Jousting merriment

Renaissance faire encourages imagination

From left, Kathy Forman and Alisha Logan, who play gypsies Kat and Zahrina, respectfully, examine a piece of jewelry they stole from Lord Mayor Jacob Twittle, played by Sean Tardif. The Hot Springs Renaissance Faire is scheduled for Saturday and Nov. 3 at the Garland County Fairgrounds in Hot Springs.
From left, Kathy Forman and Alisha Logan, who play gypsies Kat and Zahrina, respectfully, examine a piece of jewelry they stole from Lord Mayor Jacob Twittle, played by Sean Tardif. The Hot Springs Renaissance Faire is scheduled for Saturday and Nov. 3 at the Garland County Fairgrounds in Hot Springs.

— When Alisha Logan was a kid growing up in California, one of her fondest memories was attending the local Renaissance faire.

“It was one of my best memories as a child,” she said. “There was this big joust, and afterward, one of the actors was looking to pick somebody to give this flowery wreath to, and there were all these kids waving and trying to get picked.

“I was sitting there, quiet and shy, and the actor picked me — that was a special memory from my childhood.”

Now Logan hopes to return the favor by participating in the first Hot Springs Renaissance Faire on Saturday and Nov. 3 at the Garland County Fairgrounds in Hot Springs. Logan will act as Zahrina, one of the gypsies.

“I’m looking forward to interacting with the kids and giving someone the same kind of special memories,” Logan said. “Plus, I just enjoy dressing up — it is fun and awesome, and I get to do it more than just on Halloween. You are never too old to play dress-up.”

The Hot Springs Renaissance Faire will feature more than 80 vendors, as well as jousting, sword fighting and re-enactments of combat with full armor. There will also be music and comedy performances, along with six stages of theatrical acts and interactions with pirates, knights, a fairy and even Queen Elizabeth I.

Tickets for the event are $10 per day, or $15 for the weekend, for guests 13 or older; and $5 per day, or $7 for the weekend, for kids ages 6 to 12. Children 5 and younger will be admitted free. Tickets can be purchased at the fairgrounds the day of the event or online at www.purplepass.com.

“We do have a life-size dragon that will be parading around, trying not to eat people, and we will have live jousting — that’s a trip in itself — and we will have six stages of entertainment, with 20 acts,” said Travis Gates, director of the Hot Springs Renaissance Faire. “Plus, there will be turkey legs for purchase, which seem to be what everyone wants.”

Gates said others have tried a couple of times to put on a Renaissance faire in Hot Springs, but it hasn’t been successful — usually because of the lack of interest and funding. And it wasn’t until someone told Gates that he wouldn’t be able to put on such an event that he fully committed to the idea.

“They told me, ‘You can’t do this,’ and I said, ‘You’re right, I can’t do this by myself, so I need to find some new friends,’” Gates said. “Now, we have 60 people on cast and crew, and that’s a pretty good group.

“We just started a year ago, started having the meetings, and now almost to the day, we are putting on the faire.”

Meredith Steward, who acts as Captain Morgan for the faire, has lived in Hot Springs for a year and a half. When she moved to the area, she didn’t know anybody in Hot Springs, and when the initial meeting for the faire popped up on her Facebook, she said it hit at the right time.

“It is very apparent that not many people know what a Renaissance faire is, even though two of the largest faires are in Texas,” she said. “There is somewhat of a disconnect in Arkansas, especially in central Arkansas.

“But we are just normal people who enjoy being someone different for a few days to bring some history to life. We are just like the Civil War guys, just further back.”

The faire is presented by Gates Family Entertainment, a nonprofit group that the Gates family founded. Gates said the mission of the faire is to increase literacy and imagination of children by providing family-friendly events throughout the year.

“Our ultimate goal is to produce at least four different scholarships for high school students,” he said. “They would write us an essay, describing how they would use their imagination to change the world. We are really hoping to raise enough money to provide $1,000 for each scholarship. … We want to bring back that imagination, because if you do it right, it will be a life-long pursuit and actually better your quality of life.”

Sean Tardif and his wife, Sheila, will perform for the faire as Lord Mayor Jacob Twittle and Lady Mary Twittle. Sean has helped in the construction of the sets, and he said it has “been awesome to see it all come together.”

“What we love about this faire is that it has a purpose,” Sean said. “It is promoting literacy and promoting the history, because it is based on an actual town in New England, set in a certain time period. We aren’t just picking stuff out of thin air — we are actually following history.”

In addition to the historical aspects, the faire will add a bit of fantasy with mythical creatures such as dragons and fairies.

Emily Boyett, who performs as a fairy named Pyra Flames, used to own a freak show, but when she and her husband, Paul, stepped away from it, there was still that desire to perform again. She and Paul are fire performers.

“When Travis found out we were fire performers, he asked if we would perform for the faire, and we immediately jumped on it,” she said. “It is nice to get away from the everyday. Being this character helps you break away from it.”

Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.

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