Weekend Thoughts

[andy]

Oh, and we do spend $$$ at the fest each year. Whether it's booze, food, crafts, apparel, you name it. 

[groomporter]

One of the things we like most about the MNRF as opposed to other faires is that "anything goes" at the MNRF, whereas other faires are more traditional,

Yeah, could be worse, I just had a circuit booth worker tell me that Colorado does not allow participants to have dreadlocks, visible tattoos or multiple piercings. I've heard a year or two ago about the tattoos elsewhere.

[white trillium]

When our children were younger we only came out to fest once per year - I admire the parents that bring their kids out every weekend.  Now that only one of our kids attends fest with us on a regular basis, the three of us have season passes and the other two kids may make a rare appearance.  We see more shows, tip every time we see a show, band or other entertainer - but we still are fairly careful with our discretionary spending (as much as my spouse would love an awesome sword or boots.....other bills come first)  

I enjoy a mug of mead, ale or other adult beverage as much as the next person, but I'm not out there to drink to excess.  I really like the "featured artisans" addition and what appears to be an increased focus on street interaction.  

All of the "markets" are important to the health and financial future of any festival.  If you get too many drunk rowdy twenty somethings then families may be a little less likely to come out.  On the other hand, if all shows are rated "G" you'll lose another market. It is all about balance.  

[Lady L]

But they also need to market to the arts community better to support the fine arts crafters on site, and I was happy to see a "featured crafters" page on the website, since the artisan aspect has been a minor part of advertising for a number of years and MNRF used to have a good reputation for hand made art. Another problem is that fest seems to be looked down upon by the local live theater community whereas I would think some form of outreach could be mutually beneficial.

I agree. It used to be, this was a great place to see and purchase original fine art. It isn't the market for that, anymore. When I first bought a shop there, there were publishers and gallery owners that came out to discover new talent. I haven't seen that in 8 years. There is no showcase at Hall of Masters, so that doesnt' help.

My sales have been worse than terrible. Kids want the hand carved, one of a kind, hardwood magic wands we have for sale, but the parents are saying "no." this year. Last year, they were flying out the door. The price range is the same-$15.00 to $25.00. 

[Charlotte Rowan]

Now on the note of complaint letters, if any of you are patrons out there and were bothered by the massive attack of the minnesota state bird *the Mosquito* I would encourage you to send a letter. They pass around diseases and in general make for an unhappy time. If they get enough letters about it, MAYBE NEXT YEAR THEY WILL DECIDE THEY AREN'T TO CHEAP TO SPARY FOR THEM!!!!!! *at least rumor among cast says they didn't bother to, as it was "too expensive"

If they need something to fix lets start with the bug population cause you know what that is bad for all targeted audiances, as I know no one who likes being eaten alive.

Now HERE's something I can get behind!! SERIOUSLY, the mosquitos were terrible on Monday!! I know many entertainers were cranky and out-of-sorts as a result of being eaten alive in the campground Sunday night and all day Monday, and it is hard to put on a happy face and entertain when you have tiny blood suckers plaguing you and drinking your blood! Now, I don't camp and I also came armed with seriously strong DEET, so I was pretty happy, but I did feel for those who were being eaten. I shared my DEEt with anyone who asked, but many people, especially those with small children, are wary of using such strong chemicals (and I don't blame them), and if the Festival could spray to prevent such an infestation of bloodsuckers, that would really be preferable.

On the family-friendly issue, I tend to fall in the middle - of course I want families to feel comfortable bringing their kids-- I know I loved it as a kid, and to be honest, Fest wouldn't be nearly as magical without the wee ones.

But on the other hand, I really do get annoyed that one letter from an angry parent who was dumb enough to bring their kid to watch Vilification Tennis should not mean the whole festival has to change! It's called "parenting" for a reason - there are things all over the world that parents would prefer their young children not be exposed to, but the whole world is not going to change for them. It is the PARENT'S responsibility to determine whether something is appropriate for their child, and if not, DON'T TAKE THEM TO THAT SHOW! There are plenty of things on the Festival grounds that are kid-friendly. I see nothing wrong with having a few not-so-kid-friendly shows, as long as they are marked as such.

[MissBubu]

My two pence worth of opinion:

Mosquitos: The surrounding swamp was pelleted before opening weekend. We've had a relatively wet summer so breeding populations are up. Fest grounds are close to a wetland preserve where spraying is not allowed. Mosquitos can fly 14 miles to reach a food source.

Family Friendly: I took Improv classes from Butch. He taught us to not go for the easy jokes. This year I have a fight that is basically about boobs. We ran it for the children of some of our marshalls during rehearsals. The kids loved the fight as a slapstick comedy and didn't get the "naughty" references. When I started working at fest, the "Four Foot Rule" was stressed to us. We can do any jokes as long as the kids don't get the adult humor portion, but are still entertained. Yes, it makes it more difficult, but very few people are offended, and we get to do bawdy humor.

