Have you ever wanted to be a student at a school of magic Harry Potter? Avistrum Academy of Sorcery is the premier American school of witchcraft and wizardry. Our once-a-year event is the only weekend of its kind anywhere!

Students will participate in 6 classes, including Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms, Muggle Studies, Practical Magics, and more. New students will be sorted by the Great Eagle of Avistrum on Friday evening, and join their classmates and the faculty for a dessert feast. Classes begin Saturday and continue through Sunday. Play to represent your house in the Quidditch Cup. Saturday evening, the school is transformed for the Dark Wizard’s Ball. At each event, you can earn (or lose) points for your house, and help to win the House Cup!

Like Hogwarts, Avistrum faces constant threat. The dark witch Persephone, an unrivaled metamorphmagus, continues to try to infiltrate and take control of the school for her nefarious purposes. The Council of the Wise is contemplating making it illegal to teach Transfiguration to try to stop her. Hemmed in from all sides, Headmaster Clark Dowling and the brave faculty must attempt a desperate gambit to stop Persephone. They need your help!

Admission includes a full-weekend membership to MileHiCon 39. Children 11 and under must be accompanied at all times by a paid adult. Children 16 and under must have a parent present at MileHiCon.

Register now at EventBrite!

The Hyatt Regency DTC is at 7800 E. Tufts Ave., Denver, CO (DTC (Google Maps, Yahoo! Maps, MapQuest). Check the hotel information on the MileHiCon website for hotel rates.

Need the scoop on what happened the last two years? Read the recaps from Tales from Persephone: The Medallion of Akpuch and Tales from Avistrum: Shadows of Persephone!

We are also pleased to announce a price cut in almost all of our CafePress apparel. If you’ve been waiting to buy a shirt, the time’s never been better!

The festival has moved this year. We will now be located at the Hyatt Regency DTC, 7800 East Tufts Avenue, Denver (Google Maps, MapQuest, Yahoo! Maps).

Schedule

Students will be sorted on Friday night into one of Avistrum’s four houses, and will enjoy a special dessert buffet, with a chance to meet and mingle with your fellow students and the faculty and staff.

Beginning Saturday morning, you will take several classes throughout the weekend in topics to include Divination, Charms, Transfiguration, Care of Magical Beasts, Potions, and Defense Against Dark Magic. You can qualify to be your house’s champion in the Quidditch Tournament finals Saturday evening. Saturday night, our castle is taken over by the Death Eaters for a Dark Wizards’ Ball.

Sunday, classes resume, and you will continue to earn (or lose) points to help your house win the House Cup. The Cup will be awarded at a special close-of-term ceremony Sunday evening.

Be alert! The dark witch Persephone’s minions have been lurking, and you never know when strange things might happen in the castle! The professors are always vigilant, but you might be called upon to help defend the wizarding world!

Registration

Registration is for the entire weekend, and includes full admission to OPUSFest, a student ID badge, tuition for all classes, dessert Friday evening, and admission to Saturday’s Dark Wizards’ Ball. The price for adults is $70, and $60 for children ages 5-12. There is a special $5 discount for online registration (via Mollyguard) before May 18, 2006.

Children under 13 must be acompanied by a registered adult. Children under 5 may attend free of charge when accompanied by a paid adult.

If you cannot register online, you can send your registration by mail. Please include your real name, the number of adults and children registering, and check or money order (do not send cash) to:

Avistrum registration inlcudes OPUS registration! If you’ve already registered for OPUS 2006, please don’t pay twice! Contact us by email and we will give you instructions on how to register with us.

Special Workshop

There is a special robe-making workshop Saturday morning with Mistress Craefter, where you can make your own set of school robes! Registration for this special event is limited to 20 students. You must register separately for the workshop.