Payne and I are on the same wavelength here. And Payne, you are right about some of the problems that ensue with the SCA. From day one, they had a booth and some games at TRF as fundraisers, but a year or so after I left, they were summarily asked to leave. They still attend as playtrons (good word!), but the only ones who have booths now are the ones who pay for them and actually have a reason to have a booth -- product, craft, whatever.

Don't get me wrong. Some of the most dedicated faire folk were SCA members. But a lot of them thought of it as just another melee. There was a very strict rule against open fires in the campgrounds. But we could always count on having at least two in the "encampment" the first time the temperature dropped below 40 degrees at night.

At the California Faires, they used an approximation of a late Middle English dialect that was based on some rather interesting research by a couple of English professors. To some people, it sounded a lot like Klingon.

When I wrote our performer's guide, I decided that we would use any of the following:

1) Any European accent.
2) Any North African accent.
3) English lower classes would use basically a lower class English accent, but basically modern.
4) Nobility would use something close to RP.

My reasoning behind this was that at most productions of Hamlet, Julius Caesar, or Titus Andronicus this was what was spoken, even though none of the above ever spoke a word of English in their lives. We wanted the patrons to be able to understand what was being said.

Thanks DAve.

Last time I was at a ren faire I remember 5 ladies distinctly.

1) the lady dragging her "pet fish" by a leash through the crowd which
was really a coffee mug with a picture of a fish on it.

2) the lady with eyes tattoo'd on her breasts and one of them was winking.
Perfect opportunity for me to tell my aunt.. "hey, that ladies winking at you"

3) the lady serving beer and when you paid her she'd ring a bell, kick her leg
up real high and yell "huzzah".

4) the buxom girl working the turkey and drumstick booth who leaned way over and asked me ...
"Can I interest you in a nice juicy breast"

5) the sexy girl trying to sell me a spanking with a leather whip for $2 .
Could have been $5. I forget how much I paid.

I need to attend these much more often.

Dress the part and make do,,,,,right on the nose.Sudely Castle is a lovely place to work, they hold regular craft fairs and employ entertainers to mix and mingle, Hampton Court Green is my favorite venue with crowds so thick you can`t see the grass.
Everyone is better than Paul Daniels !
To perform with the backdrop of Stonehenge,Avebury Circle,Hampton Court,Windsor Castle etc etc, makes it so easy to drop into character and as all of these places are so near to me I consider myself very lucky.
Wiltshire in the UK is the most magical place on earth. Stand at the junction to a cross of lay lines and perform, to experience this is a real magic feeling. For the punters who come to be entertained our battle is won before we start as the venue holds the magic 24/7.

The only time I have heard an attempt at speaking Old English was in the US, with an American twang.
In the UK, clear,nassal English spoke slowly gives the idea of Old England also oaths abound which seems to appeal.

The Old English with an American twang is one of the results of the misguided efforts of the California Faire people. Two of the best references for period speech are the complete works of William Shakespeare and the King James version of the Bible.

BTW, I have fond memories of both Stonehenge and Avebury. I have dowsed both places.

Over the years I have developed a quasi English accent which more or less has become my performing voice whether I'm doing my period show in fairspeak or little Timmy's birthday party. I must admit it has come in handy especially for my Harry Potter shows. I am frequently asked if I am in fact from England to which I say "not with this accent no"
Since my home fair is Mediaeval we should all be speaking Middle English which is even more foreign sounding than Elizabethan so we resort to fairspeak there as well. We are after all there to entertain them not educate them in ancient linguistics.
Speaking Elizabethan English with an American twang is not all that far fetched. Many scholars believe that the closest approximation to a proper Elizabethan accent can be found in the back hills of Appalachia. There early English settlers remained pretty much isolated from competing dialects thus keeping their original regional accent unchanged.
There were a wide range of accents and distinctive dialects in England. In 1588 several Englishmen were tried as Spanish spies when they washed up on the shores of England far from native homeland of other parts of England. I can envision the perplexed Yorkshireman pleading with his Kentish captors that he was really an Englishman even though he talk with a completely different accent.
I agree, Sudely is a wonderful place (my SCA squiring ceremony was held there in front of the chapel) and one of my favorite memories of the place was walking in my fancy Elizabethan duds from the guest cottages to the castle through sheep pasture while the Sunday morning church bells could be heard pealing their call to the parishioners.
A truly magical moment.

