I know we have awesome people who play chess- very well.
But if there were a chance to do a human chess set up, where would you apply/ask to set it up?
You could check over by the hamster launch- there may be room next to the booth where they peace tie the hamsters. ;)
You are talking about human chess at the faire? I've seen it at the Minnesota faire. Hmmm... but who to talk to...?
I have played with human chess. I prefer the female human chess over the male human chess. But that is my taste and since I taste with my tongue I prefer not to get hair stuck on it.
Probably contact the Entertainment, or Artistic Director if there is one.
Are you talking about just a standard chess game with live pieces,
-or "human combat chess" like we used to have at MNRF where the "pieces" attack each other in choreographed stage combat fights as part of a mini "play".
Proposals have been submitted to CRF for a human combat chessmatch, and have been turned down. I myself am one of the people who have submitted such proposals. We've been told there's just no place big enough available.
Being a six year veteran of human chessmatch before I came to CO, I have to agree since it does require a serious amount of space. With the site being on the side of a mountain, and just not having anywhere to expand to without doing a major renovation of the site. (Plus, you generally need to have a battle of good and evil, and they don't like 'evil' characters at CRF.)
BUT, if you really want to see a kickass chessmatch, we open at Bay Area Renaisance Festival (in Tampa FL) on Feb 21. It'd be a great excuse to head south and enjoy the sunny weather! Plus, I get to be badass, fighting rapier style in full gown with hoop and corset!
If I wasn't coming back to CO in April, I'd probably change my name on the little tag thingie to the left. Since we've Queen Katherine Parr and they don't want mutiple Katherines, here I'm Lady Elizabeth Norrington. I'm such a dork... and loving it! Teehee!
Quote from: pktaxwench on February 09, 2009, 09:30:12 AM
If I wasn't coming back to CO in April, I'd probably change my name on the little tag thingie to the left. Since we've Queen Katherine Parr and they don't want mutiple Katherines, here I'm Lady Elizabeth Norrington. I'm such a dork... and loving it! Teehee!
And here I though CoRF's good queen was Queen numero thrice and called herself Anne I could have swore that was what they were calling her last year and the year before. So how could we have Queen Katherine Parr as she in reality was Queen Numero Six. Anne was in reality Queen two and four. Anne Boleyn and Anne of Cleeves. OH well CoRF is just a Fantasy faire anyway with tons of Queen Hamsters running about.
If I had to be court and have a name I'd wish to be Queen Mary of France who was in reality Duchess Mary Brandon after coming back from France after her aged husband King Louise the XII died (Younger Sister to King Henry NOT Bloody Mary)
OH as far as expansion... it would not have been the first time CoRF expanded. The Jousting Areana was NOT always a part of the faire. The faire ended at the lower stage and just to where the lower privy's are. Quite a HUGE expansion when they did it. Ehey could expand west, but then again maybe this is all the land they can use to build on. Having been going to CoRF no for 20+ years I have seen it change little by little.
I've been going to faire since before it first opened and I have seen it expand quite a bit. I've seen it expand while I was standing right in the middle of it. Actually, it might be that I was just getting smaller, thereby giving the effect of swelling. :)
Anyway, the joust field is located on what was, at one point, part of the campground. There may be room for further expansion, but human chess could be held on one of the existing stages- if the powers that be decided to do so. Perhaps if the right group of professionals comes along they might consider it seriously; maybe 'human combat chess' along the lines of what they produce at MNRF as Groomporter has described.
Would the jousting field be too small to do a human chess game?
You know, like when they have football teams and baseball teams playing at the same stadium...;)
Lady DeLaney, I'm currently in Tampa, FL, and our Queen here is the 6th wife of Henry VIII. I thought that was kind of clear with the above statement suggesting people head south... :D
Colorado's Queen Anne is actually no specific queen of Henry's, kind of a mixture of the two Annes and really just "Queen Anne', since neither the king or queen resemble the historical personas. BARF (my current faire) is right on with historical accuracy for the scenario, but the rest of us have a lot of freedom to do what we want.
