May 13, 2021
Local Summer Cosplay: Times of Future Past
We may not be able to attend an in-person indoor convention for a while due to Kitsune Kon and Daisho Con canceling their events this year. However, we can still attend Times of Future Past, an outdoor cosplay festival in Kewaunee, on June 26th and 27th. One day is $12 for adults, $6 for children. Buy your tickets before May 31st to get a discount.
To get more information, The Driftwood interviewed Lynne Melssen, producer of Times of Future Past, which is put on by Rose, Sword, and Thistle Productions. Meissen sent back written responses to our questions:
The Driftwood/Angel: Where will the event be held and when?
Lynne Melssen: Times of Future Past will open on Saturday and Sunday, June 26 & 27, 2021 from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. at Winter Park in Kewaunee, Wisconsin.
The Driftwood/Angel: Who is producing the event?
Lynne Melssen: Lynne Melssen and April Roy are co-producers of the event through Rose, Sword, and Thistle Productions in Green Bay, WI. The event concept came from Lynne Melssen and Times of Future Past. It was originally produced for two years in central Iowa.
The Driftwood/Angel: What type of panels will be at the event?
Lynne Melssen: There will be a Cosplay/Costuming Panel, and patrons will also be able to learn how to play the game of Quidditch, with the Chicago Youth Quidditch organization.
The Driftwood/Angel: Can you tell us about the costume contest?
Lynne Melssen: The Costume Contest will be held both days of the event. There are two categories for the contest, Historic/Steampunk and Fantasy/Sci Fi/Anime. Prizes will be awarded for the best Men’s, Women’s and Couples costume in both categories. A Grand Prize will be awarded to the best overall costume for each day. We have three costume judges—Kaoime Malloy, Professor of Costuming and Make-up at the University of Wisconsin/GreenBay; Molly Hruska Ketchum, Board Secretary of the Iowa steampunk organization, The Brassgears Adventurer’s Society, and amateur community theatre costumer; and Cheri Ratz, costume hobbyist and former Assistant Fight Captain at the Renaissance Faire at Sleepy Hollow.
The Driftwood/Angel: What’s the history behind the event?
Lynne Melssen: Times of Future Past was inspired by a 2014 tour of the historic Masonic Temple in downtown Dubuque Iowa. The building was built in the 1930s and included a theatre, a feasting hall, a pool room, a ladies’ salon, a gentlemen’s study, a reception hall, and more. I began imagining Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice smoking a cigar while playing billiards, a Shakespeare play being produced in the theatre, a Madrigal Dinner being held in the Feast Hall, a Suffragette discussing Votes for Women in the salon, Thomas Edison discussing his inventions in the study, and people learning to dance the Charleston in the reception hall.
I started thinking about creating an outdoor event with a mixture of historic figures and fantasy characters from across time and style genres. Strolling characters such as Abraham Lincoln and Commander Data can be found speaking with Eleanor Roosevelt and Agent Peggy Carter.The fun is that EVERYTHING is possible, all in one location! The event first opened in Iowa in 2015, and after losing our venue, the decision was made to move the event to NE Wisconsin.The Dana Farm/Winter Park seems like a perfect fit.
The Driftwood/Angel: Is there anything else we should know?
Lynne Melssen: Patrons will see Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Thomas Edison on stage. Edison will be demonstrating and making voice recordings with his Cylinder Machine invention. We have Dave Rambow, Site Directorfor the H.H. Bennett Studio & Museum at Wisconsin Historical Society taking and developing tintype photographs. Studio 12 students will be performing as well, and Sir John Falstaff, Shakespeare’s “favorite” character, will talk about what the Bard was REALLY like. In the lanes, we have a WWII couple, Captain American and Agent Peggy Carter; Spider-Man; a gender-switched Lt. Commander Data; Link from Legends of Zelda; Crooner Windsong, a 1960’s hippy; the Satyr, Farrow the Wanderer; Arthur, King of the Britons; Naughty Zoot from Monty Python fame; and more.
