Locals Keep Renaissance Fest Booming

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - From battle axes to busty corsets, there are plenty of things you can always count on at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. But between the rotten weather and this year’s economic downturn, you might think even the hardiest of ye olde faithful might think twice about that $18 admission ticket.

“Wild horse couldn’t keep me away from this place,” says Mary-Claude Tomlin, who goes by the moniker “Thistle Silverleaf” while at the fair. Garbed in a heavy woolen cloak while showing off the jewel-encrusted dragons crawling along her earlobes, Tomlin says she’s driven from her home in New Jersey four times already this fall to partake in the revelry.

Artisans here say loyal “Rennies” like Tomlin help them juggle tough times.

“I’m having a pretty good year,” says Bill Jezzard. He makes elaborate hair pieces out of bronze and sells them for roughly $100. He says many women come back again and again, owning more than 20 of his pieces.

Instead of hurting the Festival, Jezzard says the bad economy actually helped the Festival out this year. “I think people are having staycations and not going to the Bahamas."

Mark “Coop” Cooper carves complicated Celtic knots and other symbols out of Western red cedar. He says the Festival literally saved his business. "Across America I do shows all year and every show I did all year long was down 40-50%. It was tough; we were one rain storm away from disaster."

But Maryland’s prices are lower, he says. Food, admission, even the price he pays for his booth.

Plus, Cooper says, Maryland’s version has one major distinction. “As you walk through the show, all you see in the booth are genuine works of art created by the people selling it to you. Most other fairs have gone the way of Chinese imports."

Cooper says he’s now going to have the best year of his career.

The Festival’s art director, Carolyn Spedden, says the weather actually hurts them more than a bad economy. Rain and ankle-deep mud reduced this weekend’s “Scottish Games” from an estimated crowd of 20,000 down to about 3,000 brawny souls.

“We’re what we call diehard Rennies,” says Miriam Steiner. “We come rain or shine. We were here for Hurricane Katrina. We’re diehards."

And those die-hards are helping the Festival have a booming year, says Spedden. “We’re gearing up for if not the best, one of the absolute best years. We've been doing astoundingly well."

On The Net:

http://www.rennfest.com/