Fandom Fest will bring wizards, Pokemon, superheroes, mermaids and more to Chambersburg

A downtown-wide event celebrating cosplay, fantasy, sci-fi and all things fandom has been Brittany Shade's dream for a long time.

Next weekend, her dream will come close to reality when the first-ever Fandom Fest happens at Chambers Fort Park. Downtown Chambersburg Inc. and Downtown Business Council will host the event from noon to 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 22.

Shade, who creates costumes and accessories through her business Mirabella Took Creations, was involved in running a similar event in 2019. She had the insight the downtown organizations needed to pull off a bigger one.

"I know because I am part of this fandom community, if you will, that it’s a community that isn’t really catered to in our area. There is a huge opportunity to celebrate and give an outlet for this community of pop culture and that kind of thing.

"It's always been about celebrating and making a fun environment to embrace all of those things that make us unique."

Organizers called the event "Fandom Fest" to encompass a wide variety of fans, from Renaissance Faire-goers to Marvel movie lovers and everything in between.

"Basically everything from the typical comic books, princesses, superheroes. But also fantasy, and mythology."

There will also be a variety of vendors.

"There's literally going to be something for everyone, even if you don’t consider yourself a superfan," Shade said.

Fandom Fest activities and appearances

Guests will probably feel some nostalgia when they come across stories and characters from their childhood, Shade said. For example, from 1980s TV show "Knight Rider," the car K.I.T.T. will be at Fandom Fest.

Wonder Woman and her Invisible Plane will be there. So will live mermaids.

The "celebrity guest" will be Jeremy Ambler, who has become known from promoting his work as a zombie on "The Walking Dead."

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There will be opportunities to compete in fandom-inspired contests and games. Registration will be on-site.

Come dressed as your favorite character and take part in the cosplay contest. There will be categories for kids and adults, and the adult winner will get a cash prize.

In the Lego-building contest, participants will have a set time to build "the most amazing thing they can come up with," Shade said. The public will vote on the winner, who will get a cash prize.

There will also be a Pokemon scavenger hunt. Contestants will have an hour to find Pokemon (played by cosplayers) and battle them using the Pokemon Go app. Whoever battles the most Pokemon will win a prize from All Fun & Games.

Are you a Harry Potter fan? Find out if you're Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or Slytherin at the sorting ceremony.

For details about these and other activities, check out the Fandom Fest Facebook event page, bit.ly/41rnAbX.

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Happening Sunday: Spring Food Truck Fest

There will be another reason to come downtown this weekend.

Nearly 60 food and drink vendors will be set up around downtown Chambersburg for the Spring Food Truck Festival, 11 a.m. 4 p.m. Sunday, April 23.

There will also be live entertainment in various places. At Chambers Fort Park, Cameron Malloy will perform from noon to 2 p.m., and Lucky Punk will be on stage from 2 to 4 p.m. DJ Rello will be in Memorial Square starting at noon. In the second block of South Main Street, Devin Fields will perform noon to 2 p.m., followed by Beth Holland.

Downtown Chambersburg Inc. began hosting seasonal food truck festivals in 2020 to make up for fundraisers that couldn't take place due to COVID-19 restrictions. The events took off and have gotten bigger and better.

For a full list of vendors and other information on the Spring Food Truck Fest, visit the event page on Facebook, bit.ly/3mtavQR

Amber South can be reached at asouth@publicopinionnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Chambersburg Public Opinion: Fandom Fest to bring Harry Potter, Marvel, Pokemon to Chambersburg