Blackwell Renaissance Fair a huge success for community

Almost a thousand wizards, knights, maidens, and curious onlookers swarmed Blackwell’s Memorial Park earlier this month, braving the winds and soaking up the sunlight for Blackwell’s first-ever Gem of the Chikaskia Renaissance Fair, hosted by the Kay County Youth Pageants Committee which was held Saturday, April 13.

The verdict? Nikki Barnes, who is the Committee Director for the Youth Pageants group, said it was “epic”, and that the community response blew her and her fellow members away.

“We received so many compliments and so many people are asking if we’re doing it again next year,” said Barnes.

“The answer is a resounding YES!”

Before the start of the Renaissance Fair, Barnes said the plan was to make this a permanent fixture in Blackwell’s annual calendar of events which, thanks to several ambitious community groups, has been expanding rapidly over the last few years.

“We learned a lot,” Barnes explained, “we will be more productive next year and hope to have an even better event. We will start sooner on the decorations to make it feel more period-appropriate, and probably have two entry gates rather than the one.”

Over 20 vendors peppered the park grounds selling 3-D printed toys and trinkets, stones, mugs, necklaces, stickers, artwork, and more than you could shake a sword or a wand at.

The Renaissance Fair also hosted food trucks and stations for drinks and concluded with live entertainment such as duels, singing, and storytelling.

“We have received such an amazing response from the community,” Barnes exclaimed, “It seems that everyone that went enjoyed themselves immensely! We have seen so many amazing pictures shared.”

But the positive response from the community was just one thing. Barnes said herself and the committee heard overwhelming praise from the vendors and acts in attendance, many of which are veterans of fairs that travel across the state and wider midwest.

“We have been told by numerous performers and people who take part in other Renaissance Festivals that it normally takes 3-5 years to make a profit from a Renaissance Festival and we made $1200 to go towards our pageants,” Barnes said.

“A lot of people were disappointed at us charging $10 for entry, but I’d really like to address that with the community: Where else are you going to see a magician, an acrobat, a troll, belly dancers, performing pirates, birds of prey, sword fighting, and two different live music bands all for $10? Plus fairies and kids activities! We honestly spent over $3,000 paying the performers out of our ticket sales,” she explained.

The funds raised from the Renaissance Fair (and other activities the committee puts on) go directly into the beauty pageants staged throughout the year, with the next one being held May 10 at the Event Center.

The Committee's highly-attended pageants seek to promote positive messages and showmanship to young boys and girls in the Kay County area.

“We are ecstatic with the line up of performers that we had,” Barnes continued.

“All of them were so amazing! Now, next year we’d like to add jousting! We tried this year it just wasn’t in the cards for us. But every performer we had was absolutely amazing! And the sword fighters, let’s be real here… they broke a sword over one of their heads! And you got to hit a knight for $5??”

Barnes said that she looks to continue hosting the fair at Memorial Park.

“We have discussed moving the event to the Fairgrounds,” she said, “but the feel of the park with the big, beautiful, trees is so inviting and the shade it affords our guests is priceless. We still have a lot of room at the park to expand- we didn’t go all the way to the street in either direction. But I think it would definitely be a blessing to outgrow the park someday! But for now, we will be staying at Memorial Park.”

The Kay County Youth Pageants Committee wished to recognize the construction fencing from Evan’s and Associates, the porta potties from Cary’s Septic, and the trash receptacles from Davis Sanitation. CFM, who provided a monetary donation, as well as Heather, Cannon Honda, Jam’n Moving, and Diedrich Guttering.