And Zoe, would *you* want do do stuntwork, ie, flips and falls, in the horse-poop filled sand of the Joust Field. Ugh. Plus, it's sand. Having been fighting on Florida sand for the past two months, let me just say that it's a bit of an adventure when it comes to footwork. I have to respect that the jousters do that in the icky dirty sand. I miss CRF's rock strewn ground - except when I fall. Then I like our soft sand here.
MNRF used to use a portable chess board that they used. It was a huge tarp sew in a checkboard pattern.
Quote from: pktaxwench on February 09, 2009, 09:30:12 AM
BUT, if you really want to see a kickass chessmatch, we open at Bay Area Renaisance Festival (in Tampa FL) on Feb 21. It'd be a great excuse to head south and enjoy the sunny weather!
But it's 60 here! Why leave? :P
Quote from: Zoë on February 09, 2009, 03:59:54 PM
Would the jousting field be too small to do a human chess game?
You know, like when they have football teams and baseball teams playing at the same stadium...;)
To answer your question... yes.
They could tape off some of the parking lot and do it out there, but its kinda hilly though.
Quote from: Moldy Forest on February 09, 2009, 11:05:00 PM
They could tape off some of the parking lot and do it out there, but its kinda hilly though.
Even it out by using people of differing heights.
We used to have human chess at the Pittsburgh Faire. The person in charge was a trained stuntman who has worked on many stage and film productions. Many of the cast members had martial arts training, and the rest of us could occasionally do comedy bits in place of fighting. All tolled, it was a superb show.
There was never a "good vs evil" theme. We did things like "peasants vs. royals" and "men vs. women." It was not only a popular show, it was also a way to introduce the street cast to the customers, because you got to see the personalities of the characters as they competed.
We don't do it anymore. We have the space, and had the talent, but management has focused our priorites elsewhere. Hopefully we'll be able to revive it some day.
Insurance and liability could be a factor in doing Human Chess.
Best Human Chess I have ever seen was at BARF (Physicality, then theme) 2005
One male character of peasant status altough he did not look the type could contort hos body in all matter of twisting oddity. He was fighting a noble that just could not make contact with him. He frustratingly walked back to his side and loudly commented to another, "I can't fight a man without a spine!!"
Next would be a tie between MNRF (2003) storyline written by an operatic voiced blonde woman who wore a Viking helm w/horns, and PARF whose chess matches continue into the final joust and almost Broadway like Grand Finale at the end of faire, (pick a year), (both faires, having very excellent themes and then physicality)
I liked it at MNRF many years ago when there was an on-going Robin Hood-like figure's men vs the Sheriff's men storyline all day with various staged fights on the street during the day all climaxing at the human combat chess match so that it wasn't just a mini play on the chess board, but tied in to things all day with the entire site as a backdrop to the story line.
Quote from: Capt Spleen on February 10, 2009, 09:00:40 PM
Next would be a tie between MNRF (2003) storyline written by an operatic voiced blonde woman who wore a Viking helm w/horns,
Sniff, sniff...I miss Dayna! :'(
So all in all:
Step one: get a good team together and make it a show
Step two:contact entertainment
Step 3: Hope to use stage or joust (when no joust is going on)
or did I get this plan mixed up with hamster tossing?
They're easily confused.
Quote from: Nixie on February 18, 2009, 04:22:58 PM
So all in all:
Step one: get a good team together and make it a show
Step two:contact entertainment
Step 3: Hope to use stage or joust (when no joust is going on)
or did I get this plan mixed up with hamster tossing?
Hamster Tossing? I thought it was Dwarf Toss. Do we have any Dwarves we can toss... grab them by the beard and heave away. He who tosses the dwarf the furthest gets 10 points, Make him land on his noggin 25 points, On his face 30 points, On his Bum 10 points, On his feet 5 points. Make him do a Double Half Gainer with a full twist Jack Knife and land on his nose... Priceless :)
Oh and I don't mean midgets I mean Dwarfs all Dwarfs MUST have beards to be considered to be used... and have been drinking beer all day.
Toss a dwarf and hit a small child and you get 100 points.
