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Cosplay, comics, and competition coming to Culpeper

Andrew DeNicola, Culpeper County Library's adult services librarian and outreach coordinator, presents a cosplay contestant with the grand prize in 2023.
Culpeper County Library
Andrew DeNicola, Culpeper County Library's adult services librarian and outreach coordinator, presents a cosplay contestant with the grand prize in 2023.

The second annual CulpeperCon begins this Friday, March 22nd. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports.

CulpeperCon is a celebration of graphic novels, fandom, and pop culture taking place at the county library this weekend.

ANDREW DENICOLA: So first off, on Friday night, March 22nd, we will be having a cosplay contest and runway. That will have an emcee. There will be plenty of prizes, including, every contestant will have their picture taken by a professional cosplay photographer.

Andrew DeNicola is the adult services librarian & outreach coordinator.

DENICOLA: I will be dressed up as Dr. Strange, which is mildly ironic, because Dr. Strange learned all of his superpowers from a library.

Saturday morning kicks off with keynote speaker Zach Weinersmith, author and artist of the long-running webcomic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. Then, panels, workshops, kids' activities, and Magic the Gathering showdowns take over the library. There will also be local nonprofits present, accompanied by artwork of superheroes the library helped them invent.

DENICOLA: We went to the NAACP last year. I was talking with their education coordinator … and they created 'The Equitizer.' … Aging Together, a great organization that supports Culpeper and the surrounding counties, and they created the character, 'The Supreme Sage' to dispel the myths and dispel the ignorance of the process of aging.

The event is free and family-friendly. For a full schedule of activities, visit their website at culpepercon.org.

Randi B. Hagi first joined the WMRA team in 2019 as a freelance reporter. Her work has been featured on NPR and other NPR member stations; in The Harrisonburg Citizen, where she previously served as the assistant editor;The Mennonite; Mennonite World Review; and Eastern Mennonite University's Crossroads magazine.