Frank Productions and the Madison Police Department released details about the Freakfest entertainment schedule and costume contest and reviewed safety precautions at a press conference Monday morning.
Charlie Goldstone, spokesperson for Frank Productions, said the event’s famed costume contest will be as high-stakes as ever, with thousands of participants expected.
Frank Productions staffers will be handing out “finalist passes” to well-costumed people on the street beginning when the gates open at 7 p.m., he said.
The official contest will take place next to the North Frances Street stage from 11 p.m. until 12 a.m. The grand prize of the night is a 42-inch flat screen TV with numerous other prizes to be announced at the event.
MPD cautioned party-goers to avoid any props or costume pieces that could pose a threat to others.
“Be creative and make your props at home – people who arrive with dangerous props will be asked to take them back to their cars or apartments or they will be thrown away,” an MPD statement said.
New security measures introduced at the press conference included an event-wide ban on glass. MPD’s Lt. Dave McCaw added no alcohol is to be consumed on public property.
McCaw said he expects a safe and controlled event this year.
“The event is now about music, not about the police. We’ve reduced our forces because the extras are no longer necessary,” he said. “We’re looking forward to a peaceful night for 40,000 people.”
Headliners All Time Low and Neon Trees will be playing simultaneously on separate stages, Goldstone said.
All Time Low will be playing at the top of State Street from 12:15 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. while the Neon Trees show will take place on Gilman Street from 12 a.m. to 1 a.m., Goldstone said.
Goldstone said opening acts will be playing on the State Street stage beginning at 8 p.m. Acts will include The Big Strong Men, Locksley and the Ready Set.
The Gilman Street stage will open at 7:30 p.m. and will include performances by Quiet Corral, JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound and MURS.
The final stage on North Frances Street, said Goldstone, will feature DJs beginning at 7:30 p.m. and lasting until 1:30 a.m.
