GUELPH/ERAMOSA — A new festival plans to take residents back in time this summer to experience life at an authentic medieval tournament.
The Great Lakes Medieval Tournament and Faire is a new immersive medieval event planned at the Everton Scout Camp created by Justin Moses, the owner of Steel and Steed, a Hamilton-based stunt company that has been providing period entertainment at festivals and other events for several years.
Planned from July 11 and 12, Moses said the festival is intended to be a "more immersive experience" compared to other medieval fairs province-wide and wants to make it an annual event.
"We're trying to make it so that you feel like you're stepping back into time," said Moses. "Even just coming to the event, it's going to feel more like you're stepping back into a medieval forest outside of town."
Comparing the festival to former events like the Milton Ren Faire, Moses said he chose Guelph/Eramosa as the location because the area already has a following of people who like cosplay and other fantasy-nerd stuff like Dungeons and Dragons or Live Action Role-Playing games (LARP).
"Having it kind of central to this area makes sense because there isn't really anything without going past Toronto," said Moses. "So we wanted to bring something back to this area that hasn't had it for a while."
The festival is broken into two days: Pub Night and Tournament Day.
A 19+ event, Pub Night is on July 11 and will start at 7 p.m. with live music and an acrobatic show mingled with food and drink vendors. There will also be the option to camp overnight.
A family-friendly event, Tournament Day is on July 12 and will feature 12 champions competing for the tournament crown by demonstrating several skills including archery, axe-throwing, ground combat and sword fighting.
There will also be a portion with mounted games where competitors will demonstrate a series of skills like picking up a ring with a lance without getting knocked off of their horse.
"So they're all highly choreographed fights that are designed to really engage the crowd," said Moses.
So far public reception has been really good and Moses said he's been praised for trying to be as immersive as possible. Between 1,000 and 2,000 visitors are anticipated over the two days.
"Obviously there's a fine line between having it realistic and where I would love to have it," said Moses. "If I could afford to build a castle and be 100 per cent period accurate, that would be great but ... we're doing what we can."
While Moses is most looking forward to the crowd interaction during the two-day festival, he said there's also something special for the guests and actors about getting dressed up, strapping on a sword, and "being whomever you want at a very open and accepting event."
More information is available here.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
