Zachary Rodriguez
Staff Writer
The Renaissance Pleasure Faire took a step back in time to when Queen Elizabeth I reigned over England with peasants and noble men walking around villages.
For 53 years, the Renaissance Pleasure Faire has been welcoming visitors to experience and learn what it would be like to live in the 1500s.
The fair offers a wide range of activities for kids and adults who want to submerge themselves into the fantasy.
Being one of the more popular fairs in the area, people from all over Los Angeles come to dress up and enjoy the event, unique stores, vendors and artists.
“Everything that is sold here is not going to have that sticker telling you where it is made like ‘Made in Mexico,’” American Sign Language interpreter Hilary Wagner said. “You get to meet the artist who has put their time, sweat, blood and tears into their craft and they have it out for everyone to see and buy.”
At the fair, visitors get the chance to buy clothes, jewelry, perfumes, armor, handmade journals and pens, and even products from the time period, all of which are hand made by people who are very well-versed in the items they sell.
One of the many vendors that makes its own custom items on site is Quick Silver. It specializes in making mint bronze, fine silvers and gold medallions.
Quick Silver uses the drop hammer design created by Leonardo Da Vinci to make coins for kingdoms, which innovated how fast and accurate it was to make coins for the country.
Visitors are given the option to choose from two of its many designs and the type of metal. The 40-ton hammer presses the coin and creates a one-of-a-kind necklace while the staff yells, “Well struck, my Lord.”
“We can’t make coins anymore, but it is really fun being able to share this innovation at and to show people how everyday things where made during this time,” manager and operator of Quick Silver Coin Mint Julia Bogart-Ortiz said.
For more one-of-a-kind treats, the fair offers a large food court with Renaissance-themed food, such as the classic turkey leg.
There is also a food stand called The Apple Tree, where the caramel apple and the appleatto, a blended caramel apple drink, are the main attractions.
The traditional events and more popular jousting tournament happen three times a day, starting at noon.
Visitors can also participate in RenQuest, an interactive adventure that gives participants a closer look at the world of the Renaissance.
Participants become part of the story by talking to the quirky towns folk, going on an adventure through the faire and solving puzzles.
“My favorite thing to do at the Faire is to come with my closest friends and play RenQuest and spend all day submerged in the quest for the queen,” Molly Lewis, 18, said.
The Renaissance Pleasure Faire is open Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and will run until May 22.
Zachary Rodriguez can be reached at zachary.rodriguez@lavene.edu.
