Show Hours:
Exhibit Hall Hours:
Friday, November 20| 12:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Saturday, November 21| 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Sunday, November 22| 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
VIP Exhibit Hall Hours:
Friday, November 20| 11:30 AM – 7:00 PM
Saturday, November 21| 9:30 AM – 7:00 PM
Sunday, November 22| 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM
Programming Hours:
Friday, November 20| 1:00 PM – 2:00 AM
Saturday, November 21| 10:00 AM – 2:00 AM
Sunday, November 22| 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Registration Hours:
Friday, November 20| 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Saturday, November 21| 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Sunday, November 22| 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Costume Contest RULES/INFO
Saturday, November 21 | 6:00 PM
Sunday, November 22 | 3:00 PM
Contests hosted by Mikal Mosley in Main Stage at the times listed above!
Online Pre-Judging is open until October 30th! More information here!
SHIMMY IN THE TANK COSPLAY CATWALK (18+) RULES/INFO
Friday, November 20 | 7:00 PM
Contest hosted by The International Nerdlesque Festival! YOU MUST BE 18+ TO ENTER.
THE 2026 Programming Schedule
**Schedule is subject to change. Current as of 11/6/26.**
FRIDAY
MAIN STAGE (BALLROOM A)
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Another Attempt to Take Over the World: A Pinky and the Brain Q&A with Rob Paulsen and Maurice LaMarche
2 PM – 2:45 PM | “Good cops. Bad cops. These cops.” The Reno 911 Q&A with Thomas Lennon, Cedric Yarbrough, and Nick Swardson
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Get Terrified: A Q&A with David Howard Thornton, Samantha Scaffidi, Lauren LaVera and Amelie McLain
4 PM – 4:45 PM | Into the Forgotten Realms: A Baldur’s Gate Q&A with Neil Newbon, Devora Wilde, Jennifer English, Maggie Robertson, Aliona Baranova, Dave Jones, Theo Solomon, Tracey Wiles, Tim Downie, and Amelia Tyler
5:15 PM – 6:30 PM | A Miraculous Q&A with Bryce Papenbrook and Cristina Vee
7 PM – 8:30 PM | Shimmy in the Tank 18+ Cosplay Catwalk
HERO STAGE (ROOM 101)
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | A Star Wars Conversation with John Morton
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | A Conversation with Wil Wheaton
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Talking with Anjali Bhimani
8:00 PM – 9:30 PM | Sam Haft in Concert: Music from the Hellaverse
WRESTLING STAGE (ROOM 200)
6:30 PM – 7 PM | Doors for Twin Cities Carnage
7 PM | F1rst Wrestling and Twin Cities Con Present Twin Cities Carnage (Separate Ticket Required)
PANEL 1 (ROOM 102 F) Presented by DBT-PTSD Specialists of Minnesota
2 PM – 2:45 PM | The Poetry of Comics
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Kaiju & Comics: Monsters on the Page
4 PM – 4:45 PM | Wrestling and Comic Book Connection
5 PM – 5:45 PM | Benefits of Forming a Studio
6 PM – 6:45 PM | Monstrous: A Transracial Adoption Story Panel
7 PM – 7:45 PM | Beats, Rhymes and Comics Life: Celebrating the Connections between Hip Hop and Comics
8 PM – 8:45 PM | From Podcast, to Press, and now Print! Inside Manga Mavericks Books!
9 PM – 9:45 PM | Epic: The Musical Sing Along
PANEL 2 (ROOM 203 A&B)
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | Research Offline
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | Create Your Artistic Business Model
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Worldbuilding Across Mediums
4:30 PM – 5:15 PM | Tried & True Storytelling
5:30 PM – 6:15 PM | Find & Connect With Your Readers
6:30 PM – 7:15 PM | How to Make a Movie on a Zero Dollar Budget
7:30 PM – 8:15 PM | Selling In A Saturated Market
8:30 PM – 9:15 PM | Blockbreakers! Get Creating No Matter What Blocks You!
