This is a busy weekend for the southeast and Alabama! Other than all of the Easter related events going on, there are several geeky/nerdy events happening!
Yuri’s Night Huntsville
First up, is Yuri’s Night Huntsville 2014, which is happening on Saturday April 19th, one week late from the parties last weekend. Yuri’s Night is a global celebration of humanity’s past, present, and future in space. Yuri’s Night parties and events are held around the world every April in commemoration of April 12, 1961, the day of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s first manned spaceflight, and April 12, 1981, the inaugural launch of NASA’s Space Shuttle.
Yuri’s Night events combine space-themed partying with education and outreach. These events can range from an all-night mix of techno and technology at a NASA Center, to a movie showing and stargazing at your local college, to a gathering of friends at a bar or barbecue. Last Saturday, over 1,000 Yuri’s night parties were happening in locations around the world, and one party even took place in the South Pole! In Huntsville Alabama, Yuri’s Night Huntsville takes place on Saturday April 19th from 8:30 pm to 2 am. The party will be at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s Davidson Center for Space Exploration.
The party is open to all ages and is family friendly. From 6-8 pm, the party will be a kid and family friendly event. The party will have an inflatable moon bounce, cotton candy, costume contest, music, and other kid-friendly activities. After 8 pm, the party transforms into an adult party. The adult costume party will have several cash bars, a red carpet entrance with photos, DJ from Sullivan Productions, three projection screens for music videos, costume contest, laser lights, Yuri’s night dancers, Dance Shadowbox, and more.
Costumes are not required for this event, but you are encouraged to dress up. And a film company out of Birmingham will be filming this event. All proceeds collected from the event support the Court Appointed Juvenile Advocates of Madison County, who work to better the lives of abused, neglected, and abandoned children, giving them the opportunity to grow up dreaming big dreams like all other children. Each ticket is $10, and you will have a good time! To learn more about Yuri’s Night Huntsville and to purchase tickets go to: http://www.spaceparty.info/
Middle Tennessee Anime Convention 2014
This weekend in Nashville is also the 2014 Middle Tennessee Anime Convention! This year, MTAC is at a new location at the The Embassy Suites Nashville SE in Murfreesboro. This year’s theme is MTAC in Love, and there is plenty to love at this convention! First off, some of the main events you see every year at MTAC are back. The con will have a cosplay contest, anime music video contest, “Can You Feel The Dub Tonight?” Rave, Fireside Chat where you can express your likes and dislikes with the staff, movie showing of HK: Forbidden Superhero, Love Serenade Ball, opening and closing ceremonies, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel, and a ramen noodle eating contest, yummy!
Some of the guests at MTAC 2014 includes Vic Mignogna who voices several Japanese anime shows, voice actor Dan Green, recording artist Chii Sakurabi from Japan, voice actor Marianne Miller, cosplayer Vedetta Marie, singer/songwriter Eric Stuart, visual artist Pete Ellison, stage performers Samurai Dan and Jillian Coglan, author Samantha Inoue-harte, and Martin “LittleKuriboh” Billany. There are also numerous tracks you can follow, like chibi, otaku, culture, gaming, art, and music. And there will be plenty of vendors, people in costume, and more! MTAC had close to 10,000 attendees last year, and they are predicting around 10,000 this year!
MTAC is from the folks at ArtsCubed, which is a Nashville-based not-for-profit corporation. The mission of ArtsCubed is to advance popular visual, performing and literary arts – along with related cultural experiences central to the lives of the community – through events, outreach, education and associated initiatives. Current events include MTAC, Geek Media Expo (GMX), and the Nashville Zombie Walk. ArtsCubed is operated entirely by a volunteer staff. MTAC 2014 is from April 18-20. To learn more about the event go to: http://mtac.net/
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