Once Upon a
Renaissance
 Once
upon a time in a land far away... Well, actually, it is just a few
miles down the road... There was a magical kingdom called the
Renaissance Faire. These festivals apparently take place all over
the country as a celebration of something or another - I'm not
exactly sure what.
Basically, the participants try to go back in time to days of
yore, i.e., medieval times, chivalry, and 16th century life.
While these are not exactly the merry old days they are cracked up
to be, what with all the duels, wars, and beheadings attributed to
this period, there still seems to be a sort of story-book romance
attached to this period - the stuff that fairy tales are made of.
At a Renaissance Festival, folks dress up in medieval costumes and
run around in the woods in a recreation of a former lifestyle. For
purposes of entertainment, not to mention filling their purses
with gold, various loosely related entertainment acts and
activities are also brought in, and people come from places far
and wide to see them, paying high shilling for the privilege.
There are magicians, jugglers, comedians, fortunetellers, belly
dancers, singing mistrals and other exotic sorts of entertainment
scattered throughout the faire grounds. These are
intermingled with food booths and medieval crafts, and all are
tangled together in a festival of merry-making. It is rather fun
in a "once-upon-a-time" kind of way.
We sit on crude wooden benches and watch the sword fights and
musicians along with the rest of the audience. Some of the
onlookers join in the spirit of the day by wearing costumes
themselves, many of which are not exactly in keeping with the
medieval theme, but more like Halloween leftovers or old prom
dresses. But, oh well, it's the thought that counts, I
suppose.
Some of the more elaborate costumes are authentic and specially
created and worn by the "royal court." They preside over
the festival and also participate in a live chess match for the
amusement of the crowd. Most of the characters are ordinary
people who do this as a hobby and are not professionals.
There are also knights who wear authentic looking suits of armor
and joust on real horses, an interesting, if somewhat violent,
spectacle as they attempt to knock each other off galloping horses
with lances, and sometimes succeed.
It is necessary to join into the spirit of the event to enjoy it.
So, we clap and cheer the various performers along with everyone
else. I spend time prowling through the craft booths looking
at renaissance costumes and eating fish and chips. I even
have my palm read by a seer, who is about 50/50 correct in her
observations. I'm still looking for the angels she saw in
the palm of my hand and sneaking peeks at the long wrinkle in my
palm that represents intellect. Who would have thought?
My mind is jumbled with sword fighting, fire-eaters and dulcimer
players. My purse is much lighter, having been relieved of it's
monetary content to buy cheap jewelry, and other trinkets.
My grandson, who has no frame of reference for such an event, is
delighted and takes it all in stride, especially the trained birds
and falcons.
Like most fantasy, Camelot has been overly romanticized and the
reality, or even the recreation of reality, cannot measure up.
In spite of the element of mystique, the days of chivalry where
not quite as chivalrous as they are supposed to be. But for
an escapade in time and recreation of a literary reality, it is an
adventure that will leave you wishing for a castle with a
drawbridge. It is a step into a fairytale world where
knights are bold, maidens fair, and where everyone with admission
price lives happily ever after.
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