Welcome readers, to the first issue of the Wonderful Weekend of Wizardry newsletter! You can be sure to be kept in the loop of all the magical things we have in store for this year and the years following. Expect to see: - Behind the scenes - Recaps of past events -Announcements - Featured performers - Vendors - AND MORE! |
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~CONTENTS~ DID YOU SEE THAT? - YEAR ONE - Dragon Egg Hunt -Painting Event WHAT'S NEW? - Website -Movie Marathon HEY THERE! - Meet the founders - Cosplay Spotlights - Meet the Directors - Featured volunteer POP QUIZ! - Trivia |
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Check out some of the amazing events we have been doing! |
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YEAR ONE We had some amazing adventures for Year One at the Wonderful Weekend of Wizardry! It was held at the Murano Hotel in Tacoma, WA during December 6-9, 2018. Here you could attend classes, collect house points, visit vendors alley, attend the great feast, ball, and MORE! We were visited by amazing cosplayers who really enhanced the experience! We had actors Stan Yanevski (Viktor Krum) and Chris Rankin (Percy Weasley) in attendance as well as the cast from NYC performance of "The Puffs". By the end of the weekend Hufflepuff came victorious and won the house cup! |
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DRAGON EGG HUNT On April 2oth, we held our first Wizard Picnic & Egg Hunt! This was a free event for all ages. With both wizards and dragons in attendance it was truly a sight to see! Our attendees have some of the best costumes we have ever seen! There were over 2,000 eggs distributed to around 100 kids! Three lucky kids took home amazing Dragon Egg prizes! We featured fun games, crafts, and of course photo ops! There were smiles all around! We truly enjoyed the event with everyone and hope to see you all at the next event. It will be truly magical! |
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PAINT NIGHT On June 23rd, wizards united for a magical event of painting, hosted by Uncorked Canvas! We welcomed ages 6 and up to come along to this sold out event. Wizards and witches alike joined the Weekend of Wizardry for a magical afternoon of painting.There were surprise guests featuring Luna, Draco, and even Dolores Umbridge! Everyone WOWED us with their talent and ability to make their paintings a wonderful and unique piece of art. We saw additions of dementors, and the whomping willow just to name a few! All of our guests enjoyed snacks, and goodie bags, and one lucky attendee went home with an owl themed gift basket! |
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NEW WEBSITE WE ARE LIVE! Our NEW website has launched. Our amazing volunteer teams have been tirelessly working on a new website for you. There is lots of content to be poured in as details emerge, so you will want to bookmark us and keep checking back! Surprises are in store! | | |
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HARRY POTTER AND THE MOVIE MARATHON Join The Weekend of Wizardry in a magical partnership with the Grand Cinema for a 24 hour showing of the Harry Potter films! You can expect to be surrounded by fellow potter-heads visiting cosplayers galore! You don't want to miss this showing of 8 films, complete with concessions, and MORE! | | |
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Here is an inside scoop on some amazing individuals that are a part of what makes The Wonderful Weekend of Wizardry so MAGICAL! From founders, to directors, volunteers and amazing guests, their stories are all unique and a part of what brings these events to life! We couldn't do it without them! |
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Meet the Founders: Angela & Dan |
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Angela Wehnert, a 45 year old Gryffindor (but a kid at heart) who originally hails from Fox Lake, Illinois, is the headmaster of this glorious event! Her interests include (but are certainly not limited to) looking at the moon, dreaming of faraway places, studying different cultures, being submerged in nature, visiting ancient lands, art, opera, yoga, reading fantasy series books, and traveling the world! Of course she attended Hogwarts, and who would have thought of anything otherwise! |
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How else would she have gained the knowledge needed for having her own magical school! For once upon a time, Angela had this wild idea that Tacoma should have it's very own school of witchcraft & wizardry. It was from this foundation and her love of Harry Potter that the Weekend of Wizardry was born! Angela is the owner of Crescent Moon Gifts and Founder of CMG Events. She is a creator of things and of course a dreamer of BIG Dreams! She is married (to a Ravenclaw) and has two adult children, ages 20 & 27. This year she is taking a step back and watching others bring their creativity to the forefront. She looks forward to being able to attend the event and enjoy it as a spectator. |
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Daniel Wehnert, is a 46 year old proud Ravenclaw! He is originally from Redlands, CA but now resides in University Place, WA with his Gryffindor wife (Angela, mentioned above). He received his BA in Cognitive Neuroscience from University of Arizona. He was previously a Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET) for 20 years at Microsoft and Microsoft partners. A little over 3 years ago he stepped away from his technical career to assist as a co-owner of Crescent Moon Gifts. |
