Masquerade

Dressing up in costumes to celebrate fandom has been a part of Worldcons ever since Morojo and Forrest J Ackerman wore costumes to the very first one in New York in 1939. The Chicon 8 Masquerade will offer a venue to show off your costumes with great lighting, sound, and the stage to display them to maximum effect. Whether you have never created a costume before or are considered in the Master class of costumers, this can be your opportunity to shine and present your creations (and recreations) to an appreciative fandom.

Masquerade photo
TASFIC: Walter Willis as Southern Fan, Lee Hoffman as Quandry (she printed her fanzine *Quandry* on her dress), and Max Keasler as a fan from Missouri. courtesy of fanac.org

Although awards will be given out for both workmanship of the costumes and the presentations, based on the experience level of the creators, the main goal of the Masquerade is for the entertainment of the audience and for appreciation of the time, efforts and creativity that go into making every costume. We encourage everyone to come and enjoy the Masquerade, whether as an entrant or as a member of the audience.

The Chicon 8 Masquerade

The Chicon 8 Masquerade will be held on Saturday, September 3, 2022 in the Grand Ballroom, starting at 8 p.m. As with previous Worldcon Masquerades, the show will start with the presentation of the entries. This will be followed by a very special “Half-Time Show” before the judges present the awards to the category winners, culminating with the overall “Best in Show”.

We are truly excited to have the Chicagoland Costumers’ Guild overseeing this year’s Event.

Please see the Masquerade Participation page for details of how to take part in the Chicon 8 Masquerade.

For the Half-Time show, Chicago based Professional dance troupe “Raks Geek” will entertain while the judges deliberate.  They delighted the audience during closing ceremony of last year’s Worldcon in Washington DC; Now they’re back at their hometown Worldcon with another signature performance.

Raks Geek