Orlando Renaissance Festival back for fifth season
Visitors to the Orlando Renaissance Festival can step into the past this weekend and explore immersive history from an era hundreds of years ago.
The event is back in person for its fifth season following a pandemic-inspired hiatus that spanned 2020 and 2021. Explore medieval vendors, entertainment, food and more at Southport Park Dec. 9-11.
Kira Phillips, the festival’s founder, began planning the event in 2013 as a theater and Renaissance lover.
“I kept going to festivals all over the state and saw my friends from Orlando at these events so I thought, ‘Why don’t we have one in our home city?’ ” she said.
Festivals like these help young learners connect with history when seeing Renaissance-inspired festivities in person, Phillips said.
“I really love to be able to see the connection in children’s eyes and students when they are able to experience history live and in person,” she said. “When people feel a connection, they are more likely to remember things that you teach them.”
Visitors of all ages can wander the grounds to experience games, children’s activities and demonstrations set in the 16th century or explore a selection of handmade goods from vendors, perhaps purchasing a Christmas present or two.
Live entertainment takes perhaps the biggest spotlight at the event.
“We have four other stages that are constantly filled with different musical acts, comedy, magic and acrobatics that are running throughout the day,” Phillips said. “There is a lot of wonderful entertainment for people to see and experience.”
The headlining show presents the tale of Renaissance masters Leonardo, Raphael and Michaelangelo as they seek funding from bankers for their projects. They choose to battle it out on the chessboard in a live-action adventure.
“I think being immersed in a different time period and being able to escape our daily lives is a really great experience,” Phillips said. “There’s a lot of human connection that we feel when we are a part of something so thematic and immersive.”
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“I think being immersed in a different time period and being able to escape our daily lives is a really great experience. There’s a lot of human connection that we feel when we are a part of something so thematic and immersive.”
— Kira Phillips, the Orlando Renaissance Festival founder