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Daniel's family consists of 2 daughters, 2 cats, and a Gryffindog. In his free time he enjoys reading, writing, family time, computer games (though he doesn't really have time for that), world travel, Marvel comics, BBQ, and spending time in his garden. This all around earthy guy was a perfect match to fall into the co-founder role of the Weekend of Wizardry (WoW) event! As if that were not enough, he was also the vendor coordinator and helping anywhere else that was needed. It's safe to say that he is also looking forward to stepping back this year to experience the magic as it unfolds! |
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Angela and Daniel Wehnert created a 501(c) non-profit dedicated to hosting a Wonderful Weekend of Wizardry! Not only are they fans of the whimsical world that J.K. Rowling created in the Harry Potter series, but of magic and mystery itself. They bring over a decade of experience in fantasy event planning as they strive to create the enchantment of a magical wizarding world for all of us, the fans! |
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MEET THE DIRECTORS: Danni |
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Danni Carson is a 36 year old who grew up in the Mitten State, not far from Motown/Motor City Detroit, Michigan! She comes from a family of open-minded muggles, who still reside in MI. She moved to WA in 2008, and has spent time living in Colorado, but in the end Washington is where she and her family feel the most at home. She has always been in love with fantasy stories. One of her favorites is ‘His Dark Materials’, which she started reading in 6th grade. She has admittedly always struggled to get into books, and prefers a good movie! Given that she is the Decorations Director, all bookworms should give her a pass this once! The books of Harry Potter were a totally different story, and she became hooked. |
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When she is not creating decorations for the Weekend of Wizardry, she busy at her job. She has been a mental health first responder for over 10 years! Danni continues to serve Pierce County residents as a Clinical Supervisor to a home based mental health team. The first year event of the Weekend of Wizardry was a very successful year, as she led the decorations team to victory! They received so much praise for all their hard work to make attendees feel like they were in the potter world. Having visited The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios, she was able to take inspiration for what you see presented at the events. She is very excited to have a new location to work with for the Year 2 event, and can't wait to bring it to life with bigger and better decorations! |
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Danni is a true Slytherin to the core! She can be bossy and opinionated, but will love you until the end! Her two, under ten, witches can attest for that! Her husband and children have all adopted the magical world that Danni loves. They even dress up in costumes when attending the events! She is currently undergoing an amazing decoration project of her own at home, transforming her guest room into a Potter Paradise! You may even be surprised at this other fun fact, she has certifications in flying trapeze! Who knew? |
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MEET A VOLUNTEER: Kaitlin |
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Meet Kaitlin, a 33 year old Gryffindor from University Place, WA. She has lived in glorious cities such as NYC and Seattle, but is proud to once again be home in University Place. She and her incredibly supportive husband George, lived patiently amongst many boxes of WoW stuff in their 1-bedroom apartment last year. Now they have purchased a home and are spending free time painting, and repairing the home, as well as taming the yard. They bought their home just in time as they are expecting their first baby in December! He or she is going by the name “Blueberry” for now, and looked very much like they were trying to ride a bicycle during the first ultrasound. Kaitlin admits "my kids are going to be so weird! I'm very committed to that." During the event she could be seen portraying Tonks, in an elaborately detailed costume. Not that we would expect much less from her artsy self! |
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She has a BA of Studio Art from Notre Dame, and a MPS in Art Therapy from the School of Visual Arts. She is now working as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor. She is a magical addition to the volunteer decorations team, last year alone, she spent countless hours crafting all sorts of items for the headmasters office, including an amazing functional pensive that would blow your mind! Not only did she do a stellar job with the decorations crew last year, she is at it again this year and we can't wait to see what she creates next! |
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Cosplayer Spotlight: Jay McDougall |
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Did you just do a double-take? So did we! Please meet Jay McDougall. A 24 year old who hails from just south of Vancouver, Canada, in Tsawwasen, Delta, BC. The Wonderful weekend of Wizardry was truly honored to have him attend the Year One event in December of 2018, where he came dressed as none other than Newt Scamander! |
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Jay has been in the world of cosplay for about 6 years, creating around 30+ characters in that time. Sci-fi and fantasy are at the core of his creations, as those genres speak to his interests the most. Some of the characters he has portrayed are Rumplestiltskin from Once Upon a Time, Thranduil from The Hobbit, The Flash, Dr. Strange, Doctor 11 from Doctor Who, and countless others. He admits that Newt is his all time favorite to play. He does the character flawlessly due to his own nature being very similar to the character portrayed on film. |
