TN Renaissance Festival (Revisited)

SCraig · May 19, 2012

I went to the Renaissance Festival again today. Events of this type are just so cool for photographers because there is no end of subjects.

The predominant expression on most of the cast members. Obviously they love what they are doing, but it has to get tiring after a month.

A lot of effort goes into the costumes but somehow I suspect the whiskers are real.

Without question some of the most gorgeous eyes in the world.

I always go to this event early and here is why. The ticket window opens at 9:30 and the main gate at 10:00. I normally get there about 9:45 or so just to beat the lines. They have a large parking area, probably 1/2 mile wide with a road down the middle, and I usually wind up parking on the first or second row. Today I think there were three people ahead of me in the line for a ticket.

The photos below were taken at 11:15. The line of people in the second one is the TAIL END of the line for the ticket window! The parking area on the right side of the road is nearly full, and the photo just shows a small portion of it. The parking area on the left side of the road was about half full to.

Vtec44 · May 19, 2012

We have something similar in So Cal and I love going to the fair.

SCraig · May 19, 2012

Vtec44 said:
We have something similar in So Cal and I love going to the fair.

They are a lot of fun. The one here runs each weekend in May and is located on a relatively permanent site. The property owners actually built a castle on the property (I can't find any good web sites that point to it but Google "Castle Gwynn Arrington TN" and you can find some information on it) and give tours of it during the festival.

I went to it for the first time in 2010 and since have gone 3 times each year. Other than the hot, humid weather in May it is a great event and I look forward to it all year.

ambaker · May 19, 2012

There used to be one at Sears Point, in northern California. It closed years ago, when land prices caught up to it. It was amazing fun however.

user3977 · May 21, 2012

The Tennessee Renaissance Festival - your finest entertainment venue just outside of Nashville there ya go, info on it. I'm going to try to get out there this weekend myself. been looking forward to it.

michael9000000 · May 22, 2012

Photo #2 is truly epic!

SCraig · May 22, 2012

ambaker said:
There used to be one at Sears Point, in northern California. It closed years ago, when land prices caught up to it. It was amazing fun however.

After seeing some of the posts here I started looking and it seems that most states have a Renaissance Festival each year. I know that there are groups of people who do Renaissance reenactments as a hobby (our receptionist is part of one group) but I didn't realize that the festivals were as popular as they appear to be.

user3977 said:
The Tennessee Renaissance Festival - your finest entertainment venue just outside of Nashville there ya go, info on it. I'm going to try to get out there this weekend myself. been looking forward to it.

You'll enjoy it. Except for the heat and the crowds. It's supposed to be hot this coming weekend and since it's the last weekend it will be packed. I strongly suggest that you get there early or you'll be part of my last two photos above!

Coming from Cookeville it's easy to find. I-40 west to I-840. Then I-840 to Highway 41A (I think it's exit 42). Turn right off of I-840, go to the 4-way stop at Highway 96 and turn right again. The event is about a mile north on Highway 96 at Newcastle Road. There will be orange traffic cones at the intersection and it's right on top of a hill. DON'T turn into the cast parking lot at the bottom of the hill, the road you want is at the top (you'll understand that part when you see it).

You can actually see Castle Gwynn from I-840. It sits on top of a bluff right before the exit.

michael9000000 said:
Photo #2 is truly epic!

Thanks, I'm glad you like it. I may play with that one some more. I'd like to get rid of the white t-shirt in the background and lighten his face up just a little bit.

Buckster · May 22, 2012

SCraig said:
ambaker said:

There used to be one at Sears Point, in northern California. It closed years ago, when land prices caught up to it. It was amazing fun however.

Click to expand...

After seeing some of the posts here I started looking and it seems that most states have a Renaissance Festival each year. I know that there are groups of people who do Renaissance reenactments as a hobby (our receptionist is part of one group) but I didn't realize that the festivals were as popular as they appear to be.

Yeah, I've been to several of them around the country over the years. The first I went to was in New York, then one in New Jersey, then Florida, Missouri, and heck, I can't even remember them all off the top of my head.

I just assumed they were a traveling carnival type thing that was on a circuit each year during the season, and that locals who were into it became a part of it whenever they were in town.

SCraig · May 22, 2012

Buckster said:
Yeah, I've been to several of them around the country over the years. The first I went to was in New York, then one in New Jersey, then Florida, Missouri, and heck, I can't even remember them all off the top of my head.

I just assumed they were a traveling carnival type thing that was on a circuit each year during the season, and that locals who were into it became a part of it whenever they were in town.

I guess that's what I thought as well. I never realized that people were doing reenactments of that period until I started working here and talked with our receptionist about it. I think the Renaissance Festivals are an offshoot of that however the group that puts on the Renaissance Festival here is absolutely NOT associated with the group that does the reenactments. I don't know what the issue is but there appears to be some animosity between the two groups around here. But, I guess that's fair since there was a lot of animosity between villages in 16th century England as well

I found it strange, or perhaps "unexpected" is a better word, that the cast was so emphatic about staying in character. They speak with a period accent all day long, they use phrases and dialog that is, presumably, correct for the period. Most of them absolutely will not break character either. Last year I got an email from one of the cast members that had seen the photographs on my web site and wanted permission to use some of them on her Facebook page. I went back again a week or two later, and when I saw her I introduced myself but I honestly might have been talking to a 16th century person. I said something about the photographs and her comment was, "What is this 'Photograph' device of which you speak?"