Phoenix Rising announces guests of honor, keynote ticket sales

[Kayla Castille]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Aug. 9, 2006

Contact: Kayla Castille, kayla at ...


TICKETS TO PHOENIX RISINGS KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS AND SPECIAL EVENTS ON
SALE NOW

NEW ORLEANS  Take a journey through the history of the Harry Potter
fandom after taking a stroll through the Aquarium of the Americas. Or
learn how the Potter novels are transformed into audiobooks, video games
or film scores, from the experts on the front lines. Play in a
professional triple-elimination Quidditch tournament on the banks of the
Mississippi River. And then snuggle up in your squashy, purple sleeping
bag to watch the Harry Potter movies with all your friends.

Phoenix Rising is thrilled to announce its Guests of Honor, who will
present at the keynote presentations, as well as several events. The
Guests of Honor include: Danny Bilson, Vice President of Intellectual
Property Development at Electronic Arts, who worked with J. K. Rowling on
developing the Harry Potter video games; Tim Ditlow, Vice President of
Random House for Listening Library, who produced the Harry Potter
audiobooks and works closely with Jim Dale; Jon Burligame, a renowned film
scoring professor and journalist; Dr. Anne Hiebert Alton, an English
professor with a focus in childrens and Victorian literature; Henry
Jenkins, premier fandom scholar; and fandom members Melissa Anelli of The
Leaky Cauldron, Heidi Tandy of FictionAlley, and Ebony Thomas, formerly of
Harry Potter for Grown-Ups and pumpkinpie.org.

The chance to hear these guests and more is available now as tickets to
Phoenix Risings keynote presentations and special events go on sale
today. Phoenix Rising, a Harry Potter conference, will be held May 17-21,
2007, in New Orleans.

Keynote and event tickets can be purchased through the online registration
system at http://www.thephoenixrises.org/registration/. Those who are
already registered for the conference can buy tickets through the Change
My Registration feature, and those who have not registered must do so
before buying tickets. Attendees can buy extra tickets to two events for
guests not registered for Phoenix Rising  Storyville, a revival of New
Orleans historic jazz district, complete with Cajun food and the largest
balcony on Bourbon Street; and Transformation: From Fan to Fandom, a panel
discussion with fandoms founders following a walking dinner in the
Aquarium of Americas.

The add-on options include:

SPECIAL EVENTS

STORYVILLE: $30
Friday night, Phoenix Rising's attendees will take to Bourbon Street,
dining on classic Cajun food and dancing to the rhythm of New Orleans
jazz. Phoenix Rising will  at the Bourbon Vieux, Cajun Cabin and Five
O'Clock Grille  revive Storyville, New Orleans' legendary red light
district, which incubated "jass" in its infancy. Dinner will be served,
the blues will be lowdown and mean, and those with tickets will interact
with the crush of New Orleans from the largest balcony on Bourbon Street.

Ticket-holders will be given wristbands, so they may leave, wander the
French Quarter, and return. A traditional Cajun dinner is included with
the ticket price, and each ticket holder will receive one drink coupon as
well.

RIVERSIDE QUIDDITCH CLASSIC: $30
It has thrilled Quidditch fans for years, and has a history to challenge
any other Quidditch tournament in the world  and in 2007, the Bayou
Quidditch League will hold the Riverside Quidditch Classic as part of
Phoenix Rising. Tournament play will involve a triple-elimination series
on the banks of the Mississippi River in the French Quarter. Phoenix
Rising will feature House Quidditch play as well, which is included with
the price of registration; you may choose that option later during the
registration process.

Tournament fee includes placement on a "professional" Quidditch team, a
jersey with your name and number, participation in the triple-elimination
Riverside Quidditch Classic, and snacks, sports drinks and water.

SQUASHY PURPLE SLEEPING BAG MOVIE NIGHT: $25 for sleeping bag
Each night of Phoenix Rising, Headmistress Vicky Dann will present on one
of the Harry Potter films, and then screen the film for attendees. Both
the presentations and the films are included in the basic registration for
Phoenix Rising. You do not need to purchase an additional ticket in order
to attend.

In grand Harry Potter tradition, however, you may wish to purchase a
purple, squashy sleeping bag for use during the Movie Nights.

KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS

TRANSFORMATION: FROM TEXT TO TECHNOLOGY: $40
Danny Bilson will present on the development and production of the Harry
Potter video games by Electronic Arts, including his work with J. K.
Rowling on their creation. He is Vice President of Intellectual Property
Development for Electronic Arts; a Hollywood writer, director, and
producer; and an instructor for the Interactive Media program in the
University of Southern California's School of Cinema-Television.

TRANSFORMATION: FROM INFLUENCE TO INSPIRATION: $20
Dr. Anne Hiebert Alton, professor of English at Central Michigan
University and expert in children's, fantasy, and Victorian literature,
will present on the various genres that have influenced the Harry Potter
series, from folk tales to pulp fiction. Before the lecture, attendees
have private access to New Orleans' Muse Conti Wax Museum, which features
historical exhibits and a "haunted dungeon." Cash bars will be available.

TRANSFORMATION: FROM BOOK TO AUDIOBOOK: $40
Tim Ditlow, vice-president and publisher of Listening Library for Random
House, and the producer of many children's and young adult audiobooks 
including the best-selling, award-winning Harry Potter series  will
present on the connection between listening and literacy, the founding of
Listening Library, and how our understanding of J. K. Rowling's text is
transformed and enhanced through Jim Dale's performance.

TRANSFORMATION: FROM FAN TO FANDOM: $55
World-renowned fandom and media studies academic Henry Jenkins will
partner with founders of the Harry Potter fandom on this panel, including
Melissa Anelli of The Leaky Cauldron, Heidi Tandy of FictionAlley, and
Ebony Thomas, formerly of pumpkinpie.org and Harry Potter for Grown-ups.
The panel will discuss, from both academic and practical viewpoints, how
an individual fan experience is turned into a collective fandom experience
through the growth of online fan communities. This presentation includes
admission to the Aquarium of the Americas, and a unique "walking dinner"
will be served as attendees tour the Aquarium's exhibits.

TRANFORMATION: FROM SCREENPLAY TO FILM SCORE: $40
As part of a traditional New Orleans jazz brunch, attendees can hear from
Jon Burlingame, film scoring professor at the University of Southern
California; writer for Variety, the Los Angeles Times, and Premiere, among
other publications; and curator of the world's first museum exhibit on
film scoring. Mr. Burlingame will speak about John Williams' film scores
and how they impact the entirety of the films.

More details on the keynote presentations and special events, including
menus, are available at
http://www.thephoenixrises.org/programming/keynotes/  and
http://www.thephoenixrises.org/events/storyville.html.

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