9:30 PM – 10:15 PM | Dice & Demons – The Satanic Panic
PANEL 3 (ROOM 205 A-D)
2 PM – 3:30 PM | The Geek Chic Nerdlesque Movement Workshop (18+)
6 PM – 8 PM | The VIP Party (For VIP & Ultra VIP Pass Holders ONLY)
PANEL 4 (GREAT LAKES BALLROOM A – HYATT)
1 PM – 1:45 PM | K-Pop Photocard Trading
2 PM – 2:45 PM | Introduction to Wig Styling
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Finding the Ultimate Sapphic Ship
4:30 PM – 6 PM | Dungeons & Speed Dating (18+)
8 PM – 11 PM | Dylan’s Drink and Draw (18+)
PANEL 5 (LAKE MINNETONKA – HYATT)
2 PM – 2:45 PM | Critical Hit: The Impact of Baldur’s Gate 3
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Superceding the Source
4 PM – 4:45 PM | Fighting Games and You! For Fun or For Glory!
5 PM – 5:45 PM | The “Great Debate”
6 PM – 6:45 PM | George Lucas Versus The World
7 PM – 7:45 PM | Exploring Indie TTRPG Systems
9 PM – 9:45 PM | Daggerheart – Learn To Play!
10 PM – 10:45 PM | Writing The Spicy (18+)
11 PM – 11:45 PM | Who’s On Top (18+)
12 AM – 12:45 AM | X-Mas Movie or Halloween Movie: A Nightmare Before Christmas Debate (18+)
1 AM – 1:45 AM | Bad Clopfiction Reading with Sunset Shimmer & Rarity (18+)
PANEL 6 (LAKE BEMIDJI – HYATT)
2:30 PM – 4 PM | Twin Cities Trekkies Celebrates 60 Years of the Final Frontier
4:30 PM – 5:15 PM | K-Pop 101
5:30 PM – 6:15 PM | Reading and Collecting Comics (Without Going Broke Or Crazy)
6:30 PM – 7:15 PM | Poké-Bingo Battle! (ft. Kiwi and friends)
7:30 PM – 8:15 PM | Phun with Photoshop!
9:30 PM – 10:15 PM | The Golden Age of Supernatural TV
10:30 PM – 11:15 PM | Welcome to Arcadia : A New Horror Series (18+)
11:30 PM – 12:15 AM | Hentai Voiceover (18+)
12:30 AM – 1:15 AM | Milf, Dilf & Gilf Oh My! (18+)
PANEL 7 (LAKE HARRIOT – HYATT)
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Don’t Panic! Con Crunch Survival Hacks
4 PM – 4:45 PM | COSTplay: Cosplay on a Budget (That Still Looks Fire)
5 PM – 5:45 PM | A Guide to Fabric and Craft Shopping After the Loss of Joann’s
6:30 PM – 8 PM | Making Foam Cosplays
8:30 PM – 9:15 PM | Music, Stitches and Culture (A Look at How the Music Pop Culture Scene and Cosplay Have Merged)
9:30 PM – 11 PM | Dirty 20: Improvised Adventures! (18+)
11:30 PM – 1 AM | Stand Up Comedy for Nerds, Geeks, Dorks, Dweebs and Weebs! (18+)
GAMING PRESENTED BY 2DCON (ROOM 103)
12:00 PM – 10:00 PM | Open Game Play
12:00 PM | Riichi Mahjong – Learn to Play
1:00 PM | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time
3:00 PM | Crokinole – Learn to Play
4:00 PM | Ticket to Ride Tournament
4:00 PM | Mario Kart Open Play
5:00 PM | Mario Kart Tournament
5:00 PM | Skyjo – Learn to Play
6:00 PM | Heroes of the Storm
6:00 PM | Betrayal at House on the Hill
7:00 PM | Dino Racer – Learn to Play
7:00 PM | Ultimate Werewolf
8:00 PM | Kingdom Hearts
GAMING PRESENTED BY WYLDWOLF GAMES (ROOM 204)
1:30 PM – 2:30 PM | Honey Heist – System: Honey Heist
1:30 PM – 2:30 PM | Horror in Hyperspace System – System: Star Wars: Edge of the Empire
2:30 PM – 4:00 PM | Night of the Hogmen System – TEETH/Forged in the Dark
4:00 PM – 5:30 PM | Dungeon Crawler Carl Learn to Play – System Carl/DCC RPG
4:30 PM – 6:00 PM | Speed Run – System: Cy_borg
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM | Kobold Hall – System: D&D 4E
6:30 PM – 8:30 PM | Road to Ruin – System: D&D 5E
COSPLAY PHOTOSHOOTS (EXHIBIT HALL B – NEAR REGISTRATION)
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM | Hellaverse
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM | Apothecary Diaries
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM | Neon Genesis Evangelion
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM | Horror
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
6:00 PM – 7:00 PM | Baldur’s Gate
SATURDAY
MAIN STAGE (BALLROOM A)
11 AM – 11:45 AM | Becoming a Demon Slayer: A Q&A with Bryce Papenbrook, Zach Aguilar, and Johnny Yong Bosch
12 PM – 12:45 PM | A Conversation with Jerry Trainor
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Cowabunga Dude! The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Q&A with Rob Paulsen, Townsend Colemen, Cam Clarke, Barry Gordan and Renae Jacobs
2 PM – 2:45 PM | “It Takes Strength to Resist the Dark Side.” A Clone Wars Q&A with Ashely Eckstein, James Arnold Taylor and Matt Lanter
3 PM – 3:45 PM | A Conversation with Seth Green
5:45 PM – 6 PM | Doors Open for The Official Saturday Costume Contest
6 PM – 7:30 PM | The Official Saturday Costume Contest
HERO STAGE (ROOM 101)
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | Talking Pokemon with Sarah Natochenny
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM | The Saturday Kid’s Costume Parade
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | Talking the Walking Dead and More with Ross Marquand
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | A Conversation with Walter Jones
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | John Scalzi Won’t Shut Up!
