Next year, Connecticut will have not one, but two different "Gilmore Girls" fan festivals to honor the hit 2000s "dramedy."
“The Firelight Event” will return to Guilford in the fall while A Small Town Convention - "A Weekend in the Life" will debut in New Milford in April.
Autumn Nierode, a self-proclaimed "huge 'Gilmore Girls' fan" and owner of Decade Days, which is putting on "A Weekend in the Life," said that the festival will be an "all-immersive experience" for fans of the show. New Milford is often cited as one of main towns that inspired the fictional town of Stars Hollow in "Gilmore Girls."
"It's not just like going to a convention, meeting a celebrity, getting a photo and autograph and then see some vendors and go home," Nierode said about the three-day festival, which will take place from April 11-13.
Nierode said she has hosted "One Tree Hill" and "Vampire Diaries" festivals, but is excited about the opportunity of hosting a festival themed to "Gilmore Girls" after initially having the idea to do one prior to the pandemic.
The convention has already announced its first guest from the show: Keiko Agena who played Lane Kim on the show.
Other details and guests will be announced at a later time for the festival though Nierode mentioned photo ops with cast members in the town's gazebo, a knit-a-thon, a "passport program" for pop-up vendors and a possible hay bale maze. Friday night will have a karaoke and pajama party, Saturday will have a "Living Art Cocktail Party" and Sunday will feature a "Troubadour" concert, all of which will cost extra to attend. There will also be charitable components of the festival as well, Nierode said.
Nierode added that town leadership has been supportive of their endeavors, including Mayor Pete Bass. "We kind of would like to do this more often because this stuff brings in so much for small towns," Nierode said.
Tickets will be available at noon on Sunday starting at $65 for daily passes. A limited "Dragonfly Admission" pass ($450), which is limited to 40 guests, will include access to all activities, a signed poster, guaranteed seating at panels, one photo op and two autographs of choice and other perks.
On the other side of the state in Guilford, “The Firelight Event” will once again return to Connecticut's shoreline for its annual "Gilmore Girls" celebration. The event, which is organized by the The Fan Fest Society, will take place from Oct. 17-19 with tickets going on sale on Feb. 4 at noon, according to a news release.
Last year's “The Firelight Event” sold out, which featured meet-and-greets with various cast members and a number of different "Gilmore Girls"-related activities for fans to participate in. This year's festival promises to bring more than 40 different activities to Guilford across the three days including costume contests, panels, giveaways and meet-and-greets. Cast member announcements will begin in early March.
Rona Benson ("Joni"), Katie Walder ("Janet Billings"), Scott Cohen ("Max Medina") and Kathleen Wilhoite ("Liz Danes") were among the cast members that attended the 2024 festival.
“We are delighted that The Fan Fest Society’s “Firelight Event” will be returning to Guilford. Feedback from the 2024 event indicated it was huge success, meeting and exceeding participants expectations, and was embraced by Guilford residents and businesses," said Matt Hoey, Guilford first selectman, in the news release.
“While other events have popped up, attempting to cultivate the same audience, Fan Fest will always be uniquely different than a typical ‘con’. Our events are more immersive and infiltrate a welcoming town alongside a willing cast and crew," said Marcus Whitaker, co-creator of The Fan Fest Society, in the news release. "It’s something that every great show deserves, people behind it, willing to keep it alive."
Launched in 2016 as the "Gilmore Girls" Fan Fest, the festival has traveled around to different states, but has found its home in Guilford for a second year. The festival was first held in Washington Depot. It has also been held in the New England towns of Kent, Conn., and Ogunquit, Maine. The new name for the festival, “The Firelight Event," is inspired by the Firelight Festival, an annual event in the show that celebrates the founding of Stars Hollow.