Sunny skies and a light breeze brought record crowds to the opening weekend of the Tennessee Renaissance Festival (TN RenFest) on its 40th Anniversary.
“Opening weekend ticket sales were slightly over 19,000 this year,” said Kerri Hudson, Public Information Officer, Williamson County Parks and Recreation. “We had a 66% increase in ticket sales from opening weekend last year.”
Since taking over the coordination of the TN RenFest from founder Mike Freeman, owner of Castle Gwynn, Williamson County Parks and Recreation has been working hard to grow the event from the strong foundations built by Freeman. In previous years, the entertainment and activities were static from weekend to weekend, but Parks and Recreation has slowly added unique events each weekend and new entertainment each year while keeping past favorites.
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Several years ago, a Courtly Tea, which requires an additional fee, was added to the event, and it continues to be a big hit with participants. Queen Elizabeth I acts as hostess of the event in a tent just off the Area of Valor, which is an open field to the left of the TN RenFest entrance. The Area of Valor also offers a place for the demonstration of Armoured Martial Arts by The Shire of the Rising Stone, local members of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). SCA is an inclusive community dedicated to pursuing research and re-creation of pre-seventeenth century skills, arts, combat and culture. This is their first year with the festival…