It’s not every day the city’s King and Queen join forces with a dragon to parade through a local park. In Moscow, it only happens once a year on the first weekend in May.
The Moscow Renaissance Fair is a 45-year-old tradition that will begin this year at 10 a.m. Saturday in East City Park. The event schedule is packed for a weekend full of music, dancing, art, food and community.
“We’re not a classic renaissance fair at all,” said Renaissance Fair Public Relations Producer Arlene Falcon.
Arlene has been a vendor at the Moscow Renaissance fair since the mid 1990s with her Tie Dye Everything business.
However, it’s not only a passion for tie-dye that distinguishes the Moscow Fair from a traditional renaissance fair.
“It’s more like a celebration of spring,” Arlene said. “We’re just eclectic.”
For Moscow Renaissance Fair President, Willow Falcon, the springtime vibe is exactly what makes the fair feel like a true renaissance.
“(A renaissance) is a period of art and creativity and renewal,” Willow said. “That’s springtime.”
She said she wants to help foster a sense of creativity and pride in one’s craft, and hopes that the fair helps achieve that in Moscow.
“We require that our vendors be craftspeople,” Willow said. The fair’s commitment to handmade wares hasn’t deterred over 100 vendors from flocking to the event, though.
“East City Park gets filled up to maximum,” Arlene said. In addition to craft vendors, local non-profit organizations are invited to sell food and the event is packed with activity stations including a beer garden, a puppet play station for children, a horseshoe pit, a photo booth, a falcon display hosted by WSU, a dragon maze and more.
Arlene said the event this year will feature a “lawn-mower powered train driving kids around the park” for the first time in the fair’s history.
“There’s tons of kid’s stuff,” she said.
The Moscow Renaissance Fair has several long-standing traditions that fill up the weekend’s schedule.
“We also have a May pole dance every year,” Arlene said. “That’s why it’s always the first weekend in May.”
Other beloved traditions include the parade through the park, featuring the Renaissance fair’s beloved papier-mache dragon and the Volunteer Peace Band.
“Hardly anything has changed since I was a kid,” Willow said.
However, the fair’s organizers are not afraid to try new things. For the first time, this year’s fair will feature a costume contest which will be judged by fair attendees.
Fair goers can also look forward to live blacksmithing demonstrations and a music lineup that incorporates both newcomers and old favorites in genres ranging from “garage folka,” to “reggae fusion,” to “blues with some bite.”
Another highly-anticipated Renaissance Fair tradition is the honoring of the fair’s royalty. The 2018 Moscow Renaissance Fair Queen and King are Jack and Brandy Sullivan.
The Sullivans have been attending the Renaissance Fair since they moved to Moscow in 1997.
“When you live in Moscow for as long as we have, you know and care about a lot of people. Usually we see them there,” Jack said. “It’s kind of the first big, outdoor, community event since winter.”
The Sullivans said that they felt honored to be asked to be this year’s fair royalty.
“We were surprised,” Brandy said. “It has been going on since the 70s, and many of the people we know and have admired for their contributions to Moscow. So, it felt like an honor to be asked to join their ranks.”
As king and queen, the Sullivans will be part of the opening ceremony procession and will “kick it off on the stage” with some opening remarks. They will also be participating in the parade at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.
Brandy said the bulk of their responsibilities for the fair will be to “in general, just be royal and circulate around the festival through the weekend.”
Jack said he looks forward to “hamming it up for the kids” and handing out candy coins to children. With their borrowed costumes from the UI theater department, the Sullivans will look like they stepped out of a fairy tale, representing the spirit of “whimsy and creativity” that characterizes the Moscow Renaissance Fair.
“Everybody’s happy to be out,” Brandy said of the fair’s positive atmosphere. The Moscow Renaissance Fair brings together all ages and demographics of Moscow citizens for a free, fun celebration in the sun.
Beth Hoots can be reached at [email protected]
###
Full Schedule — 45th Annual Moscow Renaissance Fair
Peter Basoa Memorial Stage, East City Park, Moscow
For more information, visit www.moscowrenfair.org
Saturday May 5th, 2018
10:00-10:20 Welcome Ceremony with the King and Queen
10:20-11:00 A Mighty Band of Microbes-Garage folka music.
Embrace the awkward! – Boise, ID.
11:15-12:00 Moscow Mules-An eclectic, hard-driving mix of bluegrass and acoustic music-
Moscow
12:30-1:30 Henry C and the Willards-Rock and blues-Moscow, ID.
1:30-2:00 Maypole Dance-With Sam & Friends-By the Volleyball Court
2:00-2:30 Costume Contest on the Peter Basoa Memorial Stage
2:30-3:00 Renaissance Fair Parade-A joyous trip through space, time, and East City Park
3:00-4:30 Meshugga Daddies-Lively klezmer music from Greece and eastern Europe-Spokane, WA.
5:00-6:30 Sol Seed-Reggae fusion-Eugene, OR.
7:00-8:30 Finn Riggins-Bridging the gap between barn parties and urban music scenes-Boise, ID.
Sunday, May 6th, 2018
10:00-10:45 Emily and the Poor Excuses-Eclectic, impelling, americana music-Moscow, ID.
11:00-11:45 Dan Maher-The very best of general folk-Moscow, ID.
12:00-12:45 Jazz Vandals-Contemporary jazz combo from the Palouse-Moscow, ID.
1:00-2:00 Will Fontaine and the Vital Signs-Folk, funk, and rock music-Moscow, ID.
2:00-2:30 Maypole Dance-With Sam & Friends-By the Volleyball Court
2:30-3:30 Phoenix Blues Band-Blues with some bite-Moscow, ID.
4:00-5:30 Coral Creek-High-energy country, bluegrass, and blues-Boulder, CO