By Kristina Krob
The Alpine Sun
     ALPINE — It’s not every day that someone can walk across the courtyard at Joan MacQueen Middle School and rub elbows with Henry VIII, William Shakespeare and Magellan. But that was just the case Thursday evening, when the seventh graders hosted the school’s annual Renaissance Faire.

     The event marks the end of the Renaissance portion of the seventh grade curriculum. Students each chose one figure from the periods they found particularly interesting and wrote reports about them. The students then came to the festivities dressed as their characters.
     Parents and students put in long hours of work on these costumes, as was evidenced by the beautiful dresses and shining coats of armor.
     Samantha Senna chose a different route than donning a velvet gown when she chose to portray Joan of Arc. Her costume consisted of head-to-toe black, including leather gloves and boots. Like many students present Thursday evening, Samantha was sweating but paying homage to her character was more important than her personal comfort.
     “I just thought it was cool, what she did,” Samantha said. “How she led the Dauphines into battle.”
     If people watching alone wasn’t engaging enough, one could try his luck at several game booths. The booths, run by students and supervised by parents, offered patrons a chance to play authentic Renaissance games. One of these games was kolf, which is similar to golf but is played with a stick resembling a cross between a golf club and a hockey stick. 
     The parents were very active in this year’s event. In addition to helping with costumes and supervising booths, many chose to dress up for the evening as well.
     “It’s a big event and we really appreciate our parent volunteers,” said Karen Hohimer, a seventh-grade teacher. “They put in a lot of work.”
     The evening’s festivities came to a close with the crowning of the Renaissance Faire’s king and queen, who lead the crowd to the royal joust.

     The joust, hosted by Lord Richard Rieth, featured a performance by the Imperial Knights Production Company. The show began with a dressage performance by Lady Andrea Montgomery, who has been training horses for over 15 years. 
     Sir James Dawson and Sir Jonathan Clasen portrayed the blue and black knights, respectively. After reaching a tie in the skill portion of the joust, the knights fought, first with swords and then hand-to-hand. For those keeping score, Sir James, the blue and yellow knight, was triumphant. 
     For everyone else, the winner didn’t matter, as the knight, or rather, the night, was a success for all.

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