Exciting news! Oz the National Convention will join TeslaCon, an annual Steampunk convention, for 2026. Choosing Oz as their theme, they were looking to work together with the Oz community. With OzCon International on pause, our summer plans were uprooted; the timing couldn’t be better.
Named for Nikola Tesla, his work as an inventor and electrical engineer in the 19th century fits well with the Steampunk movement.* With 900 attendees expected, TeslaCon is considerably larger than our events. But like Oz Club conventions, there will be topical presentations, panels, performances, games, contests, costumes, vendors, a makers room for crafts, a game room for games, and theme decor throughout. Professional actors will present a play across the course of the convention featuring the Patchwork Girl and Ojo on a quest.
We will have an Oz Club room at the convention Marriott to provide programming, hold our traditional Club auction, and serve as a hospitality spot for Club members.
Convention details, hotel information, and registration will go directly through TeslaCon.com. Facebook users also might want to follow the TeslaCon Fans page. They will open call for programming later this month. We’ve already begun to work on Ozziness the Club can contribute to the fun. From Nate Barlow screening Baum’s silent films to presentations and panels led by some of our own well-known presenters, this can be great exposure for our Club to a fandom that loves Victorian literature, cosplay, and social interaction.
If you’re interested in presenting, hosting, or performing, or if you’re a Steampunk enthusiast able to help direct us toward points of connection, write Jane Albright at OzConvention@OzClub.org to join the conversation!
Just attending? Great! (Let’s all go!) We’ll be in touch during the months ahead with specifics of interest to our members. If you Google a bit, you’ll find right now that this fandom is very committed to cosplay; regulars are already designing in green. (Rumor has it Shaggy Man will be found chatting with Sir Hokus of Pokes in green armor….)
TeslaCon is later in the year than is usual for us, Nov. 12-15. The site, Middleton, Wisconsin, is adjacent to Madison (fly in, or drive 90 minutes from Milwaukee or 2 hours from Chicago). Convention activities are held at a Marriott although room blocks at additional hotels are the norm for TeslaCon.
Watch for more details in the months ahead.
- A quick internet search defines Steampunk as “a retro-futuristic subgenre of science fiction and fantasy that blends 19th-century Victorian-era aesthetics and steam-powered technology with modern, fantastical inventions. It often reimagines history, featuring airships, clockwork automatons, and brass gadgets, blending industrial, elegant, and romanticized elements.”