5 PM – 7 PM | Twin Cities Tabletop Tavern with DM Anjali Bhimani
9 PM – 11 PM | INF Presents: The Twin Cities Nerdlesque Kickback (18+)
WRESTLING STAGE (ROOM 200)
6:30 PM – 7 PM | Doors for Twin Cities Carnage
7 PM | F1rst Wrestling and Twin Cities Con Present Twin Cities Carnage (Separate Ticket Required)
PANEL 1 (ROOM 102 F) Presented by DBT-PTSD Specialists of Minnesota
10 AM – 10:45 AM | Wait, That Was a Show?
11 AM – 11:45 AM | DC Generations: Writing the Eras of DC Comics
12 PM – 12:45 PM | How We Got Published
1 PM – 1:45 PM | The Writers’ Room: The Ins and Outs of Comic Book Writing
2 PM – 2:45 PM | Fashion in Comics: From Iconic Looks to Cultural Statements
3 PM – 3:45 PM | How I Work Out My Comic StoriesHow I Work Out My Comic Stories
4 PM – 4:45 PM | Make Your Own Damn Comic Book! Turning Comic Book Dreams Into Reality
5 PM – 5:45 PM | LET’S TALK TOYS!
6 PM – 6:45 PM | Punk Rock Comics
7 PM – 7:45 PM | The Best Science Fiction Comics of 2026 (So Far!)
8 PM – 8:45 PM | Monsters: Truth and Reality
PANEL 2 (ROOM 203 A&B)
10:30 AM – 11 AM | Book In A Month Without AI
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | Short Story Creation & Opportunities
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM | Creative Brand Building
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | Self-Editing For Greater Meaning
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | Magic & Mayhem – The Elements of Great Fantasy
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Flawed Heroes & Redeemable Villains
4:30 PM – 5:15 PM | 501st Legion+Rebel Legion+Mando Mercs- Who We Are, What We Do And How To Join
5:30 PM – 6:15 PM | Writing For Neurodivergent Authors
6:30 PM – 7:15 PM | Can You Dig It? – Real Minnesota Archaeology
7:30 PM – 8:15 PM | Twin Cities Creators You Should Know
8:30 PM – 9:15 PM | Romantasy Writing 101 (18+)Romantasy Writing 101 (18+)
PANEL 3 (ROOM 205 A-D)
11 AM – 12:30 PM | Cosplay Lipsync Battle
1 PM – 2 PM | Muichiro Tokito’s Paper Airplane Throwing Contest
2:30 PM – 3:30 PM | Show your B-Side and Dance! K-Pop Random Dance Play
4 PM – 4:45 PM | Sword Art Live
8 PM – 9 PM | Cosplay Lipsync Battle 18+ Edition
PANEL 4 (GREAT LAKES BALLROOM A – HYATT)
12 PM – 12:45 PM | To Arkham or Not: The Joker and the Insanity Defense
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Sew Unique: Creating Custom Patterns For Cosplay
2:30 PM – 4:30 PM | Create & Play Your RPG World & System
5 PM – 8:30 PM | Daggerheart – Sablewood Messengers
9 PM – 11 PM | Dungeon Race RPG – One System To Rule Them All
PANEL 5 (LAKE MINNETONKA – HYATT)
12 PM – 12:45 PM | Why Physical Media is the Ultimate Rebellion
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Everyone Can Voice Act!: Internet Voice Acting for Beginners
2 PM – 2:45 PM | The Fictional Boyfriend Battle!
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Manga You Should Be Reading in 2027! (Or Not!)
