Oriana Peron Hosts the First Digital Drag Race Convention Competition

Anime & Pop Culture Convention Drag Cosplay Superstar Oriana Peron hosts the First Digital Drag Race Convention Competition at Anime Central Online: A Virtual Gathering. Live Digital Drag Race Showcase Performance will take place Friday May 15, 2020 at 6:50pm CT (7:50pm EST) on Anime Central Live Streaming Platforms with more events all weekend long!

Oriana Peron has teamed up with Anime Central (ACen) the largest Anime, Cosplay & Japanese Pop Culture Convention in the Midwest to host the first-ever Digital Drag Race Convention Competition plus a virtual Drag Show and a series of online workshops on at-home jewelry soldering, makeup and wigs for Drag and Cosplay expressions.

Contestants in the Digital Drag Race submitted videos of themselves performing a lip sync to the theme song from the popular anime Sailor Moon to be considered. The four chosen participants include past winners of Oriana Peron's Drag Race live at Ohayocon and ColossalCon seeking to claim the crown of the very first Virtual Cosplay Convention Drag Superstar, win an all-weekend pass to ACEN 2021 as well as a chance to perform in the Digital Drag Show hosted by and starring Oriana Peron and special guest Drag artists the following day at Anime Central Online 2020: A Virtual Gathering. Contestants will compete via Zoom from their homes and will perform live on Friday, May 15th at 6:50pm CT on Anime Central's TWITCH and Facebook live streaming platforms. There will be lip synching, an anime episode voice over dub, the creation of participants' own Magical Girl/Boy character and Drag Cosplay performances by Oriana Peron.

Oriana Peron has become the hottest, most in-demand Cosplay Drag Superstar for Anime and Pop Culture Conventions across America. Oriana has been gaining interest steadily since bursting on the scene with custom-created events to engage the interests of the LGBTQIA communities, cosplayers, and all curious convention goers. "I think it is crucial for the LGBTQIA community, who are such a big part of these conventions and fandoms, to be recognized and have a safe and exciting space to express themselves fully," Oriana told Anime News Network in 2019. Oriana's Drag Race Competition, Drag Show and Workshops have garnered throngs of fans at each convention, filling most spaces to capacity or over. In January 2020 Oriana's Drag Race and Drag Show drew in more than 2500 attendees each night at Ohayocon in Columbus, OH and was one of the most popular events with fans. Oriana was set to be a guest at numerous conventions in 2020, including ACen and AnimeNext in Atlantic City, most of which were cancelled due to the global pandemic forbidding such massive gatherings of thousands.

Many conventions have been cancelled outright, some postponed to later in 2020, a few are planning on moving forward as scheduled but most opted for skipping 2020 altogether and resuming in 2021. Anime Central (ACen) -- a Chicago-based convention now in its 22nd year that boasts an annual attendance of 30,000 -- decided to go digital and offer their attendees free content and various opportunities to engage with their Anime & Manga otaku (superfans) and Cosplay communities while safely observing social distancing rules. Michelle Falco, ACen's Senior Programming Manager and Event Planner of Scene & Screen, and the rest of the ACen team took the disappointment of cancellation as a challenge to keep the flame alive for fans as best they could. "We've gone online this year for Anime Central 2020 to rally the anime community," Falco explained. "Even though we can't be together physically, there is a digital social world that is there to connect us. The Anime Central spirit is deeply rooted in building and supporting our community, and this was the best way we could think to do it. We hope our fans come out and interact with our event, make some new memories, and gear up for ACen 2021 where we can all be back together safely." ACen reached out to Oriana Peron to take the previously contracted content from in-person to online and together -- along with Oriana's management, InJoy Entertainment -- they created a virtual competition and content intended to be a celebration of self-expression, Anime & Manga, Cosplay, the LGBTQIA communities and geek culture!

SCHEDULE OF ONLINE EVENTS (all events are Central Time Zone):

Wigs - Friday 2:10 PM

Drag Race - Friday 6:50 PM

Jewelry - Saturday 12:10 PM

Drag Show - Saturday 4:35 PM

Makeup - Sunday 12:00 PM

For Full Schedule of Anime Central Online 2020: A Virtual Gathering, please visit: https://www.acen.org/acen-online-2020/

FREE ONLINE EVENTS. To view, please watch Anime Central's TWITCH, Facebook or YouTube live streams or visit the ACen website at the schedule times (Central Time/CT). For more information about Oriana Peron, please visit us online and on social media at Oriana Peron and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and check out more workshops and other exclusive content on Patreon. For booking & collaboration inquiries visit Oriana Peron's management, InJoy Entertainment at InJoy Entertainment.

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