From the early stages of planning for this year’s Fan Fest at the Oak Lawn Public Library, Jenny Yasecko knew she wanted to include a big performance. When a teen librarian showed her an online video of Prism Kru, a Chicago-based K-pop dance crew, Yasecko knew they had found their act.
“I’m really excited for our K-pop dance crew,” said Yasecko, the library’s head of technical services who leads the Fan Fest committee.
When Fan Fest returns from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Prism Kru will be among the free, all-ages entertainment. The daylong event also features a Smarty Pants Big Balloon Show and an exhibit hall highlighting local artists, boutiques, writers and vendors.
Fan Fest takes place the same weekend as the theatrical release of Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.” The library paid homage to the series with this year’s Fan Fest Vol. 7: Guardians of the Library logo, and Yasecko said the theme extends beyond that. Some events — such as a “Marvel Snap” tutorial — and prizes will also nod to the franchise.
“Every year, we pick a theme for our Fan Fest and we gear everything we’re doing toward that,” Yasecko said.
There will be a cosplay competition, photo booth, crafts and panels taking place throughout the library. Panel highlights include Creating Characters for Dungeons & Dragons, Library Fan Fest 101, Level Up with Tools You Find in the Library and Obento 101.
“I just want everyone to come and have a good time — no matter if you’re into Marvel or DC or Dungeons & Dragons, we have something for you throughout the entire day,” Yasecko said. “We want everyone to enjoy their time.”
The pop culture celebration also coincides with Free Comic Book Day. Yasecko said the library will have similar comics to what the shops offer that day from Diamond. But Oak Lawn also partnered with Blerds Underground in La Grange, with the library purchasing additional books from the shop for giveaway, Yasecko explained.
The party continues after 5 p.m., with an after-hours pop culture trivia event starting at 6 p.m. at Cork & Bean, 4931 W. 95th St. The trivia is all ages. The library is not providing refreshments, but there will be prizes.
Fan Fest was launched to give area residents the experience of a comic convention on a smaller scale and for free, Yasecko said. The annual event attracts a lot of teens and young adults, but Yasecko said last year she saw a wide range of visitors, from young children and families to older adults who enjoy the collectibles aspect. Some people visited the library for the first time to check out Fan Fest.
Yasecko said the library had a good turnout last year, with more than 400 attendees coming out for the first in-person iteration of Fan Fest since lockdowns took hold in 2020. She called that a “great turnout for one of our first really big events” since the start of the pandemic.
But organizers kept the schedule light last year, unsure what kind of response they might get. This year’s schedule, conversely, is packed.
“This year, we have something going on every single minute from 9 a.m. until we close at 5 p.m., as well as our after-hours trivia at Cork & Bean,” Yasecko said. “We wanted to go all-out with this to see if we could get our numbers back up to pre-pandemic Fan Fest.”
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Yasecko said when it comes to pop culture, D&D sessions at the library have been popular lately. The library also recently hosted a Beatles celebration that brought in a wide range of visitors. And graphic novels are always popular in Oak Lawn.
“If it’s pop culture, we are probably doing it at the library,” Yasecko said.
The Oak Lawn Public Library is at 9427 S. Raymond Ave. More information about Fan Fest is at olpl.org/fanfest.
Bill Jones is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.