ASHLAND — Fans of animation, comic books, and gaming are gathering in Ashland April 26 through 28 for this year’s Gojotekicon at the Holiday Inn.
This year’s event features a wide variety of activities such as karaoke, live music, dance performances, gaming, comedy acts, workshops, panels and more. There will also be musical guests from Japan performing throughout the duration of the weekend.
Although many activities take place inside the convention room, there will be events available outside; one of the most notable being LARPing.
LARPing stands for “Live Action Role Playing” and Gojotekicon has about an acre of land dedicated for some epic battles to take place.
Ken and Nicole Reeder, Convention Chairs at Gojotekicon, said they originally started the event because they noticed a demand for something like this in the area. But Ashland didn’t offer it to the community.
“The word ‘Gojoteki’ comes from the Japanese word for ‘friendly,’ and Ashland is the world headquarters for nice people, so that’s where we got the name,” Ken Reeder said. “We do try to be as inclusive and friendly as possible.
“We really try to foster an atmosphere of respect and try to make everyone comfortable so they can have a good time.”
Gojotekicon attracts members of different fandoms from all around Ashland County and the surrounding areas. They’ve averaged between 250 and 300 attendees the first two years this event took place.
“We’ve had a very strong response both locally and regionally,” Reeder said. “We get a lot of attendees from places like Chicago, New York, the Carolinas.
“Everyone seems to enjoy it.”
Gojotekicon also offers a bazaar of 20 vendors selling a variety of unique wares from several different fandoms. The event is for all ages and lasts until Sunday, April 28 at 6 p.m.
“We try to make it very family friendly during the day and then at night we have some programming geared towards the adult crowd,” Reeder stated.
Pre-registration for Gojotekicon is available online until April 15th. Attendees can also register at the door of the event.
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