The Brevard Renaissance Fair is an almost brand new Renaissance fair that started just last year (that's Brevard County, Florida). It expanded to three weekends this year but I only had a chance to go one day on the final weekend. I can't say that I have experience with a large number of Renaissance fairs but they seem to do a pretty good job with this one.
My first and really only other experience is with the Hoggetowne Medieval Faire in Gainesville, Florida. I first went to that one in 1997 or 1998 when I was going to school there and have gone almost every year for the past ten years give or take. I love going and it has a very consistent lineup of performers and vendors. The disadvantage is that since I graduated and moved away it has been a three hour drive to get there and another three hour drive to get home. It has been nice to have a home town fair.
This year I didn't have the opportunity to go to Gainesville but I managed to make it to my hometown fair even if it was only for a day. Like most Renaissance fairs, the Brevard Renaissance Fair had a number of performers, vendors and activities. I used to go mostly for the jousting tournaments and to check out the vendors' wares. In recent years I've enjoyed the music the most.
I arrived just after noon and caught the end of The Craic's first show of the day.
I first saw The Craic more than a year ago at Nerd Fest in Melbourne, FL and also at the inaugural Brevard Renaissance Fair. They are an awesome band and even have an Irish Steampunk alter ego called Clockwork Knotwork. They put on a pretty spectacular show heavy on bagpipes and drums.
Next up was The Jackdaws. I first saw them at last year's Brevard Renaissance Fair and they were back again this year. They are not quite as high energy but the music was still good.
After the Jackdaws came Wolgemut. They were somewhat similar to The Craic in that their music largely consisted of pipes and drums but with fewer vocals.
I waited around until The Craic were back up again so I could catch a whole set. They were on again shortly after Wolgemut.
Afterwards I finally took a break from the music and went to explore the rest of the fair. I managed to refrain from spending too much money this time. In addition to checking out the vendors I caught part of one of the jousting tournaments and grabbed some lunch. Apparently, some of the local wildlife wanted to join me for lunch.
After lunch and a little more wandering around it was back to the main stage for some more music. The Craic were back up once more. They perform a different set each time and each set is only about 30 minutes so it is worthwhile to watch the same band multiple times vs. doing something different if it is a band you like.
By the time this show ended it was about time for the closing pub sing. This is typical of Renaissane fairs and is basically a show where all or at least most of the performers come up to do one last song. The highlight for me was, again, The Craic. They performed their "Shee An Gannon" which is definitely a grand finale for them. It tells the not atypcial story of a princess a beast and a hero but it is done well. They usually have other performers come up and act out part of it or give otherwise interpretive performances.
But it wasn't just The Craic and those helping out with their finale. Several other performers wer there to including:
Hips of Destruction (with Wolgemut helping them out with the music)
The Limeybirds
And lots more!
If you have never been to a Renaissance Fair then you should definitely make your way to one. Most likely there is one at some point during the year somewhere near you. Over the next few weeks I'll post videos from some of the performances as I get them uploaded.