"Ascendio is a symposium for fans and academics interested in the Harry Potter books. It will take place July 12-15 at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando® – just moments away from Universal’s Islands of Adventure®, and its latest attraction, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It is HP Education Fanon, Inc.’s eighth symposium in nine years.
Ascendio’s formal programming encompasses both academic and fannish presentations, and is centered around the theme of flight: owls in flight, the flight of the Prince, flights of fancy, flight in a Quidditch match. (Don’t worry – there’s also plenty of opportunity to analyze the symbolism of the books, to debate shipping, and to teach and learn wizarding crafts!)
We’ll also have chances for you to meet up with people who share your fannish interests, explore the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and dance the night away to both Muggle and magical tunes.
Our goal is to hold a con where all kinds of Harry Potter enthusiasts can come together – no matter where their interests lie.
Never been to a Harry Potter convention before? Want to know what this whole Ascendio dealio entails? Consider this your one-stop primer to our event! The short version? Ascendio is going to be four days of non-stop Harry Potter fun! Approximately 1,000 Harry Potter fans will converge on Orlando from July 11-15 to celebrate the novels we love, the films that entertain us and all the fannish things that have been inspired by the Harry Potter series.
Ascendio is, at heart, an academic conference, meaning two of the days will feature a “Formal Programming” schedule of presentations, panels, workshops and roundtables. All of Ascendio’s content is by the fans, for the fans, though many of our presenters are academics, media personalities and “fandom celebrities.” The formal programming schedule runs the gamut, from academic discussions of Harry Potter’s Christian themes, to roundtable discussions of HP couples (or “ships”!), to workshops where you can learn to knit a House scarf or steampunk your wand.
Plus we have an entire track dedicated to YA, book publishing and writing! So if you’re not only a Harry Potter fan but also love The Hunger Games, Divergent, Twilight, The Mortal Instruments, etc. and/or you are writing your own novel, the Quill Track is for you! So far we’ve got authors Lev Grossman, Beth Revis, Aimee Carter and Veronica Roth signed up, plus three literary agents and more to come!
Everything else is generally dubbed “Informal Programming,” and it literally covers *everything else*. Ascendio will play host to a number of fun events, including:
- Quidditch, hosted by the International Quidditch Association (IQA)!
- An exclusive event in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
- A musical revue & variety show (featuring music that has been inspired by HP throughout the years, include some WizardRock and tunes from the movies)
- Fan-written musicals premiering at Ascendio
- Team StarKid panels, meet & greet, autograph signings and special screenings
- A whole day of Wrock concerts
- A fashion show, where costumers can show off their threads
- Fan meet-ups of every kind, from shippers to doll enthusiasts!
- Fanfiction readings
- Author readings and signings
- and more!
Like our past events, Ascendio will play host to a number of special guests. Thus far, we have confirmed that MarkReads, The Hillywood Show, Team Starkid and novelists Beth Revis, Lev Grossman, Aimee Carter and Veronica Roth will be in attendance, as will Chris Rankin – this will be his fourth HPEF con. Generally speaking, actors like Dan, Emma and Rupert have not attended fan conferences, but we are considering many possible “celebrity” guests for Ascendio, and will be announcing them as details are firmed up!
How much does this cost, and how do you sign up? The general registration rate is $225. A Full Registration includes most of the above events and excitements, except for the WWoHP park event. The park event comes with an additional ticket cost, as so many of our “shows,” such as the Wand by Wand Revue. For more information, check out our registration page!
Don’t know anyone going? Don’t worry! Harry Potter conferences are a fantastic place to meet other HP fans, and make new friends. If you want to connect with other attendees before the con, we have many spaces across the web where you can socialize, including:
Who are we? Ascendio is being put on by Harry Potter Education Fanon (HPEF), which has previously put on seven Harry Potter conferences, namely: Infinitus, Azkatraz, Portus, Prophecy, Lumos, The Witching Hour and Nimbus – 2003 . We’re very excited for Ascendio, and hope to see a lot of new faces!"
