Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
out around the
platea
or in adjoining areas, causing the audience to move
around to follow the action. The arrangement was presumably sequential
to follow the sequence of the action.
8
We are now going to jump forward several centuries. The phenomenon
of the Renaissance Faire in America seems to have originated in the early
1960s, corresponding with an uptick of popular interest in the Renaissance
period, but Faires have been with us for a long time. In the Medieval period,
they were typically temporary markets that included festivities. Renais-
sance Faires today are elaborately staged to create the sense of Renaissance
times. They are typically built in woods or parks, with various venues for
certain kinds of actions upon one or more “paths.”
Contemporary Faires expand the action from the viewing of a play
to include situated interactions within a defi ned and consistent environ-
ment. The consistency of the Faire—from the sensory surround, costuming
conventions, and architecture to the characters constructed by Faire play-
ers and Faire goers—is the “glue” that holds the (historical) fantasy world
together. The Faire is more than a fi eld containing specifi c venues; it is an
environment
for interaction. The design of the Faire encourages encoun-
ters that are both spatially and temporally defi ned. A person can decide
whether or not to engage with a particular tent or booth along the way, or
they may head directly to a place they specifi cally want to go. A schedule
of plays on the various stages and the timing of the jousts and parades may
infl uence a participant's journey through temporal means. After you enter
the front gate, a costume rental tent is in line of sight, offering the pleasure
of costuming to those who have come without. Turn one way, and you will
pass craftsmen and vendors, eventually ending up at the food court. Turn
the other way to sample knife throwing and darts, grab a cider, and go to
the joust, or turn right again to visit clothiers and jewelers and see a play
on one of the stages (see Figure 6.8).
Crafters of many sorts show and sell their wares at the Faire, as long
as their work is roughly situated within a Renaissance context. They may
also be making some of their goods at the Faire, for example, yarn spinners,
8. See Brockett and Hildy 2007 for an excellent and comprehensive history of the theatre and
Chambers, 1996 for a deep dive into the medieval theatre.
