoothed out.
Now, one would think that all the problems, issues, and confusions at registration would result in hordes of angry, frustrated, and rude conferees, but, that was not the case. In fact, I only ran across one person who fit that description. Everyone else just sat around in line, waiting patiently, and visiting with friends made at cons from past years. It was all very civilized in the wizarding world. In fact, once it was apparent that the evening's programming was delayed, groups spontaneously burst into song - Harry Potter music, of course - and entertained themselves until the ballroom opened for business.
The organizers very cleverly billed this as a commencement week for the 2011 graduating class of Hogwarts. The materials (finally) received at registration included a bookbag and the programming guide, convincingly disguised as a yearbook.
Continuing the theme, the evening's opening ceremonies, billed as a "video yearbook presentation" was well worth the wait. The program was a multi-media presentation consisting of a video recapping the history of the Harry Potter books, including interviews with J.K. Rowling. Interspersed throughout were performances by various persons/groups who made their way in their art as a result of discovering a love of HP. Lena Gabrielle played the LeakyCon theme music, her original composition; Potter Puppet Pals did a puppet show featuring Harry, Ron, and Hermione; Hank Green accompanied himself on guitar and sang "Accio Deathly Hallows"; The Starkid production team appeared, along with the cast of "A Very Potter Musical" (sans Darren Criss, who arrived later in the week); and, of course, Harry and the Potters performed wizard rock songs, including "The Weapon" and "Save Ginny". The whole audience was singing along! There was even a fan whose boyfriend chose this occasion to propose - in front of 3,000 people! It really was pretty awesome. This presentation was followed by a "school field trip" to Hogsmeade, which we skipped, since we'd already been the day before.
The con's dates were planned to coincide with the premiere of the final film in the Harry Potter series, Deathly Hallows, Part II. The organizers were able to make arrangements with Warner Brothers to release the film 6 hours early, just for the attendees of LeakyCon. So, following a full day's programming on Thursday, we tromped over to the theater at the Universal theme park, to watch the movie with a theater full of adoring fans. What an experience. While waiting for the movie to begin, again, there was more extemporaneous fan singing - I'm not sure the theater personnel knew what to make of us.
Once the movie started, the mood started out as one of reverence and intense concentration, but eventually shifted to one of grief and mourning. The entire theater was filled with the sounds of fans alternately sobbing and cheering in response to the on-screen action. I'm curious as to whether this occurred in theaters filled with fans in other places, too, or whether it was simply that these fans are SO passionate. I'll have to ask.
When we left the theater, lines for the midnight showing were snaking their way through Citywalk. I saw some jealous looks thrown our way as we exited, many fans still snuffling.
After the movie, Larry and I stayed in Margaritaville.
The girls joined the con attendees for an After Party of Wizard Rock music and dancing - the first of two. Remus and the Lupins performed for the last time (Sarah and Emily were sad), as well as many other bands from the wizarding world. The Friday night show included a much-awaited set by Harry and the Potters, the daddies of the Wizard Rock movement, and, in my opinion, not a very talented duo. They do deserve credit, though, for being the first, and snagging the obvious band name...
Throughout the days, programming covered everything you can imagine. There were lectures and panels on such subjects as: the nature of the Elder Wand; twelve fail-safe ways to charm witches; racism and slavery in the wizarding world; "the spiritual meaning of literary alchemy with the symbols in the Harry Potter books"; the origin of the names used for characters and places in the HP books - all very academic! There were lectures specifically geared toward teachers, librarians, and parents. For those less cerebrally inclined, there were sessions on yoga, dancing against the Dark Arts, shippers, art workshops, cooking demonstrations (Butterbeer 101!), and a youth track for those who brought young kids along. If you were interested in crafts, podcasting, nerdfighters, HPA, shipping, fanvid, fanfilk, fanfic, fanart, or just wanted to hang out in costume and have your picture taken, there was programming for you. There were screening showcases. A signing booth opened for fans to get autographs of their favorite celebrities, including stars of the movies: Evanna Lynch (Luna) and Scarlett Byrne (Pansy Parkinson) were in attendance, among others; the cast of "A Very Potter Musical" (including Darren Criss!) and Team Starkid; author Maureen Johnson and Vlog Brothers Hank and John Green.
Saturday started with the premiere of "The Warlock's Hairy Heart", Lena Gabrielle's latest operetta based on one of the tales from Beetle and the Bard. More appearances/performances from the Starkid team filled the middle of the day. (Sarah and Emily observed that the Starkid/Darren Criss fangirls were really obnoxious...) The night ended with a Charity Ball and dancing until 1:00 am. Whew!
As Sunday's Leaving Feast and Closing Ceremonies began, sleep deprivation among the attendees was apparent. The mood was quite subdued, but for more reasons than just the previous night's late hour.
This is the last convention The Leaky Cauldron plans to host. With no more books or movies to celebrate, it seems moot. As that reality set in, fans became teary, and the mood lifted just a bit when everyone sang "Days of Summer", a song reminding us that goodbye is not forever. A bittersweet ending to a week that Sarah declared was "full of awesome".
