Dancers who wish to perform with the branch at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival (MRF) are required to familiarize themselves with the performance participation guidelines established by the board and teachers of the branch. Please direct any questions or concerns to Dan Grundtner (e-mail: danger [at] surfbest.net). » Go to the Performance Participation Policy

Rehearsal Information

Regular rehearsals will be held Mondays and Fridays beginning Monday, July 7th through Monday, August 11th, with a possibility of extending the rehearsal schedule depending on our first RenFest performance date. Instructors are Lara Friedman-Shedlov, Janet McKernan, and Bonny McIntyre.

Rehearsal time is 7:30pm-9:30pm. Rehearsals will be at Tapestry Folkdance Center in south Minneapolis, and at other location(s) TBA. More details coming soon.

Unless other specific arrangements have been made with the FOD, dancers are expected to be on site, costumed and ready to perform by the 9am opening cannon at the latest. We typically do 4 half-hour performances throughout the day, plus the parade. Please meet near the Irish Cottage immediately following cast call (about 8:25am) to check in with the FOD, get any last minute announcements, and do walk-throughs. Out of professional courtesy, please be on time. Lateness may get you eliminated from the line-up for the day.

Dates and FODs

The 2008 Minnesota Renaissance Festival runs weekends and Labor day from August 16th through September 28th. Branch performance days are TBA.

*What is a FOD, Anyway?
FOD stands for "Facilitator of the Day" or "Facilitator of the Demonstration" and is the person who will be in charge of the performance for that day. The FOD assigned for each day you sign up to perform will contact you and let you know when and where to meet. S/he will:

• Attend cast call/morning meeting at 8am to get the day's performance schedule and any important RenFest news
• Run warm-ups and/or a brief walk-through in the morning
• Assign dances and partners for each performance during the day

NOTE: All 3-couple dances will be performed in 3-couple sets. All 2-couple dances will be performed in 4-couple sets.

1508 or The Complaint of the Black Knight	32 J 2C	McMarmorhalhornfriecraneberg
The Trysting Place	32 S 2C	RSCDS 35
McClure Family Burns Supper	32 R 2C	Schneider/New Friends
~~Festival Frolic or Step Dance~~
Twiddle in the Middle	32 R 3C	Oaks of Sherwood
Luckenbooth Brooch	32 J 3C	Glendarroch
~~Festival Frolic or Step Dance~~
Summer Wooing	32 R 3C	RSCDS 38
Linnea's Strathpsey	32 S 3C	Wilson/Dunsmuir
Toad of Toad Hall	32 R 3C	Winter/Dunsmuir

Dance instructions will be available from the Performance Repertoire page.

Information about Renaissance Festival costumes is available in the RSCDS Twin Cities Branch Costume Guidelines. If you have never performed with the branch at the RenFest before, you should get your costume approved by the master of wardrobe, Jim Morehouse (e-mail: james.morehouse [at] mnhs.org. If you have any questions at all about costumes, contact the Wardrobe Master. Jim will be glad to answer you any questions you have, make suggestions for costumes, and help with patterns, etc.

Where to Get Costumes:

Contact branch wardrobe master Jim Morehouse (E-mail: james.morehouse [at] mnhs.org) for patterns and tips on sewing your own costume.

If you don't sew, there are several people in the group who are willing to sew costumes for reasonable compensation (contact Jim for information). There are also several commercial vendors who sell reasonably priced items*:

• Lady Rogue Historical Clothiers
  Northern-Minnesota based seamstress makes men's shirts, and womens' chemises, skirts, and bodices.
• Museum Replicas
  Good source for reasonably priced footwear, shirts, and doublets.
• Celtic Croft
  Good source for reasonably priced shirts. They also sell great kilts and arisaids, as well as sporrans and belts.
• Deva Lifewear
  Good source for reasonably priced shirts (the "Frontier" and "Bucaneer" shirts make good RenFest garb).

A Few Costume-Related Tips:

• Do bring a basket or rustic cloth sack to carry things (and in which to hide watches, water bottles, sunscreen, and other modern items that must be kept out of sight).
• A leather, wooden, or ceramic mug or goblet for drinking water is a must.
• Do not wear sunglasses (prescription eyeglasses are OK), visible wrist watches, modern clothing, or obviously modern fabrics.

• Listen carefully to the FOD's instructions and be on time when meeting for performances.
• Be sure to let the FOD know if you are injured or not feeling well.
• Wear shoes (see the Renaissance Festival costume guidelines for suggestions). It's safer and it is required by Festival regulations. You may want to add insoles to your shoes for extra support and comfort (it's a long day on your feet out at the RenFest).
• Apply sunscreen and reapply regularly throughout the day, even if it is overcast.
• Drink water and/or gatorade whenever you get the chance. Learn the locations of water out at the festival (there are water coolers in several locations on site).
• Familiarize yourself with the first aid kit.

Renaissance Festival-Related Links

• Official Minnesota Renaissance Festival Web Site
  Includes some maps and directions and an event schedule.

• Minnesota Renaissance Festival Friends
  Home page for the Minnesota Renaissance Festival mailing list, an e-mail-based bulletin board (listserv) for people associated with the MN RenFest. The web site includes information on how to subscribe to the MRFFriends listserv and a directory of some of the listserv participants. It also includes some useful information such as how to earn points to redeem for RenFest admission tickets and/or food coupon books, lyrics to some of the most popular songs sung out at RenFest, and tips on use of language during the Renaissance.

• RenFest Parade Info. Check this site for the schedule of upcoming parades where you can earn points to redeem for RenFest admission tickets and/or food books.