Once a year, in a land not so far away, fairies frolic, maidens sing and knights and princesses walk the lanes in the village of Covington Glen.
This fictitious village is the setting of the Tennessee Renaissance Festival, held each weekend in May. Everything about the festival attempts to evoke a 16th Century English town. Costumed cast members speak with English accents, minstrels stroll and serenade, the rest room is labeled “privy” and a medieval castle looms nearby.
Village visitors will likely be approached by multiple members of the New Castle Players, the group of actors working at the festival. They’re dressed as peasants, squires, royalty, Vikings, knights, mystical creatures, pirates and even Queen Elizabeth.
“Getting people to laugh is a big part of it,” said Seth Sowers, a former cast member who is currently working at the New Castle Players Guild booth. This year he is playing the part of Hark the Herald, a town crier.
“What we do is called improv. We just come up and start talking. A shepherdess might come up and say ?I’ve lost my sheep, will you help me look for my sheep,’ and try to get other people involved. We try to bring them in and kind of create an illusion that this is a village, that people really do live here,” Sowers said.
Covington Glen’s pathways are lined with tents and booths where patrons can visit with artisans and shop for a wide variety of medieval merchandise including crystals, Renaissance moccasins, fairy wings, princess style bubble wands, hiking sticks, period clothing, brooms, leather goods, crystals and jewelry.
Guests may also try their hand at Renaissance games like the Spear Throw, Castle Siege and Bump a Monk. The festival has an archery area and booths for throwing axes, knives and oriental stars.
Scattered throughout the village are hand-operated rides. The Sea Horse, a giant white horse with the turquoise scaled tail of a mermaid, enjoys an almost constant crowd of children waiting to climb up and be pushed in this 1,000-pound swing.
But it’s not just children who want in on the fun.
“I’ve had anybody from about 3 months old to like 90 years old on that particular ride,” operator Nick Yorty said, adding the average rider is about 12 years old.
Yorty does not just push the Sea Horse, he’s part of the entertainment as well. Yorty, like the swing, is constantly in motion. While heaving the giant contraption, he cracks jokes and engages in witty banter with passengers. He even jumps aboard the enormous horse when the ride nears its end.
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Most festival workers are as interactive as Yorty.
“Most of them will generate a conversation with you before you generate one with them,” said visitor Chris Broach, who brought his 10-month-old daughter to the festival. “They make it a grand old time, especially for the little ones.”
The Renaissance Festival offers plenty of entertainment. Shows and events are scheduled from 10:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and there’s something for everyone.
The Royal Joust is held three times each day. Knights wear full suits of armor and ride horses as they attempt to force each other to the ground. The festival will host the International Jousting Tourney May 27 – 29. There’s also the Human Chess Match in which live pawns, knights and royalty engage in combat and comedy. This year, three visiting princesses from Spain, France and Sweden will be involved in the match.
Patrons can watch comedic fire-wrangler Johnny Phoenix as he amuses and entertains the audience with bits like “Barbecue Barbie,” or marvel at the magician Isaac Fawlkes and his assistant Rocky.
The two ladies of the Washing Well Wenches bring their audience into the comedy show when they fling soaking laundry through the air, spraying the crowd with water. Other shows include Giacomo the Jester, Ooops! Comedy Knife Throwing, Royal Improv Comedy and Death and the Idiot.
One of the most noticeable cast members stands out with her loud and unusual look. Lady Ettie wears an ankle length gown and a wide-brimmed hat, both of which are covered in strips of colorful cloth. She’s missing a few teeth, but that doesn’t keep her from brandishing her huge smile to everyone who passes by.
Festival visitors can attend Tea with Lady Ettie each afternoon. Lady Ettie said she has participated in the festival for “at least 15 years.” In her tea times, she teaches about “the customs, the manners, the styles of the times.” She can often be found talking with children and handing out colorful strands of thread, which she calls “smile reminders.”
Covington Glen has numerous activities for children. Kids can take a camel ride or have their faces painted. There is also a free arts and crafts area, dubbed Ye Olde Children’s Playground, where children can play and participate in a daily costume contest.
Visitors of all ages can be found waiting near the festival exit to take a tour of the property’s only residence, Castle Gwynn, Welch for White Castle. Mike Freeman is the castle’s owner and he and his wife founded the Tennessee Renaissance Festival.
“The most commonly asked question,” Freeman said, “is ?Do you really live here?’ and the answer is ?Yes, I do.’” Freeman said he got the idea for the castle in 1970 when he drew the plans as part of a project for an architecture class. Construction began on Castle Gwynn in 1980, and today three rooms have been completely finished.
Freeman said many visitors are surprised that the castle is white.
“Many castles during the Middle Ages were white on the outside,” Freeman said. “One of the reasons being is there’s no way to climb a white wall on the darkest night and not be seen by one of the tower guards.”
First floor tours of the castle run from noon until 4 p.m. and come with the price of admission.
The opening weekend of the Tennessee Renaissance came to a close with the Pub Sing held in the Red Hook Pub. There, cast members engaged in a bout of raucous singing and dancing before they lined the lane to the exit to bid “farewell” to visitors.
To learn more about the Tennessee Renaissance Festival, visit tnrenfest.com.
