Jousting, turkey legs, royal resplendence and old time rides and games will transport visitors back in time at the Pittsburgh Renaissance Festival.
“2022 was a great season for the Pittsburgh Renaissance Festival,” said Susan Treadwell, operations manager for the festival. “I have talked to many who have said they came last year for the first time and don’t want to miss it this year.”
Located in West Newton off of Route 70, the festival kicked off last weekend Saturday and Sunday, and runs through Oct. 1. The festival will also be open on Labor Day. Each festival day runs from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
New entertainers this year include Cy the Sword Swallower, escape artist The Great Rondini; The Witch Trial, a comedic take on the Salem Witch Trials; Natures Educators, which teach about the birds of prey that inhabit our world, their care and how to protect them; and, appearing on the final weekend only, the band The Tartan Terrors.
“Our most popular entertainment is, of course, the joust since that’s certainly something you can’t find just anywhere,” said Kristy Ekiss, one of the festival’s entertainment directors.
Ekiss added that other popular acts returning include the CRAIC show, a “medieval metal” band with pipes, drums and songs from around the world, and the Washing Well Wenches, a comedy show that offers “good clean fun with wet and dirty women.”
Also making a return this year is the annual photo contest on the grounds of the festival.
“We welcome photographers to enter as many pictures as they wish,” Treadwell said, adding that the grand prize is a season pass to the festival in 2024. “This is the only way to receive a season pass as we do not offer them any other way.”
She said the runners up win tickets and festival T-shirts.
Information on the rules and how to enter the photo contest are on the festival’s website, pittsburghrenfest.com.
Whether it be entertainment, vendors, food or just the general atmosphere of the festival, Treadwell said she thinks its ongoing popularity could be due to when it happens.
“I think the timing of it hits after all the county fairs are over for the most part, and before all the October fall fairs and haunted events start happening,” Treadwell said. “It gives the people some place to go and enjoy the outdoors and have fun.”
She said the festival also lets people of all ages have fun, and be themselves.
“Some people like to come in costume and play out a certain role, while others can come in their everyday clothes and still have just as much fun,” Treadwell said. “With popular shows like ‘Outlander,’ ‘Lord of the Rings,’ ‘Game of Thrones,’ ‘Dungeon and Dragons’ and many more, the people who love those shows can pretend they are part of it and act out their favorite characters without anyone judging (them) or thinking they are odd. It really lets people be what they wish they really were.”
Each weekend throughout the festival’s run holds a different theme: Children’s Weekend is Sept. 2, 3 and 4; Wine Revelry is Sept. 9 and 10; Pirate Invasion Weekend is Sept. 16 and 17; Love and Romance Weekend is Sept. 23 and 24; and Oktoberfest is Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
Admission is $25 for adults, $12 for children 5 to 12, and free for children under 5.
More information on the Pittsburgh Renaissance Festival, including ways to get a discount on admission, are available on the festival’s website, pittsburghrenfest.com.
