The Minnesota 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 ...

, an interactive outdoor event which focuses on recreating the look and feel of a fictional 16th Century "England-like" fantasy kingdom. It operates during seven consecutive weekends, from mid-August until the final week in September (or sometimes the first weekend in October) on a site near the

Minnesota River The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It ris ...

Shakopee Shakopee ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Minnesota, United States. It is located southwest of Minneapolis. Sited on the south bank bend of the Minnesota River, Shakopee and nearby suburbs comprise the southwest portion of ...

, a suburb of the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in sta ...

. The Minnesota Renaissance Festival began on September 11, 1971, with

Tovah Feldshuh Terri Sue "Tovah" Feldshuh (born December 27, 1948) is an American actress, singer, and playwright. She has been a Broadway star for more than four decades, earning four Tony Award nominations. She has also received two Emmy Award nominations f ...

as the Queen, on a field in

Jonathan, Minnesota Jonathan, Minnesota is a homeowners' association that is a remnant of a planned community development within the city of Chaska, Minnesota in Carver County. It was named for Jonathan Carver, for whom Carver County also is named. In 2008, it is th ...

. More than 25,000 people visited the two-weekend grand opening of the festival, at which time it was called Minnesota Renaissance Fair (changed to Minnesota Renaissance Festival later on) and promoted as “A Celebration of Nature, Art and Life!” It was at the Jonathan site in 1971 and 1972. In 1973, it moved to a farm on highway 41 up the hill

orth Orth can refer to: Places * Orth, Minnesota, an unincorporated community in Nore Township, Minnesota, United States * Orth an der Donau, a town in Gänserndorf, Lower Austria, Austria * Orth House, a historic house in Winnetka, Illinois, United S ...

from Chaska, according to info on page 17 of the book "The History of the American Renaissance Festival" by Al Olson, published in 2021. In 1974, it moved to its current site in Shakopee, where it continues as one of the oldest and largest Renaissance festivals in the United States. It has played host to the early careers of such national acts as the magicians

Penn & Teller Penn & Teller, Penn Jillette and Teller, are American magicians, entertainers, and scientific skeptics who have performed together since the late 1970s. They are noted for their ongoing act that combines elements of comedy with magic. The duo h ...

and

The Flying Karamazov Brothers The Flying Karamazov Brothers (FKB) are a juggling and comedy troupe that has been performing since 1973. They learned their trade busking as street artists starting in Santa Cruz, California, eventually going on to perform nationally and internat ...

juggling troupe, and it currently hosts acts such as Zilch the Torysteller, Puke and Snot, Johnny Phoenix, The Tortuga Twins, and The Danger Committee. On August 19, 1975,

did their first show together at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival.

Jason Mraz Jason Thomas Mraz (; born June 23, 1977) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, ''Waiting for My Rocket to Come'' (2002), which spawned the single " The Remedy (I Won't ...

also worked as a pickle boy (a boy or man who sells pickles) early in his performance career.

The festival features over 700 entertainers, 275 crafters, and 120 food booths. Another popular feature is the Feast of Fantasy. The Minnesota Renaissance Festival is one of several such events in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

owned and operated by Mid-America Festivals, and it has grown to be one of the largest Renaissance Festivals in the United States, with an annual attendance of 300,000. Because the land on which the festival was built is leased, in 2014 Mid-America Festivals announced that 2016 would likely be the last season in its current location. The lease contains a clause in which the owners can terminate the lease at any time. In 2016 Mid-America Festivals announced the lease term would expire in 2019. Currently, several sites are under consideration, including properties in other parts of Scott County and near Belle Plaine, Minnesota. In December 2018 it was announced that the lease for the current site was extended thru the 2020 season. On August 19, 2020, it was stated on the Minnesota Renaissance Festival Facebook page that the 2020 season, which would have been the 50th season, was cancelled due to covid, and that the 2021 season will now be considered the 50th season. It was also stated that the lease for the current site was extended thru the 2021 season, though no new updates regarding the proposed new permanent site have been made since it was announced in March 2019 that a site in or near Jordan, Minnesota was probable, and that land near the Scott County Fairgrounds had been purchased for that purpose. On December 31, 2020, it was stated on the Minnesota Renaissance Festival Facebook page that the lease for the current site was extended thru the 2022 season.

Travel to the Festival

The Minnesota Renaissance Festival provides free parking at its site in Shakopee and directions from its website. Parking is available in two parking lots accessible by a single dirt road crossing active train tracks onto its 400-acre campus. Limited access to and from the festival site has led to significant transportation issues including delays as long as two hours either entering or leaving the fairgrounds. Traffic problems have created significant backups and delays along Minnesota Highway 169 with traffic being identified as the number one issue. In the 1980s, the

Minnesota Transportation Museum The Minnesota Transportation Museum (MTM, reporting mark MNTX) is a transportation museum in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. MTM operates several heritage transportation sites in Minnesota and one in Wisconsin. The museum is actively invol ...

provided train trips to the Renaissance Festival using Northern Pacific 328. These trains used

Chicago & North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...

tracks between Minneapolis and Merriam Junction, which is located next to the Renaissance Festival grounds. The rail line was severed between Hopkins and Chaska in 1991.

References

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External links

Minnesota Renaissance Festival
Festivals in Minnesota Festivals established in 1971 Tourist attractions in Scott County, Minnesota Renaissance fairs 1971 establishments in Minnesota

Travel to the Festival

See also

References

External links