Material: Cosplayers

Cosplay (コスプレ, kosupure), short for "costume play",^[1] is a type of performance art whose participants outfit themselves, with often-elaborate costumes and accessories, as a specific character.
Cosplay participants ("cosplayers") form a subculture centered around wearing their costumes and reenacting scenes or inventing likely behavior inspired by their chosen sources. In some circles, the term cosplay has been broadened to include simply wearing a costume, without special consideration given to enacting characters in a performance context.
Conventions in America often include both cosplay and costume contests.^[10] The cosplay, or "masque", (masquerade) is a skit contest done in cosplay costume. The costume contest is often a test of skill, design, and audience reaction. The contestants are judged either beforehand or on stage and then walk across said stage while the audience cheers (or not, depending on the etiquette of the venue). The increased popularity of convention costuming has led to the addition of several relatively new cosplay-based events, adding to the traditional masquerade and hall costume contests. Such events include the Anime Dating Game and Cosplay Human Chess, where participating cosplayers act out their characters' role in the game accordingly.