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.