Philly events worth geeking out over

Over its nearly 240-year history, Fort Mifflin has survived a siege and a prison break across three major wars. But last Saturday, the brick-and-mortar fortress next to Philadelphia International Airport saw combat of a different sort.

Grown men and women ran back and forth across the fort's parade ground with broomsticks between their legs. They were playing Quidditch - the magical sport from the Harry Potter wizard-fantasy series.

With planes flying overhead to land at the airport, members of the South Jersey Hellhounds, an amateur Quidditch squad, chased after the elusive Golden Snitch - or in this "Muggle-re-enactment," a player in yellow gym shorts with a ball attached to the backside.

Inside the fort, visitors to an all-day "geektacular event" (including an infant repping Gryffindor colors) had their pick of other nerdy attractions, from a recruitment table for the mobile "augmented reality" game Ingress ("like Four Square, with weapons," one player explained), to a Dungeons and Dragons demonstration in an actual Civil War-era dungeon.

Kevin Impellizeri, wearing a Pong t-shirt and steampunk goggles, welcomed the attendees of Fort Mifflin's Fun and Wargames Day, geared to the video-gamers, role-playing gamers, sci-fi enthusiasts and fantasy fans who have become a driving force in American pop culture.

The fort sees geeks as a new audience to tap, beyond the history buffs and ghost-chasers who are two of the historic site's key demographics, he said.

Also: "There are few opportunities to wear your goggles and not seem crazy."

Impellizeri, the education program coordinator at Fort Mifflin, said that the Fun and Wargames event found a receptive audience.

"The weird thing that's happened is that geek culture has become mainstream," he said. Witness the 24 Emmy nominations that "Game of Thrones" picked up this week, or the vast Comic-Con International that just wrapped in San Diego, with such A-listers as Halle Berry in attendance.

And as that's happened, geek events, long relegated to offbeat novelty stores and second-run suburban convention halls, have migrated to mainstream venues.

This summer in Philly, the Mann Center is programming outdoor concert events for Tolkien fans and video-gamers, the Academy of Natural Sciences is hosting a red-carpet geeks' night out and one of the city's hurting sports franchises - no spoiler alerts here, please stay tuned until our story's thrilling conclusion - is summoning the force of The Force to fill seats.

Not all geektacular events are as lucrative as the "Game of Thrones" television series, based on the fantasy novels, but they do have the makings of an attractive economic model.

Philly Comic Con, a four-day event at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Center City, generally attracts thousands of fans despite being one of the smaller conventions nationwide. San Diego Comic-Con, by contrast, brings over 100,000 fans.

It's a fanatical fanbase, too.

"A geek is really someone that is truly passionate about something," said Robby Perdue, project manager of the gala Philadelphia Geek Awards at the Academy of Natural Sciences next month and contributor to Geekadelphia.com.

The Mann Center for the Performing Arts will get its geek on this Thursday to tap that passion when the Philadelphia Orchestra plays the score from "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring."

Part of the Movies at the Mann series, the event features the internationally acclaimed orchestra and a supplementary choir, playing beneath two huge video screens airing the epic fantasy film.

The dialogue and visual effects remain, but every element of the score is stripped from the film.

"The conductor has to keep the orchestra in sync with the actual movie," said Cathy Cahill, president and CEO of the Mann.

The Mann began reaching out to geeks in 2012 when the Pittsburgh Symphony performed music from the "Legend of Zelda" video game. The event proved so popular that the Mann commissioned a concert in which the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia performed Pokémon music, and is doing another "Zelda" show in September.

"There's a huge following for video-game music," Cahill said. "Our audiences have ranged anywhere from 6,500 to 5,000 a night" for the "Zelda" and Pokémon performances.

The Mann's geek events generally attract a diverse crowd, many of whom have attended few previous events at the Mann, according to Cahill's recollection of audience surveys from the events.

"They are absolutely passionate about these characters and this music," she said. "They come in costume and are really creative."

Some geeks have quite the moolah to spend toward their geeky interests.

"We're a pretty successful group of individuals who have money to spend on our hobby," said Joe Milam, the IT professional who co-captains the Quidditch team that invaded Fort Mifflin.

Autumn Hipszer, the other co-captain and a veterinary technician, agreed.

"That's a market that people weren't exploiting before," she said. "Some of them make six-figure salaries."

Comic-Con appearances by celebrities like Berry embolden people with geeky interests to emerge from the basement gameroom to flex their market muscle, Milam said. "With these celebrities coming out, other people - the common person - can say, 'It's OK to be a geek.' "

Geeks have been happy to subsidize events catering to their interests, whether at the Mann, Fort Mifflin, the Academy of Natural Sciences . . . or Citizens Bank Park.

"Star Wars" Night, one of the Phillies' theme nights at the ballpark, will take place Aug. 19, when the team takes on the Toronto Blue Jays.

The first 2,000 fans will receive a Phillies Star Wars T-shirt (on which the Phillie Phanatic is sporting his very own light saber).

Even the jocks are looking to attract nerds now.

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Check out these upcoming geektacular events at a geek-courting venue near you:

"Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," Thursday. Movie accompanied by the Philadelphia Orchestra, Mendelssohn Club and Boys Choir, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, $25-$85, Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave., 800-745-3000, manncenter.org.

Mega-Bad Movie Night: "Deep Blue Sea," also Thursday. Renny Harlin sci-fi thriller is next in a nerd-friendly film series hosted by the Academy of Natural Sciences. 5:30 p.m. Thursday, $15-25 (including food and a drink), 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, ansp.org.

"Weird Al" Yankovic, July 31. Proto-geek stops in Philly on his Mandatory World Tour, supporting the new album "Mandatory Fun," 7:30 p.m., $29.50-$69.50, Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave., 800-745-3000, manncenter.org.

Philadelphia Geek Awards, Aug. 15. Black-tie, red-carpet event "honoring outstanding achievements in Philadelphia's vibrant geek community," 8 p.m., $45 (tickets on sale Aug. 3), phillygeekawards.com.

"Star Wars" Night at the Philadelphia Phillies, Aug. 19. Phillies play the Toronto Blue Jays. First 2,000 fans to purchase tickets from themed website receive "Star Wars"-themed Phillies T-shirts, Citizens Bank Park, One Citizens Bank Way, 7:05 p.m., $16-$43, Tickets.

"Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses - Master Quest," with Live Orchestra, Sept. 18. An orchestra and choir (orchestra TBA) play music from the video game to accompany clips onscreen. Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave., 8 p.m., $55-$100, 800-745-3000, manncenter.org.