Extra Lives is the world’s first Audience RPG: a fully narrated choose-your-own-adventure game where you are the main character! Plunge into an exciting story with lights, music, sound effects and visuals from the legendary console games of the ‘80s, ‘90s and 2000s... and a live score provided by the lovable nerds of Extra Lives. This immersive feast for the imagination will transport you back to your childhood, whether you grew up playing video games or not!

This year's Artist Alley features a variety of artists and vendors of Anime and Manga-related goods, with materials for sale to attendees!

This event is part of Anime Arbor. For more information, go to aadl.org/animearbor

Celebrate Chinese culture and create a very cute little Monkey King out of air-dry clay! Sun Wukong is one of China's most famous mythological characters. Join local artist Lyla Wang, who will guide you though simple step-by-step instructions.

Join us for a concert with Ben Zucker. Zucker engages in acts of creative juxtaposition and speculation as a composer, audiovisual artist, and multi-instrumentalist.

Orin Ọmọdé (Children’s Song) is an educational concert experience designed to introduce young audiences to the beauty, diversity, and cultural richness of African and diasporic music. Through storytelling, rhythm, song, and interactive performance, students are invited to explore the historical and cultural significance of music as a living tradition that connects past and present.

Join us for the premiere of Resilience Revealed, a new documentary on the role Ann Arbor has played in the world of accessibility and disability activism. Filmmaker Zach Damon will introduce the film and take questions afterwards.

Join the Michigan Taiwanese American Organization (MITAI) to get ready for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Taiwanese American Heritage Week in May! Festivities will include a Lion Dance, take-home paper snake crafts, and a lecture about the 12 Lunar Zodiac animals. 

Local music teacher Momo Kajiwara will lead us in song, movement, and storytelling in Japanese!

Inspired by The Hivemind Swarmed (Beacon Press, 2024), this panel explores the internet’s impact on culture, identity, and the human cost of “cool” jobs like making video games. Chicago author, and journalist-turned-oral historian, David Wolinsky joins experts in digital culture, gaming, and media to discuss how the internet has shaped modern bad-faith dynamics—and why gaming’s massive influence remains overlooked in journalism and public discourse.

Come hear a selection of various Nintendo and other video game music, played live by the Video Game Music Band from the University of Michigan!