EVERYTHING YE OLDE IS NEW AGAIN
This month has been a renaissance for Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, in more ways than one. Not only are rides returning in April, but each March weekend has featured Renaissance Days.
Since Renaissance Faires have been relegated to the Dark Ages during COVID-19, the theme park has opened its doors during this “red tier” period to many of the same peddlers and attractions. And, as the cliché goes, if you build it, people dressed in breeches, farthingales, and Cossacks will come.
To really ramp up the irony, we are in a “pestilence” to boot, though no one was seen in plague masks. But roughly half of the visitors to the park on Saturday wore at least one 14th Century item, even if it was just a hat with a dramatic plume.
The Hernandez Family said they came to Six Flags from Los Angeles just to experience a theme park again and to see the animal attractions, which have continued since summer. They said they were pleasantly surprised when the hotel that they were staying at asked them if they were here for Renaissance Days.
“Had we known this was happening, we definitely would have brought our outfits,” they said.
Just like the traditional Ren Faire, booths and tents of vendors are set up on the park grounds and food, like smoked turkey legs and tri-tip, is available.
Lisa Stehl hauled her gigantic, steam-punkish barbecue smoker onto the premises to slowly roast the turkey and beef. Her business, Felonious Foods, has been moving about 100 turkey legs a day, she said. Though nowhere near as many as the 1,000 she says they sell at the traditional fairs, it’s still quite a lot.
The vendors all seemed happy to just be in the spirit of things again. Lindsay Lange came all the way from Minnesota to run a puzzle ring booth. She normally does five fairs a year, she said, in addition to Dickens Fairs. And though she says it could be busier, “I’m having a lot of fun. Everyone has a great attitude.”
One of the most popular vendors is Marc Powers, who runs a “force magnification hammer,” which squishes metals into round medallions — how money was made for many centuries.
The device was invented by none other than The Renaissance Man, Leonardo Da Vinci, and looks something like a 17th-century beheading device. That’s probably why a man named Joseph Ignace Gillotin suggested the 73-mph hammer on the contraption be replaced with a blade in 1789. At least that’s the story Powers tells his audience.
For those who follow fairs throughout the state or country, it is understood that for some it is the lone source of income and a nomadic way of life. The owners of Hearts Delight are Renaissance clothiers who sew and tailor ensembles for people at events over 29 states. That is, until the virus hit.
“It’s been a really tough year,” said employee Maryann Myers. “It’s a mom and her five daughters. They’ve been in business for 30plus years. This is what they do.”
Six Flags has at least given Ren Faire vagabonds a place to drop anchor this month, though the swordswallower
and juggler, “Sideshow Sy,” joked that he was out of practice.
“I think you are going to die!” exclaimed a child in the audience, but Sy is a jovial sort, full of ye olde dad jokes and self-deprecating humor, like when he messed up his juggling and quipped, “And the crowd goes mild!”
In addition to Sunday’s Renaissance Days, the following weekend of
March 27-28 will be the last chance to partake in the Elizabethian fun. Animal attractions are still active, as well as the carnival games, shops, and food stands, as well.
But April is when the rides are turned back on. April 1 will be open for members only, then April 2 will be for members and season pass holders. Then on April 3, the park is open to all — although at 15 percent
capacity, with reservations made online. If Solano County goes into the orange tier, that number will increase to 25 percent (yellow tier, 35 percent).
For more information, visit their website at sixf lags.com/discoverykingdom