4 PM – 4:45 PM | Name that Anime Tune!
5 PM – 5:45 PM | Fragile Hearts & Dark Minds: Beauty and Brutality in Dark Anime
7 PM – 7:45 PM | Wrong Answers Only (Anime Edition)
8 PM – 8:45 PM | Anakin Skywalker: The Darkside of Fear
9 PM – 9:45 PM | Fanfiction of Our Own (18+)
10 PM – 10:45 PM | Mad Mad Mad Libs (18+)
11 PM – 11:45 PM | Hentai Bingo (18+)
12 AM – 2 AM | Kill Willy! Open Mic Stand Up Comedy with Professional Judges!
PANEL 6 (LAKE BEMIDJI – HYATT)
10:30 AM – 11:15 AM | Oshikatsu 101
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | Playtime’s Over: From Toys & Trends to Collectibles & Heirlooms
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM | Indigenous and Latino Representation in Pop Culture
1:30 PM – 2:30 PM | On The Job Training With Cells At Work
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Describing Anime Plots…Blind!
4:30 PM – 5:15 PM | The Sokovia Accords: A Civil War Debate
6:30 PM – 7:15 PM | I Ain’t Afraid Of No Ghost
7:30 PM – 8:15 PM | Horror Movie Jeopardy
8:30 PM – 9:15 PM | Horror Writing – It Doesn’t Have To Be Scary
9:30 PM – 10:15 PM | Reading The Spicy (18+)
10:30 PM – 11:15 PM | The “Great Debate” (18+)
11:30 PM – 1:30 AM | The Dating Game (18+)
PANEL 7 (LAKE HARRIOT – HYATT)
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | Creating the Geisha
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM | Draft an Anime Team to Beat Mine!
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | Moon Prism Power, Make Up! How to Make a Sailor Moon Cosplay
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | Cosplay Is For Every Body! A Discussion On Disabilities In Cosplay
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Sewing Tips and Tricks for Newbies
4:30 PM – 5:15 PM | How to Cosplay Sustainably
6 PM – 6:45 PM | You’re On You’re Own Kid: Parallels Between Ahsoka Tano And Taylor Swift
7 PM – 7:45 PM | You Know How I Feel About Gratitude, Carl! A Dungeon Crawler Carl Workshop/Sing-Along
8 PM – 8:45 PM | 1986: RAD Movies or BAD Movies
10 PM – 10:45 PM | Is It Furbait?: Neopets Edition (18+)
11 PM – 11:45 PM | Can You Fix Them? Villain Edition (18+)
12 AM – 12: 45 AM | WAIFU WARS!!!!!!! (18+)
GAMING PRESENTED BY 2DCON (ROOM 103)
10:00 AM – 10:00 PM | Open Game Play
12:00 PM | Riichi Mahjong – Learn to Play
12:00 PM | Apex Legends – Learn to Play
1:00 PM | MTG Draft
2:00 PM | Sabaac + Pazaak
2:00 PM | PodRacer Tournament
2:00 PM | Star Wars Galactic Racer
3:00 PM | Yahtzee Tournament
4:00 PM | Hot Streak – Learn to Play
5:00 PM | Uno Tournament
5:00 PM | WoW Forever
6:00 PM | Betrayal at House on the Hill
7:00 PM | Hues and Cues – Learn to Play
7:00 PM | Ultimate Werewolf
8:00 PM | Jackbox
GAMING PRESENTED BY WYLDWOLF GAMES (ROOM 204)
11:00 AM – 12:30 PM | Frogenstein
1:00 PM – 2:30 PM | Horror in Hyperspace – System: Star Wars: Edge of Empire
1:00 PM – 2:30 PM | The Delian Tomb Part 2 – System: Draw Steel
2:30 PM – 4:30 PM | YOU WILL DIE IN THIS DUNGEON – System: Maze Rats
5:30 PM – 7:00 PM | Honey Heist – System: Honey Heist
COSPLAY PHOTOSHOOTS (EXHIBIT HALL B – NEAR REGISTRATION)
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | Star Wars
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Undertale/Deltarune
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM | Demon Slayer
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM | BL (Boys Love)
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM | One Piece
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM | Pokemon
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Marvel Comics/Marvel Universe
SUNDAY
MAIN STAGE (BALLROOM A)
11 AM – 11:45 AM | “Get Home Before Dark”: A Buffy Q&A with James Marsters, Seth Green and Kristine Sutherland
12 PM – 12:45 PM | A Helluva a Hotel: A Hazbin and Helluva Boss Q&A with Amir Talai, Erica Lindbeck, Christian Borle, and Leslie Rodrigues-Kritzer and Cristina Vee
2:45 PM – 3 PM | Doors Open for The Official Sunday Costume Contest
3 PM – 4:30 PM | The Official Sunday Costume Contest
HERO STAGE (ROOM 101)
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | A Conversation with Damien Haas
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM | The Sunday Kid’s Costume Parade
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | A Conversation with Colleen Clinkenbeard
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | A Conversation with Timothy Zahn