The idea of the unchanging Elizabethan accent in Appalachia was a really interesting hypothesis. But it really didn't hold up to serious study. All it takes is one or two outsiders coming in, either marrying from just outside the hill country, or from some foriegn soldier marrying into the tribe, to skew the accent.

A good example of this would be found in Alpine Germany, where the little villages were similarly isolated, and over a period of 200 - 400 years developed dialects that were almost impossible for people from outside the area to understand. But they basically started at the same point. The Grimm brothers never quite figured out how that happened.

Never said it was unchanging but instead a close approximation. I think I saw this discussed years ago on the PBS series "The Story of English". It probably has been discounted by now as is the fate of many theories. Makes a good story though.
The director of my first re-enactment tour of England back in 88 insisted that we all learn the BBC standard dialect so as not to appear too American. It was more or less a disaster as I think the only person we were able to fool into thinking we were natives of the British Isles was a 12 year old Danish girl who laughed and laughed when she found out we were Americans.

One year, we had a fellow from Australia who played the part of Cranmer. He was a really nice fellow, but managed to put as much obnoxiousness into the character as possible. There was a wedding one afternoon, and the royal court showed, as was the norm. Most of the folks at the wedding were Hispanic. They were introduced as "Spanish nobility." So Trevor said, "How was the swim?" meaning the English Channel. They took it to mean the Rio Grande. OOPS!

Ahhh... Ren Fest's... I've been doing them for 20 years now and will continue as long as the wave lasts.

As for the language, I started withe the California Faires and had to use BFA. It was tough, but for the first two years, that's what I used. Then I found work outside of the California shows. At that point, I had to drop the BFA, because no one could understand me. After some experamentation, I found out that all I had to to is throw in a few "Lords" and Ladies" and everytime I needed to say the word "are", I use the word "be". With those rules, I have pulled it off for a long time here in the US.

So dress the part, do the classics, rope, rings, cups, and lots of audience participation and you'll do well. The money is good and you meet some great people, year after year.

Now THAT I can do. Sign me up.

Sure you can Frank... I'll see you out there...

I've been practising a lot since I posed this thread and here's what I have decided.

I will do my circle show as usual - my medival version that is. When I get tired of that I will set up my close up table and start gathering a crowd with a regular cut and restored rope. (Will perhaps use prof. nightmare instead...) When people have gathered around I continue with two quick coin tricks. (Sankey tricks, the first one I can't remember the name of, the second one; Mr Cleans Coins Across. - by the way, do you think they will be angel proof? I belive so because I have my arms very low.) After that I go into Vernons classic cups and balls routine. I end the show after the final loads.

Any opinions, thoughts or so?

/Ark

There was a Mystery Science Theatre 3000 episode where one of the characters had long hair and dressed in leather. One of the 'bots commented that he looked like he'd just walked out of a Renassiance Festival, whereupon the character reached into his truck and pulled out a crossbow! All three characters shouted "Huzzah!"

***A trick to really accomplish would be to turn Lead into Gold.***

I love Renaissance Fairs!!!!

"Apple fritters,...sassafras!"

Sonny Vegas: You've got a point there! Doing a regular copper/silver routine but change it to a lead/gold thingy instead. That could be something... Have to think about that. (And I guess that kind of routine has been done thousand of times before, but not in my world.)

/Ark

Ark,
There is a good routine named "Alchemy" in Christian Chelman's book "Capricornian Tales."

It's more of a one-on-one thing, but the concept is remarkably simple. All you need to provide is the story line.

Dave: Is it a routine based on the Capricorn change? If so, I belive I can figure out a routine similair...

/Ark

I don't know the Capricorn change. I PM'ed you.

If you are doing a circle show, make sure you use large coins. The spectators have to be able to see them. There are more effective things to perform with at Renaissance festivals.

Bill, I have some "nearly period" English Crown replica coins from http://www.jas-townsend.com that are larger than silver dollar size. For the "Alchemy" thing I painted some of them gold. Even from a moderate distance they still look pretty good. For "giveaways" I simply paint some quarters gold and have them available so I can borrow a "coin of the realm," transform it, and give it to them to keep. I can then take the coins I collected and paint them for the next day.

The Crowns work great for Michael Ammar's Coins through Scarf.