The Georgia Renaissance Festival is a

Renaissance fair A Renaissance fair, Renaissance faire or Renaissance festival is an outdoor gathering open to the public and typically commercial in nature, which purportedly recreates a historical setting for the amusement of its guests. Some are permanent the ...

that recreates England's

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

for entertainment purposes. The time period for the festival is set as the 16th century, during the reign of King

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. The festival is located near Fairburn,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, United States and has been in operation since 1986. Situated on of the land, the festival is open for eight weekends during late spring and early summer, plus

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

and one Field Trip Day each year for Students to experience life in Renaissance England The festival was canceled for the 2020 season because of COVID-19. From 2021 & hereafter,

social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious disea ...

and wearing masks are required.

Entertainment

Ten performance stages are situated throughout the festival, featuring shows for all ages. The entertainment includes

jugglers Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling. Juggling can be the manipulation of one object ...

, musicians, comedic storytelling, and the

joust Jousting is a martial game or hastilude between two horse riders wielding lances with blunted tips, often as part of a tournament. The primary aim was to replicate a clash of heavy cavalry, with each participant trying to strike the opponent w ...

. Professional cast members portray the

royal court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word "court" may also be appl ...

monks A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedicat ...

, and

peasants A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

. Patrons are encouraged to dress up as well. The festival features more than 150 artisans, including wire bending, hair wraps and braiding,

glassblowing Glassblowing is a glassforming technique that involves inflating molten glass into a bubble (or parison) with the aid of a Blowpipe (tool), blowpipe (or blow tube). A person who blows glass is called a ''glassblower'', ''glassmith'', or ''gaffer'' ...

, handmade pottery, and a

coin mint A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins that can be used as currency. The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. In the beginning, hammered coinage or cast coinage were the chief means of coin minting ...

. Most of the artisans offer a demonstration of their trade. There are also various clothiers which specialize in period costumes, weapon smiths, and a foundry that offers pewter items. Food vendors at the festival range from a simple lunch, such as turkey legs and ale, to dining at the tea room. For children there are games of darts, arts and crafts, and rides like the Columbus ships or the Barrel of Bedlam. Children can also enjoy a

petting zoo A petting zoo (also called a children's zoo, children's farm, or petting farm) features a combination of domesticated animals and some wild species that are docile enough to touch and feed. In addition to independent petting zoos, many general ...

or the

birds of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...

show.

Awards

The Georgia Renaissance Festival was voted as one of the top 20 Events in the Southeast from the

Southeast Tourism Society STS logo 2015.jpg "The Southeast Tourism Society" (STS), is a non-profit membership organization promoting tourism within the 13 Southeastern member states and the District of Columbia by sharing resources, fostering cooperation, networking, provid ...

in 2016. In 1999 the

American Bus Association The American Bus Association (ABA) is a trade association for motorcoach operators and tour companies in the United States and Canada. Its membership consists of about 1,000 companies that operate buses or bus-based tours, about 2,800 organizati ...

voted the Georgia Renaissance Festival one of the top 100 events in North America.

References

External links

* http://www.ntunega.com/Georgia-Renaissance-Festival.html
Official site
{{Atlanta events Festivals in Atlanta Tourist attractions in Fulton County, Georgia Renaissance fairs Festivals established in 1986

Entertainment

Awards

See also

References

External links