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Not only does he match Newt perfectly, he is also the mastermind behind all of his own costumes. Spending hours and hours researching, crafting, and sewing the costumes himself. Through some pretty amazing connections, he has even acquired fabrics used in the film, which adds to the level of authenticity. He is self admittedly a perfectionist, especially when it comes to getting the costume details right, and it has paid off. He was given a shout out my none other than JK Rowling herself for his craft of “Picket” that was gifted to Eddie Redmayne during the World premier of Fantastic Beasts, where he was able to meet them both in a truly unforgettable experience! |
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As a constant convention-goer, Jay enjoys being able to interact with fans, especially younger ones. He feels that at a young age, magic is more alive in their spirits. His advice to anyone who has thought about entering the world of cosplay: “jump in and do it.” Through all the nervousness and worries, it is rewarding. After all, we just want to dress up as our favorite characters! We can’t wait to see who Jay creates next. He is itching to bring Neville to life, who he views as a great, yet underrated, character. You never know when a new character will be unveiled so be sure to follow him on his future exploits! Jay is anxiously waiting for Year 2 and hoping to see you all there! |
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Photo Credits: Seafoam Photography, Fearless Photoworks, Billy Wong, Geoectomy Photography |
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Cosplayer Spotlight: Eric Pope |
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Say hello to Eric Pope! He is a long time cosplayer who delighted the Weekend of Wizardry with his take on Hagrid! We sat down with Eric and learned that he was (and still is) a big Dungeons and Dragons player, which is where it all started! What began as a game obsession, turned into Live Action Role Playing (LARP-ing) and then evolved into doing cosplay! The characters he has portrayed are: Hagrid; Chewbacca, from Star Wars; The Hound, from Game of Thrones, and his own character named "Woton the Fairy Smasher." You may have even seen him at a Zombie flash mob! Eric is a frequent convention go-er and has taken home numerous prizes for his costumes. Aside from all of that, he loves to entertain the children. "I love to be the villain," says Eric. |
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He recalls magical moments of chasing children and fairies in an epic battle. His opponents will come out the victor every time in a plan to leave his audience with an ever-lasting memory. When he is not attending conventions and chasing fairies, he can be found in Anacortes, WA with his wife Erin. Eric may have been from the concrete jungle that is Orange County, CA but since moving as a child, Anacortes has always felt like home. His day-time job is working full time for Microsoft as a Software Engineer in Seattle and surrounding areas. Which makes his level of detail to his costuming all that much more impressive! He must have a bit of magic in him to fit time in to do it all. |
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With an hour and a half commute this leaves him plenty of time to perfect his personas for upcoming events. He listens to countless different YouTube videos and audio examples to fine tune his accents. In fact just to mimic Hagrid better, Eric listened to audio over and over again of Hagrid speaking. Eric admittedly has not read all of the books, but researched trivia to prepare himself for anything the kids may have asked him. "They quickly learned that I was the easy teacher (to get house points from)". He would give them tasks to complete like send them racing across the room and back to acquire points. Any aspiring cosplayers could learn a lot from him. His advice for anyone looking to start doing cosplay is to start watching videos and all other DIY info you can find. Understand the costs of materials and be honest with yourself about your timeline and your abilities to finish the look you ultimately want. Find local resources to help you, whether its commissioning pieces or borrowing their lab and equipment, and don't be afraid to hit the after Halloween sales to stock up! Build your tribe and network! Be on the look out for Eric at events all around as you can be sure he's off on "Another Costume Adventure!" |
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Think you know your stuff? Test your knowledge with these questions! NO CHEATING or you will loose house points! Come back to check your answers in the next issue! |
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- What family did the Dursley’s entertain during Harry’s second year?
- What gift did Dumbledore leave Ron in his will?
- What did Harry Potter use to save Ronald Weasley from being poisoned to death?
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The Weekend of WIzardry is presented by CMG Events Inc. a 501(c) non-profit company *Disclaimer.. As we do not want to be hauled off to Azkaban. The Weekend of Wizardry is an immersive Harry Potter fan convention, and this event is not endorsed by, affiliated with, sanctioned or in any other way associated with Warner Bros. Entertainment. J.K. Rowling or otherwise connected with Harry Potter or J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World of HARRY POTTER. Characters, names and related indicia are trademarks of Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Harry Potter Publishing Rights © JKR |
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