Night of a Thousand Wizards 2
After-hours Event in the WWOHP
After-hours Event in the WWOHP
"SQUEE! We’re going back to the Wizarding World!
Join a thousand of your friends and fellow Harry Potter fans for Night of a Thousand Wizards 2, HPEF’s next exclusive, after-hours event at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter® at Universal Studios, Orlando.
Click here to jump to our registration portal & buy your ticket!
NoaTW 2 will take place the evening of Thursday, July 12th in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, starting at 8 p.m. and running until 1 a.m. Friday morning. Fans will enjoy seeing – and being photographed in front of – Hogwarts castle lit up into the wee hours of the morning, gallivanting through Hogsmeade™ in full costume* (a privilege extended exclusively to our event!) and zipping through lines for The Forbidden Journey, Dueling Dragons and more!
Each NoaTW 2 ticketholder will get a voucher for dinner that can be used between 8 and 10 p.m., and after 10, we’ll be featuring an extensive menu of dessert and beverages on the streets of Hogsmeade – and they’re included with your NoaTW 2 ticket! We’ll have a a DJ spinning music, lashings of Butterbeer, podcasts and more!
And there’s more! We’re having a charity auction – the winning bidder will get to skip the line for one of the Wizarding World rides and fly on a charmed bench, Hippogryff or dragon with Chris Rankin, Andrew Slack, MarkReads and other well-known fandomers!
A portion of each ticket for NoaTW 2 will go towards two inspirational fan organizations – the HP Alliance and the International Quidditch Association (IQA). So not only will you enjoy a unique park experience, but a percentage of your ticket will go towards supporting groups that delight, inform and help others, all in the name of Harry Potter!
If you already have a Full registration you can get a ticket for NoaTW 2 now! The price is $140 for all Ascendio registrants.
NoaTW 2 tickets are also now available to non-registrant friends and family of Ascendio registrants for $155.
And remember, those with Merlin’s Circle registrations don’t need to spend anything extra to get a NoaTW 2 ticket – it’s already included with each MC registration.
Please note, Muggles and regular Park attendees will be allowed to remain in the WWoHP until 10 PM, while NoaTW 2 attendees can remain in the Wizarding World until 1 AM.
But we know what you want to know — where can you buy your ticket?! Click here to jump to our registration portal!"
Preliminary Schedule
(As of 4/4/12 – Dates and times subject to changes)
(As of 4/4/12 – Dates and times subject to changes)
Thursday, July 12
10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ................Registration Open
Noon – 6:00 p.m. ........................Wrock Day event
2:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m....................Quill Track - Authorpalooza (Check final schedule for authors & times)
8:00 p.m. – 1:00 a.m. ..................Night of a Thousand Wizards 2
Friday, July 13
9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ..................Registration Open (break from 10:30-11:00)
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. ...............Welcome Feast
11:00 a.m. – 5:30 pm. ..................Quill Track Events
11:00 a.m. – ...............................Formal Programming
2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.....................Craft Faire
7:30 p.m. – 10:00 pm....................Mischief Managed, the Musical
11:00 p.m. – 1:00 a.m. .................StarKid Video with Live Commentary
Saturday, July 14
9:00 a.m. – noon. .......................Registration Open
2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ..................Registration Open
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. ..................Quill Track Events
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. ..................Formal Programming
9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. ..................Art Gallery Open
12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. ................Key Note Luncheon - Generation Potter: 15 Years Later
2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m....................Team StarKid Meet & Greet
5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m....................Wands by Wands by Wizards Musical Revue
7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m....................Fashion Show
9:30 p.m. – 1:00 a.m. ..................To the Manor Ball
Sunday, July 15
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. ...............Leaving Feast
11:30 a.m. .................................Auction
Anyone here thinking of attending this event? I would love to but I'm travelling elsewhere when this is being held. The after-hours event in WWOHP especially sounds exciting, as well as the attendance of the Hillywood Show cast. Their YouTube parodies are hysterical!
*There was no press release materials as far as I could see so I simply compiled some overall info from the organizer's site.