Quote from: Zoë on February 18, 2009, 07:36:50 PM
Toss a dwarf and hit a small child and you get 100 points.
Extra points if the child hit is also a dwarf
who is riding on a hamster
Ah but you lose points if you hit the King and even more if you hit the queen. Yet you get a Bonus prize if you can hit one of the French court members... and even bigger bonus if they are holding a hamster.
Tell them what they've won Leonardo
Yes Good King Henry for Hitting the pretty French princess holding the small teddy bear hamster... you've won an all expence paid trip to the PRIVY'S along with enough Turkey legs to make you sick of Turkey. And a nonstop ride on the Di Vinci Flying Machine. All worth a total price of a Fun filled day of the Plague
Well, back on the topic of Human Chess....
Last weekend was the opening weekend of BARF here in Tampa. My little sister came out on opening day and filmed my feature fight on her camera and thoughtfully posted it on YouTube for me. So, I thought I'd post it here.
Being YouTube and a little digital camera, it's not the best of quality, and you can barely see the painted (dead) grass and the tiny rapier blades, but I still thought I'd post it anyway. It annoys me that I have to play such a girly character, but no one else was wanting to try to fight in a corset and hoop, and they needed more nobles on that side of the chessboard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQNtftk9VoI
I'll be wearing that gown out at CRF this year. It's nowhere as elaborate as my other two Court gowns, but it's the most durable one I've made yet. Has to be, as I not only fight in it, but have to wash it pretty much every time I wear it. :)
I wish I had video of the other fights or the melees in their entirety, for they are made of awesomeness.
Cool! That was an impressive fall you took. (the first one, not the one after he lifted you up on his head, haha.) Stage combat is hard, I can't imagine the level of intensity that a corset and hoop adds to it!
The human chess match is an attraction that has been proposed at our faire time and time again by all manner of people, and has never once been seriously considered, to my understanding. All the problems mentioned here already are factors. There is no appropriate space, the training and insurance would be cost prohibitive, and the Powers that Be here at CRF apparently do not believe in villains (which sadly gives the heroes very little to do, on or off the chessboard).
There are other issues as well. For one, our cast is not nearly big enough to fill a chessboard and not leave the rest of the grounds utterly deserted. Especially in the past couple years, since budget cuts, voluntary quits, and involuntary layoffs, have caused our numbers to dwindle to a staggeringly small sum.
Another reason is that CRF has a history of being extremely wary of stage combat. There have been acts with sword fights, staff fights, and other stage combat, but they have been few and far between. This could be for any number of reasons, but is likely due to insurance and training costs (as mentioned above), and the lack of a cohesive fight troupe with a good track record to take the reins. Since I've been going, the Jousters and the Legends of Sherwood crew are the only two groups who have been allowed to do combat on a large scale. Other than them, Charming & Dashing, and Puke & Snot have done sword fights, but nothing on a large scale.
Ultimately, I think our faire is going to have to undergo some major, MAJOR changes, in many areas, before a human chess match can be accomplished. Still, it's something I'd personally love to see here someday.
Quote from: Zoë on February 23, 2009, 10:26:27 PM
Cool! That was an impressive fall you took. (the first one, not the one after he lifted you up on his head, haha.) Stage combat is hard, I can't imagine the level of intensity that a corset and hoop adds to it!
Thanks Zoe! The fall is even more impressive when I don't slip in the sand when starting the roll, which caused it to not only become a sideroll, but for me to drop my sword so I don't hurt myself in the roll. And the dirt that makes it down my dress. Ugh. I get mud in my chemise when it mixes with sweat. :)
Honestly, the worst part of the whole thing is the Florida heat and humidity. I grew up here, but I've grown used to the dry thin air of Colorado Springs. I swear, breathing here is akin to swimming through the air of a sauna. Although, since FL has twice the air density of Colorado, being sea level and all, I get enough oxygen even with the corset being restrictive. I'm probably going to die of oxygen deprivation when I go back to Colorado in April.
Quote from: pktaxwench on February 23, 2009, 10:15:43 PM
It annoys me that I have to play such a girly character
But your such a bad*ss girly character!