Sales: The economy sucks, people don't have the discretionary income they used to, and the people who used to be patrons work at fest now and don't have the time to go shopping.

[William_MacKean]

Sales: The economy sucks, people don't have the discretionary income they used to, and the people who used to be patrons work at fest now and don't have the time to go shopping.

No kidding!

No fewer than 6 of my more regular customers from last year are now on the Fest payroll.  I am happy for them, but sheesh.  Quit hiring my customers!  (Or let them keep drinking.)

[TheFerret]

We in the soap booth actually had an okay weekend. Saturday and Sunday rocked so hard that I'm happy Monday was a slow day because I was exhausted beyond belief. It was also the first time that I've arranged to have a street bit. Saturday morning I arranged for a public mourning of the King's bachelorhood (complete with wailing peasants). It was a lot of fun (pictures will be posted eventually) and the court loved it so much that they asked for a repeat sometime during the reception on Sunday. Of course, I'm not covered in mosquito bites and have a bit of fest crud but the weekend was brilliant for me. Sadly (and thankfully) people seem to have wised up that the things we call "free soap" are indeed soap, so we had fewer eaters this weekend.

[groomporter]

Mosquitos: The surrounding swamp was pelleted before opening weekend. We've had a relatively wet summer so breeding populations are up. Fest grounds are close to a wetland preserve where spraying is not allowed. Mosquitos can fly 14 miles to reach a food source.

Had a friend who is a booth worker from the booth next to us call today to say he's showing symptoms that match the milder form of West Nile. It might be just the fest crud after a colder 3-day weekend, but he wanted to pass the word on just to be safe since the skeeters have been pretty thick.

[Charlotte Rowan]

Mosquitos: The surrounding swamp was pelleted before opening weekend. We've had a relatively wet summer so breeding populations are up. Fest grounds are close to a wetland preserve where spraying is not allowed. Mosquitos can fly 14 miles to reach a food source.

Had a friend who is a booth worker from the booth next to us call today to say he's showing symptoms that match the milder form of West Nile. It might be just the fest crud after a colder 3-day weekend, but he wanted to pass the word on just to be safe since the skeeters have been pretty thick.

Yes, I heard something about someone having both West Nile AND some other mosquito-borne disease (malaria?? do mosquitos in MN carry that?) I don't think it was a Fest person, just a random person, but please people, use your insect repellent! If you don't like DEET there are natural alternatives that work okay, you just need to reapply more often.

[groomporter]

Malaria's not a worry up here.

CDC info on West Nile
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/wnv_factsheet.htm

[NugBlazer]

Personally, I HATE the move at Ren Fest towards family-friendliness.  Does EVERYTHING have to be about warm fuzzies, smiles and puppy dogs all the time? 

Seriously, there are TONS of things in the world that are family friendly; just about everything caters to families these days, and it has NOTHING to do with morals or values.  It's all because of money.  Families spend lots of money, and of course the all-mighty dollar drives just about all business decisions, Faire included.

In short, the powers that be are sacrificing fun for cash.

Can't we just have some things that are aimed towards adults anymore?  Bawdiness, drinking and sexual innuendo are part and parcel of ren faires!!  It's the spice that makes it fun!  That's why I go.  That's why all my friends go.  That's why just about every single person I work with at Faire goes.  Without that, faire just becomes another boring, generic event.  With garb.

Talk to just about ANYONE who's worked at Fest for a number of years, and they will all tell you that it's not as fun as it used to be.  And it's getting worse.  Yes, it's still a good time, but it was better, lots better.  And there's no reason it couldn't be that way again.

[LadyFae]

I don't know, I think starting kids off early with a love of Fest is what will keep Fests alive for years to come.

[ladydiwinter]

Just my 2 cents.... I attended the last two weekends and I watched the tennis match, along with the T. Twins, part of Johnny Phoenix, 2 Children Left Behind, the Feast of Fantasy, Puke and Snot, and a few others. ALL of these shows warned the audience that there may be questionable content in their show. Heck, Johnny Phoenix spent a good 10 min explaining that the show he was going to do was the rated "R" show. Any parent who then turns around and complains that the shows were offensive and not for kids need to have someone smack them upside the head with a stinky salmon.

Why a stinky salmon you ask... a stupid response to a stupid complaint!

It's either the parents that complain when someone says a fart joke, or the other side of that who take their kids to Watchmen expecting to see another Batman movie. It reminds me of my cousin who only allows their child to watch PBS because other cartoons are too violent.

Okay I think I'm done..... Oh yeah, the mosquitoes sucked! But what do you do in MN?

[LadyFae]

Okay I think I'm done..... Oh yeah, the mosquitoes sucked! But what do you do in MN?

WHAT!?!?!?!  You take issue with our state bird?  LOL!  =P