We encourage cosplay lovers to come try your hand at axe throwing; enjoy a cold soft drink; visit the Old Knight’s Tavern for a beer; hard lemonade or mead; visit Mona Rose Winery to sample the fruit of the vine; and check out our Artisan Marketplace with more than 40 vendors selling treasures from around the world, across time, or across the universe. Come as your favorite character! Everyone is welcome!
NOTE: Due to a hectic semester, I haven’t been able to finish Rainbow Dash and Iron Man yet. My plans are to have these costumes finished before Times of Future Past so they can be worn to the event. You can look forward to pictures of the finished products in the first Driftwood next fall.
The UWGB Pride Center has made two $900 scholarships available for two students at any of the four UWGB campuses who show leadership or potential for leadership in LGBTQ+ advocacy. The application is due May 27, 2021 at midnight via e-mail to 
NWTC-Marinette and the UW-Green Bay, Marinette Campus are proud to feature student Eric Wojtalewicz, who has completed courses at both institutions.
In honor of the recent release of his latest single (“Imagine,” which I highly recommend), I have rediscovered my love for Ben Platt. Best known for his Broadway career, starring in musicals like Dear Evan Hansen, as well as his turn as Anna Kendrick’s love interest in Pitch Perfect, Platt released his debut album Sing to Me Instead in 2019. The album pays tribute to the Broadway part of his life and features a lot of dramatic runs and is very piano-heavy. It’s easy to listen to and invokes a lot of emotions from listeners. “Grow as We Go” is a particularly emotional track and has even gained some popularity on TikTok recently—and for a good reason. The song shows off Platt’s range as an artist, proving that he can not only belt those Broadway-esque high notes, but is also comfortable in his lower register, singing softly about a partner he wants to grow old with.
Looking for an album with those chill summer vibes and that ’70s psychedelic rock guitar? Maybe not, but you should still give Wish You Were Here a listen. As with most of Pink Floyd’s albums, the songs are placed in an order that serves a purpose, as each song has a smooth and effortless transition into the next one. The instrumentals alone are enough to make you appreciate the work the band puts into the quality of their songs. The album was written primarily by Roger Waters after founding band member Syd Barrett left the band due to rapidly declining mental health. Waters missed his friend and came up with the premise for the album and the title song, “Wish You Were Here,” because he was inspired by those feelings of loss, as well as the anxiety and depression that emerged within each of the band members due to their new rise to fame.
Women’s Volleyball: Coach Dan Porath, porathd@uwgb.edu.
Men’s Basketball: Coach Bryan Wickstrom, wickstrb@uwgb.edu
This weekend (April 29 – May 2), set aside some time to view The Laramie Project, the latest from the UWGB Theatre department. This is a full production, staged and filmed, then streamed via Zoom. While tickets are free, you will need to reserve one to receive the streaming link. Each ticket is good for one viewing only.
Join us on Wednesday, May 12th to celebrate the launch of the 2021 
The UWGB main campus will be launching the spring 2021 issue of Sheepshead Review on Monday, May 3 at 1 p.m. This virtual launch party event will also honor English department Professor Sarah Schuetze, who passed away unexpected last January.
The Twilight Series: Even if you’ve never read the books or seen the movies, chances are high that you still have a pretty good idea as to what the infamous Twilight saga is all about. Based on the novels written by Stephenie Meyer back in the mid-to-late 2000s, this five-film series follows human high-schooler Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) who, after moving in with her father in a small Washington town called Forks, falls for her enigmatic and enchanting classmate, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). But he has a big secret, one that Bella quickly unravels: he’s actually a vampire. Both know a relationship would be dangerous and forbidden, but they just can’t help the magnetic connection drawing them together. Then there’s Jacob (Taylor Lautner), Bella’s handsome friend and confidante, who’s actually a werewolf and also in love with her. That’s only the most basic of plot points, but I don’t want to give too much away! Just trust me when I say that Twilight is jam-packed with all the best elements of a guilty-pleasure movie series: forbidden relationships, wicked adversaries, epic battles, contentious love-triangles, and loads of suspense and angsty teenage drama. So, whether you’re an eternal Twilight saga stan, totally new to the franchise, or just haven’t seen the films in a while, my advice is the same: it’s time for you to carve out a day or two in your busy schedule to marathon-binge one of Gen Z’s biggest cult-classics! Available on Hulu and to rent on other streaming services. 
