Costuming Cosplay

<p>Cosplay short for costume play has grown from its origins at fan conventions into a billion-dollar global dress phenomenon. <i>Costuming Cosplay</i> takes us from elaborately crafted DIY costumes to online fandoms examining how the practice of portraying fictional characters from popular culture through dress and performance has become a creative means of expressing and playing with different identities. <p/>With an approach that ranges from admiration and role-play to gender performance this is the first book to fully examine the subculture and costume of the Cosplay phenomenon. Drawing on extensive first-hand research at conventions across North America and Asia Therèsa M. Winge invites us to explore how Cosplay functions as a meritocracy of creativity escapism and disguise and offers a creative realm in which fantasy and new forms of socializing carry as much importance as costume. <p/>Illustrated with color photographs of both celebrity and amateur Cosplayers <i>Costuming Cosplay</i> is essential reading for students and scholars of fashion and costume popular culture anthropology gender and media studies as well as global players and fans of Cosplay.</p>