All costumes entered must be either Original or
Recreation.
Original
costumes are designed by the contestant, although they may be inspired
by a fantasy, science fiction, or other source.
Recreation
costumes are those whose design is copied from a media or other source,
be it TV, film, art, illustration, comics, theatre. They may also be
recreated from a print description. Documentation of the original
source, showing at least one good view of the costume, or a print/prose
description by the designer/author, must be provided for judging.
(Bring paper copies only, no books or other media.)
II.
Skill Divisions
This masquerade will use the following skill division system:
Young Fan:
Any contestant aged 13 or younger who made their own costume, who is
not part of an adult group. All entries in a Young Fan group entry must
be 13 or younger.
Novice:
Any contestant who has not won more than two major awards, or Best in
Division, or Best in Show, in the Novice Division in international
competition. Any Young Fan contestant may elect to "compete
up" and
enter the Novice Division.
Journeyman:
Any contestant who has not won more than three major awards, or Best in
Division, or Best in Show, in the Journeyman Division in international
competition. Any Young Fan or Novice contestant may elect to "compete
up" and enter in the Journeyman Division.
Master:
Any contestant who has competed and won in the Master Division in an
international competition. Professional costumers must enter in the
Master Division. Any contestant may elect to “compete up” and enter in
the Master Division.
Group entries must enter in the skill division that their most
experienced member sorts into.
Young Fans wearing adult-made costumes must enter in the adult’s skill
division.
III.
Rules
These are the things you MUST pay attention to, as violating one of the
rules can and will make you ineligible for awards.
Remember, when in doubt, ask me! Don′t guess. I’d rather answer
questions now, because it sure beats tears and recriminations later.
All contestants must be registered attending members of
CC-27. This includes both designers and models.
No purchased or rented costumes may be entered in this
competition.
A costume may not be entered in this competition if it has
won a “Best in Show” at an ICG-recognized international competition. A
previous “Best in Division” winning costume may be entered only if it
can be entered one skill division level higher than its previous win.
This competition is rated PG-13, so no nudity, please. “No
costume is no costume” still applies.
No contestant may appear on stage more than once. Costumers
may enter more than one costume, but each must appear on a different
model. No “cameos” allowed, either.
Each entry will have no more than 60 seconds on stage. You
may certainly use less time, but no more than that without prior
approval.
No fire or open flame will be allowed on stage.
The “no peanut butter” rule applies: No messy substances –
wet, dry, sparkly, or oily – that might ruin another costume are
allowed on stage or in the Green Room.
No smoking in any Masquerade area.
No weapons will be allowed on stage that might endanger
anybody. Entrants may not display weapons without prior approval by the
Masq Director FIRST. Weapons display may be approved after proof of
safe display at rehearsal.
No special effects (flash bulbs, strobes, sparklers, etc.)
will be allowed on stage that might endanger anybody. Special effects
may be approved after safe display at rehearsal, provided they are
legal. In no case will a special effect be approved that leaves a mess
on the stage.
No flash photography will be allowed during the
competition. Please pose for your friends on stage after the contest,
or for our photographer while you are not on stage! Those caught taking
flash pictures during the contest will taken out back, killed, spiced
with Old Bay, and eaten. Seriously.
Hall costumes worn around the convention before the
masquerade are ineligible to enter this competition.
Since there will be no live or pickup mikes on stage, you
should pre-record your dialogue (if any) and background music. You may
also submit text for the MC to read before, during, or after your
entry. All of this background content may be vetted before approval to
ensure we stick to our PG-13 rating.
Rehearsal is required. Sign up for a rehearsal slot on site
at the convention before rehearsals are scheduled to start.
Entry numbers will be given out in the Green Room. You must
be in line and ready to go on stage when your entry number is called.
If you miss your call, your entry may be dropped.
Entries must be able to go on and off stage with only
minimal help from stage ninjas and within a reasonable amount of time.
The Masquerade Director requires real names to be supplied
on entry forms. These real names must match the ones you used to
register for the convention. State-issued picture IDs may be checked at
random. Remember, you can always ask the MC to announce nicknames.
No exceptions will be made to these rules without advance
approval by the Masquerade Director.
Do NOT
surprise the Masquerade Director or crew! Let us in on what you have
planned, and trust us to keep the surprise from the audience until
you’re ready to unveil it.
IV.
Other Stuff and Pointers
Sound: We
plan on accepting both CDs and MP3s. If you use CDs, be sure that they
are CD-R type, that your dialogue/music is recorded on track #1, and
that it is the ONLY track on the CD. When in doubt, bring extras,
including extra blank media.
Lights: No
details yet. Do not plan on anything more complicated than color
washes, fade in/outs, and spotlights.
Power:
Don’t plan on having access to power cords/plugs on stage.
Stage access:
Plan on using stairs with non-removable handrails to enter/exit the
stage. Do NOT plan on using a ramp, as one will probably not be
available.
V.
Workmanship Judging
Workmanship judging is strictly optional, but encouraged. Your entire
costume need not be judged; you can (and many do!) submit just one part
of it for judging. For example, you may present just one prop, or a
headdress, or all the beading.
If you think you may want workmanship judging, please check the YES box
on your entry form. If you’re sure you won’t, please check NO. This
will help us schedule our judges’ time better, to ensure everybody’s
work gets a fair viewing.
VI.
Entry Forms
This year, we’re providing online pre-reg via our website! The exact
same online entry form will be available at-con for on site
registration. (Webmaster: the link will be posted when the
system is finalized.)