RenFest recreates ye old world

Paul Lopez

The Signal

Hear ye, hear ye, lords and ladies. The nation’s largest Renaissance festival, with more than 50 acres of 16th century-style shops, attractions and games is just a short road trip away.

Located in Plantersville, the Texas Renaissance Festival runs for eight weekends this year. From Oct. 8 to Nov. 27, visitors can escape the nine-to-five for a weekend or two.

The moment visitors arrive they are immersed in a world that existed 500 years ago. People in renaissance outfits parade the festival grounds. Shops look as if they were constructed by the hands of the merchants selling goods from inside them and live Celtic music resonates from the voices, drums and lutes of seasoned performers.

The staff goes to great measures to ensure that everything about the festival is authentic, from the costumes to the entertainers, to the food and even the accents.

“Our performers have a two-month rehearsal leading up to the festival,” said Mandy Love, marketing and relations manager for the Texas Renaissance Festival.

Some acts include perennial favorites such as: “Christophe the Insulter,” a one-man show where visitors pay a fee to have their friends and relatives “professionally” insulted; “Birds of Prey,” a show featuring several trained birds flying about the audience; and “Ded Bob,” a womanizing skeleton brought to life by a man whose face and body are concealed, so he appears as an executioner.

“One of the defining moments in finding Bob’s character was when a very young, probably jail-bait Lolita came through the gate dressed like a hooker,” said Clark Orwick, the man who brings “Ded Bob” to life. “Bob said ‘Where have you been all my death?’ … Her reaction, and the others in the group was a beautiful thing.”

Other shows and shops feature skills and stunts one can only find at a renaissance-like festival. There is juggling, firebreathing, armormaking, glassblowing, candlemaking, weaving, coinminting and more.

Of course there is some authentic jousting too, where visitors can root for knights from four different countries — Spain, Germany, England or France.
Similar to the jousting divisions, the festival is divided into country-themed areas.

In the Greek, or Agora, section visitors can find one-of-a-kind baklava, gyros and the Gypsy Dance Theatre.

Teeming with leiderhosen-clad men and women is the German area where visitors can indulge in weiner schnitzel and bratwurst.

Visitors craving the taste of fried alligator can find it in the French section.

Other countries represented are Spain, Italy, Wales and Poland.

New this year are Family Day Sundays and The Tower Stage. On Family Day Sundays, tickets are discounted when bought as a four-pack, which includes two adult and two children tickets for $50.

The Tower Stage was constructed in the German area and features a new act, The Steele Sisters, who combine comedy with sisterly love to produce a show that includes horses, flowers and weapons.

The festival grounds nearly became a victim of the wildfires that plagued central Texas over the summer. The fires raged within a half-mile of the area and the damage can be seen on the drive to the festival — charred trees, barren areas that used to be wooded and a few crumbling buildings.

Because of the burn ban still in effect, the traditional fireworks show that concludes each day has been replaced with a laser light show.

“In the tradition of London’s Royal Fireworks above the Thames, the New Market Village will present a special Royal Finale in honor of the King and Queen,” Love said. “Marking the close of the day, the Royal Finale: Queen Titania’s Magical Light Show will take place at dark above the Arena.”

The festival lasts two months, which gives the staff a long offseason to prepare for the 50,000 people who attend each weekend. This time is spent repairing the shops, maintaining the grounds and setting up promotional events. Many of the performers travel in a circuit from festival to festival.

“Most people think October arrives and we just flip on a switch and it’s all here, but that’s hardly the case,” Love said. “We have a lot to prepare and maintain throughout the year from the physical grounds of the festival all the way up to our actual cast members.”

There are only three weekends left this year to experience a place where you can eat steak on a stick, participate in a Barbarian battle-crying contest, and feel fashionable wearing outrageously outdated garb.

The festival gates are open only Saturdays, Sundays and the Friday after Thanksgiving from 9 a.m. to dusk. Adult tickets at the gate are $25 and child tickets are $12. Visit www.texrenfest for more information, a festival map, and a list of show times.




The Signal reporter Daniel Agee attended the Texas Renaissance Festival to see what exactly happens at the nation’s largest Renaissance festival.