KSHB 41 reporter Marlon Martinez covers Platte and Clay counties in Missouri. Share your story idea with Marlon.
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AnimeVerse Fest makes a stop in Kansas City for the first time, promising two days packed with anime, cosplay, gaming, and pop culture energy at the KCI Expo Center.
The event kicked off Saturday, with doors opening at 10 a.m. and running through Sunday at 11 a.m., marking Kansas City as one of the national stops on AnimeVerse Fest’s tour.
“Oh my goodness. So from Houston to KC now, and I know we'll be in Nashville later this year. So what's really great is, for me, personally, there are so many fans that I've met that do travel from city to city," Stephanie Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez will be the panel host this weekend, bringing some of our own childhood and now favorites to the stage.
"It makes my day, because we hear stories, we learn from them. We hear how they brought all of these characters to life. To me, that's also very it just, it's mind boggling that they just saw a drawing once, and they were like, I'm gonna bring this character to life," Gonzalez said.
One of those big names in town this weekend is Bozo the Clown played by Joey D'Auria.
“This is my first time. I've been hoping to get to Kansas City, really, and hoping to get more to the Midwest because that's where my base is," D'Auria said.
The event will feature over 100 different vendors, meet and greets and interactive panels.
D'Auria said it's an opportunity to meet everyone who shares the same love for anime and professional wrestling.
"There are lots of fascinating people here. If you're into wrestling, there are a lot of great wrestlers. There's some wonderful voice-over people here, and me, but that's about it. It's an experience," D'Auria said.
General admission tickets today are $34.97 and $29.54 tomorrow.
You can purchase separate meet-and-greet passes on their website.
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