The Indiana Jones Series: Binge-watching may be a guilty pleasure, but honestly, the Indiana Jones series is zero guilt, all fun for me. The first movie, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, takes place on the eve of WWII and introduces us to Dr. Indiana Jones, a mild-mannered college archaeology professor who occasionally dons a fedora, a whip, and a shirt that won’t button all the way up to swashbuckle his way around the world in search of treasure.
Raiders is the best of the quadrilogy, with the third movie in the series, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, taking a close second. The next film, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, is marred by a cliched portrayal of a cannibalistic cult in India, as well as the incessant screaming of love interest Willie Scott, a far cry from tough-as-nails Marion. The fourth film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, suffers from a terrible script, a lack of Nazis, and Shia LaBoeuf, though the return of Karen Allen’s Marion Ravenwood makes it worth at least one watch. Binge it all now, as rumor has it Harrison Ford is about to don the famous fedora for a fifth outing as one of my two favorite action heroes from the 1980s. (The other? Han Solo, of course!) Available on Paramount+ and to rent on various streaming services. 
Kim Possible Movie: So the Drama: Kim Possible and her best friend, Ron Stoppable, are an unstoppable pair when it comes to their crime-fighting and life-saving missions, working in comedic and entertaining sync; however, when it comes to their social lives in school, Kim becomes embarrassed with Ron’s goofy nature and her lack of a boyfriend. Ron is her best friend, but she can’t help but be humiliated any time someone implies they date. Finally, Kim meets the new kid at school, Erik, and is head over heels instantly. The two quickly develop a relationship, and Ron becomes jealous as he is edged out of Kim’s life.
Voltron: Defender of the Universe: In 1984, World Events Productions released the first episode of an anime-ish cartoon—a mashup of two series by Japan’s Toei Entertainment—that would take America’s permed mullets by storm. The premise of Voltron: Defender of the Universe was fresh and fun: Five space explorers are sent from Earth to the planet Arus to bring back Voltron, a mighty robot that, as the legend went, had once brought peace to the galaxy. With a new threat looming from a villain named King Zarkon, the Earth explorers know that Voltron may be the galaxy’s last hope.
Phineas and Ferb: Step-brothers Phineas and Ferb will stop at nothing to ensure that every day of their summer vacation is a blast. In each episode, the duo and their friends cook up a new, elaborate scheme involving some sort of insanely outlandish or ostensibly dangerous project, like assembling the world’s tallest building, crafting a giant roller coaster in their backyard, inventing a time machine, fighting evil zombies, becoming rock stars, or befriending aliens during a trip to outer space. The boys’ older sister, Candace, tries desperately to “bust” them by exposing their crazy antics to their mother, but much to Candace’s chagrin, she always seems to fail. Meanwhile, the family’s pet platypus, Perry, who doubles as a secret agent, must inevitably sneak off to battle with the show’s evil but somewhat endearing villain, Dr. Doofenshmirtz, and foil his nefarious plans. Although it’s best known as a popular Disney Channel sitcom, Phineas and Ferb’s comedic style and head-shakingly humorous storylines make it an enjoyable watch for both children and adults alike! Yes, the show is totally stupid, wildly unrealistic, and utterly ridiculous… but it’s one of those where you just can’t help but smile, laugh, and keep clicking “Next episode.” Available on Disney+.