Denver's annual Starfest a great success

Thousands of people enjoyed the weekend at Starfest in Denver.

Photos with celebrities were offered along with autographs. The afternoon was filled with on-stage appearances by the celebrity guests who answered questions by the audience and told stories.

Ben Browder, of Stagate SG1 and FarScape fame, entertained the audiences with his comedic stories and responses to their questions. He told everyone about his experiences filming in the arctic when it was 40 degrees below, living in a plywood shack with a half-dozen other men; the polar bears were the main concern.

The costume contest began at 8:00 p.m. Dozens of creative costumes made it difficult to choose a winner, which was decided by audience applause and reaction. The costume categories included children in different age ranges, horror, special effects,

Winners included the pre-school age child dressed as a Transformer and in the horror category, “The Real Tooth Fairy.”

In addition to Star Trek and Star Wars costumed people walking around, there were dozens of creative, original costumes worn by attendees. There were also superheroes, like Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. Characters from Anime were also represented, along with popular television shows, cartoons, comic books and films.

Various performers kept the crowd entertained in the atrium and then at 9:00 p.m., the Federation Ball started with costumed dancers who enjoyed the music that the DJ provided until midnight. A couple of Klingons even joined the fun.

The atmosphere was electric and eclectic. When asked about how things were going, all attendees replied along the lines of “having a blast” “loving this StarFest” “great times” and “this year is so much fun.”

– Lisana Ekenrode