RadCon’s Masquerade is held Saturday night of the Convention. Please read the information below if you are intending to participate! Additional information can be requested from the Masquerade Department Head.
How to Enter: For those of you that would like to enter a costume into our LIVE masquerade this year, please sign up Saturday of Convention from 10am to 1pm.
- Items to include:
- Name
- Costume/Character Name
- Age
- Skill Category (Youth 12 & Under, Novice, Journeyman, Master)
- Genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Historical, Original Character, Book/Movie/Media, Anime, Current RadCon Theme
- A small paragraph about your costume (i.e. How long did it take to make? What's your favorite part of your Costume?..etc.)
- Photo Consent Form
- 6 pictures:
- Front
- Back
- Both Sides
- An Action Pose
- A Detailed Picture showcasing the best workmanship of your Costume.
- The only category not judged is Best In Show, awarded by consensus of the Judges Panel.
Entry deadline is Saturday of Convention by 1 pm. Judging will be conducted following 1pm. Winners announced Saturday of Convention at the conclusion of the Masquerade. The Masquerade Committee reserves the right to deny entry to anyone in violation of stated RadCon Guidelines, Rules, Eligibility & Policies.
Divisions:
To ensure that Entrants with limited experience do not compete with those Entrants with more experience, skill divisions have been established and are as follows:
- Youth 12 & Under: Costumers 12 years old and younger. This is our Children’s Masquerade. All young participants must have adult supervision.
- Novice: Costumers with little to no experience, first time performers and/or have only been on stage a few times, and anyone who has never won an award in a costume contest.
- Apprentice: Costumers with some costume making and/or stage experience, have entered costume contests before and may or may not have received an award, but have not progressed to the next skill division.
- Journeyman: Costumers with significant costume and/or stage experience. A winner of two “Best of Novice” awards competes as a Journeyman. Anyone winning “Best of Show” at a smaller convention should compete as a Journeyman at Radcon.
- Master: Skilled costumers with extensive experience, several awards, professional actors or persons who make their living making clothing or costumes compete as a Master/ Pro. If you have won “Best of Journeyman” twice, you should compete as a Master.
- Group Entries: the division should be that of the highest-ranking member of the group.
- For very large groups, please ask the Masquerade Director for assistance in choosing a division. Winning ‘Best of Show’ at any large regional convention moves a costumer up to the next skill division. Judges Choice awards or Workmanship awards do not count as best of class awards.
Judging:
There are two main areas of the Masquerade: Costume Judging (aka Workmanship) and Stage Competition.
- All entrants will have a Stage Presentation, either walk-on or skit.
- Presentations are limited to one minute.
- Presentation music or special narration can be pre-recorded on compact disc.
- For the Stage Competition, costumers will be judged on the effect of their costume as well as their stage presentation.
- For the Workmanship Competition, costumers will be judged on their skill in the construction of their costume.
- If you are recreating another costume from another source (anime, book covers, movie chars, etc.) please bring a copy picture of the source image.
- Workmanship judging is optional, and will be done before the stage competition (during tech rehearsals).
Tech Rehearsal:
Tech rehearsals & run-throughs will take place Saturday in the room that the masquerade will be held in. We want everyone to have the best possible presentation.
- Please expect that your time on-stage will be limited to no more than 1 minute so that everyone has an opportunity. Any interaction with the MC needs to be noted in the script you provide.
- If you want the MC to read a description of your costume, please write out exactly what you want the MC to read. A written pronunciation should be provided for any made-up or fantasy words.
- Please BE ON TIME and Come Prepared to your Tech Rehearsal.
- This means you need to have figured out your general presentation BEFORE you come to the Tech Rehearsal.
- Depending on the number of entrants, we may have limited time to spend with each costumer, and want to give each one our full attention.
Above all else, HAVE FUN! This is your time to shine and show off your hard work and dedication to your favorite thing!
Rules & Eligibility:
- All participants must be registered members of Radcon and be in good standing
- Participants must agree to read and follow all Radcon Masquerade rules and regulations
- By registering for the masquerade contest, all participants agree to allow Radcon to use their images for promotional purposes, including all photographs and video. A parental signature is required for participants under the age of 18.
General Information:
Radcon is a family friendly event. Content should not go beyond PG-13.
- No Offensive language of any kind will be tolerated.
- NO NUDITY – real or implied. All costumes must meet Radcon’s Dress Policy.
- No illegal weapons of any kind.
- All other weapons must be piece bonded and the participant must agree to adhere to Radcon’s Weapon Policy.
- For Safety Reasons, the following are not allowed:
- No Pyrotechnics or projectiles of any kind
- No live animals except service animals are permitted, outlined under United States ADA Policies
- No messy substances (wet, dry, oily, etc) that may damage another participant’s costume or hotel space, including the stage. You may be held liable for damages incurred to the hotel space.
- No jumping on or off the stage. Please use the official stage entrances and exits to mitigate risks of injuries.
- All costumes with electric power need to be self-contained. There will be no access to electrical outlets on stage.
- All Special Effects (ex. strobe lights, fog, etc.) must be approved by the Masquerade director prior to the masquerade. The Masquerade director reserves the right to deny requests due to safety concerns or building regulations.
- Surprise the audience, not the Masquerade staff. If you are planning something completely different, let us know well in advance. All information will be held in the strictest confidence.
Guidelines:
- Attendance at the Saturday afternoon rehearsal is mandatory. Come to your rehearsal prepared.
- Purchased or rented costumes, or costumes that have won Best in Show or Best in Class awards in a World Con or a Costume Con may not be judged for workmanship, but may be entered for stage presentation.
- All costumes must be finished prior to the tech rehearsal and judging. Final assembly of large costumes and props and or unexpected, emergency repairs will be allowed.
- No costume that has been judged in a prior year for workmanship may be judged again without a significant change. Only the new change to the costume will be judged.
- Entrants are presumed to be adults, or under the supervision of one. All judge’s decisions are final. Small children must be under the control of a responsible adult at all times.
- Don’t be a Pinhead! The Masquerade Director reserves the right to eliminate any entry from the competition on the basis of taste, danger to the audience, building or you.
Violation of any of the above Rules, Guidelines, or Policies may be deemed sufficient justification for dismissal from the Contest. There will be no appeal.