00:00Is there no such thing as weird at a renaissance fair?
00:03Absolutely not. There's no such thing as weird.
00:06Everybody's totally accepting of who you are, what you dress as.
00:09Judgment-free fun.
00:13The renaissance fair.
00:14In pop culture, it's the height of nerddom,
00:17where fantasy lovers like me gather to revel in a fictionalized version of 1599.
00:23This one has been around since the late 1970s,
00:26and yet, I've never been. Until now.
00:28There are three distinct groups of people on these grounds.
00:32Plain-clothes folk like me, looking to romp through the sights, sounds, and tastes of the times,
00:37known simply as patrons.
00:39Then, there's the sizable population of visitors who've come dressed to immerse themselves completely in this alternate world.
00:45The platrons.
00:47From knights to nymphs to stormtroopers?
00:51The very foundation of this is, of course, the group of people who make the fair come to life.
00:55The players themselves.
00:57Those who live and breathe their character and their community.
01:00For them, the Ren Fair transcends summer weekends and even centuries,
01:05and is their way of life.
01:07Christopher Marlowe is one of these players,
01:09and he is the actual poster boy of the Renaissance Fair.
01:12Will you wander with me?
01:14I am a lady.
01:16It would be my honor.
01:19What kind of people come to a Renaissance Fair?
01:21First and foremost, you may see entertainers and delighters.
01:24There are artisans and crafters of every manner.
01:28When do you feel most at home?
01:30No matter where I go, there is family.
01:33That is a rarity in this world,
01:35and when you can find other people who are of like mind,
01:37then you know you're home.
01:39My tour with Mr. Marlowe only made me more curious
01:42about the hundreds of people with me at the fair.
01:44What drew them to this place?
01:46And what kept them coming back?
01:49It's a completely different world.
01:51You get to escape reality.
01:53In fact, it's kind of hard to go back to reality sometimes.
01:57Outside, I feel confined.
01:59Inside the Renaissance Fair, I'm free to be me.
02:04All right, enough talking.
02:06Let me at this.
02:09Here's the truth.
02:10The meaning of the weekend doesn't come from the activities offered at the fair,
02:14but rather the people you do them with.
02:16And what's so amazing about the Ren Fair is that on this hallowed ground,
02:20even if you're not dressed in character, everyone is playing along.
02:23But let's be real.
02:25I got to find my own character.
02:27I need to fully commit.
02:28So I figured you guys would help me, maybe.
02:31I guess what I'm asking is, can you give me a makeover?
02:35I don't know!
02:42Sister, this would be exactly what I had to imagine.
02:45Thank you!
02:46Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.
02:51Once in costume, it all clicked for me.
02:54No one is too cool for the Renaissance Fair.
02:57Because this isn't just a weekend away.
03:00It's subscribing to a mindset that allows for complete fantasy and fun.
03:04Thank you, everybody.
03:06Anyway, thank you very much.הו
03:08at
03:08the end, thank
03:08you, David.
03:09You
