Opening ceremonies, featuring our emissaries from space and the sea

With organ and dance, in august surroundings (in August, no less), we celebrated the sixth Necronomicon’s beginning here in Providence, Rhode Island. This every-two-years con gave every appearance of being organized, thoughtful, and creative, and their Thursday game is strong. Very strong. Opening ceremonies took place in the First Baptist church, an amazing space for this event as it comes equipped with a kick-ass organ. Summoning Cthulhu, an ebon-winged bird figure flew (with their feet, no wire work or actual magic here) to the organ and then blew the doors off the place, which was handy because it was a bit hot.

We had more music during the hour of the event, interspersed with brief words of welcome, a poem, and the visit of a number of emissaries from the depths of space and/or the deeps of the sea. By mystical control of the elements, a thunderstorm blew through Providence at just the right moment, followed by scarlet illumination by the lights of emergency vehicles rolling past. And the sirens, oh, the sirens, their shriek will forever fill my ears….

Necronomicon souvenir book, film guide, program guide, and
1,000,000 years to Yuggoth, a free comic some guy was handing out

So Necronomicon plays against the stereotype of the con where everything is in one hotel, or a hotel connected by a breezeway to a convention center, the kind of con where one arrives on Thursday then stumbles out into daylight for the first time on Sunday, blinking and confused by this thing called “the outdoors,” all con related events having taken place under the same roof.

OK, I exaggerate. Most people leave the building to find something good to eat during a con. But you get the idea. This church is some 0.4 miles from the main hotels of the con, and many con activities are off site. More than nine off-site sites host ‘con events, such as the art show, a dramatic reading of “Fungi from Yuggoth!” and a mysterious black lodge party (the first rule of Black Lodge Party is…) where the elite gather. This ‘con is truly a Providence ‘con.

Tomorrow? Who knows.

— Ed “a minion” Carmien