The Gathering of the Fellowship

Convention
Name:	The Gathering of the Fellowship
Dates:	2003 - 2006
Frequency:	Annual
Location:	Toronto, Canada
Type:
Focus:	Lord of the Rings, all works by J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis
Organization:
Founder:
Founding Date:	2003
URL:	gatheringofthefellowship.org/ (defunct);archive link Livejournal
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The Gathering of the Fellowship was an annual convention held in Toronto, Canada, and focused on the works of by J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.

Con Reports

2003

Toronto has been called many things - Hogtown, the Big Smoke, the Centre of the Universe. But to Tolkienites, it would be Bree- the town in Middle-earth where hobbits and men mingle as equals.

At least that's what co-ordinators of The Gathering Of The Fellowship: Toronto 2003 are banking on. They've promoted the city, which hosts their three-day extravaganza starting to- morrow, as both J.R.R. Tolkien's ideal town and the nexus of his greatest fans. "Toronto seems to be head over heels for The Lord Of The Rings," says Ed Rodrigues, president of The Gathering's board.

The last day of the conference/movie-fest/gala coincides with the release of the final part of the director Peter Jackson's trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The Return Of The King, on Wednesday. Some 1,600 people have pre-registered for the event, arriving from as far away as Australia, and organizers expect many more to arrive at The Sheraton Centre to buy tickets at the door.

Catherine Porter, Toronto Star, Dec 14, 2003

2006

The opening ceremonies were set to start at 9am, but do to that fact that last week, this event was on the brink of being cancelled, the early goings of the day were a little unorganized. As everyone sat in the room, you could see the anticipation on everyone’s faces, and the air was electric. The first thing I remember seeing in the room was a group of people in LOTR costumes, and then as I stood up to look around a little from my set, I could see that Ted Nasmith, world-renowned Tolkien artist was sitting a few rows in front of me. We started about 10:05, an hour or so behind schedule, but once it started, everyone was mesmerized. We started things off with an Italian folk band called “Lingalad” who were accompanied by the amazing abilities of a man named “Thoth”, this guy was amazing to say the least, he sang and danced and played violin all at the same time while using his 4+ voice octaves! They acted out “The Music of the Ainur” which was narrated by Kate Robinson. This was all amazing, an I specifically remember that at the end of the performance, everyone was so in awe that no one clapped, until “Thoth” turned around and smiled, and the room erupted! When the opening ceremonies were through with, it was off to my first session.