Ohio Renaissance Festival hosting abridged version of celebration

The cancellation of this year’s Ohio Renaissance Festival was one of the toughest realities to swallow amid the coronavirus pandemic.

For 30 years, festivalgoers dressed in Medieval attire have flocked to the Ohio Renaissance Festival for feasts, performances, shopping, historical demonstrations and themed weekends from Labor Day through the end of October.

This fall, the organizers of the Ohio Renaissance Festival have found a way to hold a smaller version of this celebration that abides by state guidelines for health and safety during the pandemic.

The Magical Days, Madrigal Knights is a series of scaled-down events set to take place on Saturday, Sept. 26, Saturday, Oct. 10 and Saturday, Oct. 17, at Renaissance Park in Waynesville. The events feature shopping, food and drinks, live entertainment, and a Madrigal Feast. Tickets for the feast are currently sold out.

During Magical Days, guests can look forward to catching a glimpse of the following entertainment acts while at the events:

- Kamikaze Fireflies

- Ramblin Rhythms Belly Dance

- Wenches a’Wailing

- Father Son and Friends

- Lads on the Lash

- Pirate’s Creed

- Rogues of Rafferty

- The Sirens

- Irate Pyrate

- PB& J Circus

- Cirque Lapin

- The Queen’s Choice Musicians

- Made Up Mayhem

- Witches of Willy Nilly

For a full list of food and shopping vendors, visit the Ohio Renaissance Festival’s website.

Admission to the Magical Days Festival is $10 per person. Children 12 years of age and younger get into the festival for free. Tickets to the Sept. 26 and Oct. 10 festivals are sold out, though organizers have stated that plenty of tickets to the Oct. 17 date are still available online. Tickets can be purchased online by visiting the Ohio Renaissance Festival’s website. Parking for the event is free.

For those of you who simply cannot wait until Oct. 17 to participate in this abridged version of the Renaissance Festival, organizers have been busy putting together other events throughout the months of September and October that allow festival fans to revel in a bit of the glory from the Medieval era.

On Sunday, Sept. 27 at 3 p.m., guests are invited (dressed in magical attire, of course) to participate in the Paint and Sip “Over the Shire” at the 1572 Roadhouse, located on the grounds of the Ohio Renaissance Festival.

Renaissance Festival fans can partake in the DressForTheFest challenge, in which fans can send in a picture of themselves dressed as they though are ready to enter the hallowed grounds of the Renaissance Festival. Each week, organizers pick a different theme in which participants must emulate with an eye-catching ensemble. Participants can post these photos on Instagram or Facebook with the hashtag #DressForTheFest2020 to have their picture appear on the Renaissance Festival’s social media platforms.


WANT TO GO?

What: Magical Days, Madrigal Knights

Where: The Ohio Renaissance Festival Grounds, 10542 East State Route 73, Waynesville

When: Saturday, Oct. 17, from 2-10 p.m.

Cost: $10 per person

More info: www.renfestival.com/magicaldays

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