It's that time of the year again! Hawkwood Medieval Fantasy Faire is back for Year 2 and it's bigger and better!
Remember, click on the small images to see the full size picture.
So you want to be entertained.
It's hot, so you want to just sit in the shade with that
nice, ice-cold beverage of your choice and watch someone else
move around in the heat.
Well, there are lots of folk at Hawkwood whose sole purpose
(ok, maybe not their sole purpose, but at least one purpose)
is to entertain you.
Commedia dell' Carte
is one of them. Hmmm, can a group of people be
"one of them?"
Anyway, whether they are playing with patrons -
Columbina
is watching for style pointers -
or dying on stage (happens a lot in their performances ... no, I
don't mean that their performances die, but that most of the
pieces they perform feature characters who die, and ... oh, you
know what I mean),
Commedia dell Carte is sure to make you laugh.
And don't forget to visit the
Commedia home page.
The Elves of Mistwood
are back with a completely new show.
The new show has
drama, romance
and
adventure.
Who will win the magicians duel?
What evil designs does ol' "round ears"
have up his sleeve?
New this year is the comedy juggling act
Throw Up.
These guys are good jugglers and they have
really good patter (a technical term refering
to their verbal interaction with each other
and the audience during their act).
And for a change, it's not the little guy who
does all the talking!
There are lots of crafts demonstrations at Hawkwood.
Jonathan
makes cups, goblets and bowls throughout
the day using his
foot-powered potter's wheel.
He makes it all look so easy, but I know
from experience that it is not simple to create a
tall form and keep it symmetric, particularly
when you would like the walls to be less than
1 inch thick.
Jonathan is very good at it.
He's also got a great view of the
Green Badger pub stage
from the back of his shop.
My "hangout" at Hawkwood is with
Lance
and
Gary
at the
SaferSwords
booth.
This is where I stash my camera bag
(and all the loot that I collect during the day).
Lance and Gary have a an area set aside for
people to try out SaferSwords.
It's really rare to not have a couple of
people (adults or kids)
out there whomping each other while several
more wait their turn.
And then on Saturday evening, the
really big kids come out to try their skills
against each other.
You can find out more about SaferSwords
by visiting
The SaferSwords Toy Box on the Web.
Speaking of games, over at the main pub area you can find
pirates
and their friends
playing cards.
The game most often played is
Shilo.
In fact, although they claim to know other card games,
Shilo is the only one I've ever seen them play.
The game starts in the morning and it goes on all day.
Players switch in and out constantly.
I've even played a few hands myself.
Speaking of games, there is a place to take the
little ones when they need a break from the excitement
of the day.
The Land of Fidget
has several play areas for the kids where they can
build castles and wage their own battles.
Hawkwood is different from other Medieval and Renaissance faires.
All of those
fairies, elves and other strange creatures
that you hear of in song and story are actually here!
Like this
green-winged fairy conversing with a badger.
If you go to Hawkwood, you have to see the
Highland Games
as performed by the
Scottish Caledonian Gamers.
Some of the games you will see are the caber toss,
throwing for height, and throwing for distance.
In the picture on the left,
Trotter
is attempting a one-handed caber toss.
He made it, too!
Cabers, even the smaller size used by women and
beginners, are very heavy and awkward.
Not everyone can do it one-handed.