GROVELAND TOWNSHIP — Michelle Spencer brought her three daughters to the Michigan Renaissance Festival, an event that she has attended since she was about 12 years old.
“It’s just a tradition that’s carried on,” she said of her attendance at the festival.
Spencer, who is 45 and lives in White Lake Township, said the weather Aug. 22 was “sort of perfect” in the morning, as she wasn’t “dying in the sun” and it wasn’t pouring rain at the time. But rain was forecast for the day.
“We came prepared with ponchos and I’m ready to get soaked” if need be, she said.
Spencer’s family was accompanied by Spencer’s friend and his children. They were among many Michiganians who came out for the the first day of the festival, which runs every weekend through Oct. 4. It also is open on Labor Day and on Friday, Oct. 2.
The festival, which is off of Dixie Highway in Groveland Township, is in its 47th season. Allison Joslin, the marketing director for the festival, said they expect 280,000 attendees over the course of the event.
On Aug. 22, visitors walked through the 16th-century village, home to many booths selling items or food. Groups of actors wearing medieval or Renaissance attire did performances in the village, often with British accents.
Visitors also dressed up for the occasion, including Spencer, who wore a green dress, a brown scarf and a leather purse.
“I just go for wenchy vibes,” she said, referring to a female peasant or servant. She added that she wasn’t wearing “royal wear.”
A new Viking-inspired gathering hall, where visitors can partake in mead tasting, was added to the festival this year. The festival will also be hosting a 5K and 1 mile race called “Race for the Crown” on Aug. 30.
A nostalgic environment for some
Fae Lamphear, who is Spencer’s friend’s daughter, said that when they entered the festival, they started seeing booths they were familiar with, including Queens Nuts, which sells nuts.
“It’s the same nostalgia as … every single year,” Lamphear, 20, said.
Lamphear, a White Lake Township resident, dressed as an elf, but also reused parts of a water nymph outfit they wore two years ago, including necklaces they had made. They also wore blue and green eye shadow.
Lamphear said they have been coming to the festival since they were a kid.
“… It’s such an integral part of my life and my childhood, and I bet the lives and childhoods of a lot of people,” they said.
Tracy Gates, a Swartz Creek resident, comes to the festival every weekend. He said he and wife went on their first date there 19 years ago.
He brought one of his dogs with him on Saturday. Penny, an Olde English Pocket Beagle, was wearing a fairy costume, including a multi-colored tutu and fairy wings. She ate a turkey leg at the festival.
“She has to have one every time,” he said.
Pirate theme
This weekend is called “Pirates & Pups Weekend” at the festival, so some people wore pirate attire, including Allie Lebioda and Andromeda Brooks of Grand Rapids.
Brooks wore a red vest, a white flowy shirt and brown pants, and pirate-like keys were attached to her belt. Brooks came to the festival for her birthday, which is coming up. She thought the festival so far was “awesome,” and she liked that the weather was cooler than it can be there.
She was looking forward to watching the festival’s shows, including the jousting one.
“I’m hoping that it’s not too rainy for a joust,” she said.
asnabes@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Visitors experience nostalgia for 16th century at Renaissance Festival
Reporting by Anne Snabes, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Anne Snabes, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
