Get Thee to the Faire

The PA Renaissance Faire that is!  We went last weekend for the first time.  We talk about it every year and never get it together but this year with prompting and an invite from the Summers we made it!  We then in turn invited the Kembles and a merry day was had by all!

Scenario

The year is 1590 and the shire of Mount Hope is having a celebration of theatre, art, music and dance! The decree has gone out throughout the land beckoning all sorts of remarkable personalities including William Shakespeare and Queen Elizabeth’s very own acting company, The Queen’s Men, who have come to the Shire to host this grand celebration.

But plague is running rampant throughout London and theatres are being shut down and plays are being banned within the city. Not only because of the risk of widespread disease but because the theatres are also being used for gambling and other unsavory deeds! Sir Robert Cecil, Secretary of State to the Queen and a powerful puritanical influence is one of the men who is now tightening his grip on theatre throughout the land, including Mount Hope!

But who else will be visiting the Shire? Christopher Marlowe, the ever charming, brilliant and outspoken archrival to William Shakespeare and his acting company, The Admiral’s Men, are on the scene to lend their theatrical prowess to this day!

When these three converge, the “drama” explodes and culminates with a visit from the Queen of England Herself! For the love of theatre, Queen Elizabeth commands that today shall be a contest of dramatic proportions between her beloved Shakespeare and Queen’s Men against Christopher Marlowe and his Admiral’s men. A glorious day of the arts!

But what will Sir Robert Cecil and the Puritanical Council think of this? What will happen when the brilliance and ego of Shakespeare and Marlowe clash! A true theatrical contest ensues…on street and stage…with some of Shakespeare’s and Marlowe’s best plays, scenes, characters and more!

The Shire of Mount Hope springs to life, where hundreds of craftsmen and artisans, chefs, townsfolk, mud beggars, actors, gypsies and more come to the Faire to sell their wares and rejoice that the Queen has arrived. Join the intrigue, drama and comedy in a day of pomp and pageantry with the Queen of England and the denizens of Mount Hope! Come to the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire...a feast for the senses! 

It was an experience that all 13 of us will remember by far.  From the medieval games the kids tried in the beginning to the ultimate joust to end the day there was lots to see and do and 8 hours went by in the blink of an eye.  Definitely on our list for a return visit in the coming years!  Took lots, LOTS of pics - just posting a few here, 54 to be exact.  *HAHA*