PANEL 1 (ROOM 102 F) Presented by DBT-PTSD Specialists of Minnesota
11 AM – 11:45 AM | From Panels to Dice: The Connection Between Comics and TTRPGs
12 PM – 12:45 PM | Drawing Artists
1 PM – 1:45 PM | CatStronauts: Prepare for Lunch!
2 PM – 2:45 PM | Making Mini-Comics/Zines
3 PM – 3:45 PM | Spinning Plates: Life as a Freelancer
PANEL 2 (ROOM 203 A&B)
10:30 AM – 11:15 AM | Sunday Story Hour
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | Why We Create
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM | And I Was Hooked – The Inspirations Of Those Who Inspire Today
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | How AI Has Affected Our Industries – A Conversation
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | Perfect Pitch – For Publishers & Readers
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Recovering From Creative Burnout
PANEL 3 (ROOM 205 A-D)
11 AM – 11:45 AM | SM Ent. Random Dance!
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Ben and Katie Want to Hear From You!
PANEL 4 (GREAT LAKES BALLROOM A – HYATT)
11 AM – 12:30 PM | Dylan’s Snacks and Sketches FOR KIDS!
1 PM – 2 PM | One Hour Short Story Workshop
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM | Certified Con Artists Presents: Cosplay Figure Drawing
PANEL 5 (LAKE MINNETONKA – HYATT)
10 AM – 10:45 AM | God Hates Us? Alright Then
12 PM – 12:45 PM | How to GM: Monsters in TTRPGs
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Valley of Knowledge: Stardew Trivia with Berry, Kiwi and Friends
2 PM – 2:45 PM | Who’s the Biggest Psychopath – Round 2!
PANEL 6 (LAKE BEMIDJI – HYATT)
10:30 AM – 11:15 AM | The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Nerdlesque Q&A (18+)
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM | Don’t Get Technical: Building Our Own C1-10P
1 PM – 2:30 PM | 30+ Years of Sailor Moon
PANEL 7 (LAKE HARRIOT – HYATT)
10 AM – 10:45 AM | Build Your Own Armor – Techniques For Beginners
11 AM – 11:45 AM | Cosplay Toxicology
12 PM – 12:45 PM | Corsetry; Tips and Tricks
1 PM – 1:45 PM | Entry Level Star Wars Costumes
2 PM – 2:45 PM | Anime Casting Booth
GAMING PRESENTED BY 2DCON (ROOM 103)
10:00 AM – 5:00 PM | Open Game Play
10:00 AM | Mario Party Pajamboree Open Play
11:00 AM | Dino Racer – Learn to Play
12:00 PM | Riichi Mahjong – Learn to Play
12:00 PM | Palworld
12:00 PM | Boop Tournament
1:00 PM | Magic the Gathering Commander Open Play
2:00 PM | Magical Athlete – Learn to Play
2:00 PM | Resident Evil Village
3:00 PM | Are You Afraid of the Dark? Board Game – Learn to Play
4:00 PM | Goosebumps: The Board Game – Learn to Play
GAMING PRESENTED BY WYLDWOLF GAMES (ROOM 204)
10:00 AM – 1:00 PM | Glory – System: Eclipse Phase
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM | Dungeon Crawler Carl Learn to Play – System: Carl/DCC RPG
1:30 PM – 2:30 PM | Horror in Hyperspace – System: Star Wars: Edge of the Empire
2:00 PM – 3:30 PM | One With the Earth – System: The Things We Became
2:30 PM – 4:00 PM | Crash Pandas – System: Crash Pandas One Page RPG
COSPLAY PHOTOSHOOTS (EXHIBIT HALL B – NEAR REGISTRATION)
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM | DC Comics/DC Universe
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Metal Gear Solid
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM | Kim Possible
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM | Cookie Run
