Ryleh didn't stray very far from the Royal Pavilion, however. Just a short distance away from the Court was the Eastglen Stage -- where Ryleh was just in time to see an excellent display of Sword Dancing by none other than the beautiful and talented Lady Tanya, The Queen's Own Swordmistress (Photo, Right)! Now there is, of course, sword dancing...and then there is SWORD DANCING. Thankfully, Lady Tanya chose the latter. Aye, she could've gone with an easy choice for her performance -- using a Middle Eastern bellydance-style, for example -- but no! Instead, she chose to dance tribal style with drums only for accompaniment, much like the Khazaks of Russia. Unlike bellydancing where the sword is merely a stage prop, in tribal style Lady Tanya's sword was much more of a partner throughout her act. Aye, she did balance her sword on her head at one point, but that was more a display of her grace, poise and dancing skills rather than simple grandstanding. What made it truly outstanding was that Lady Tanya had never danced -- sword or otherwise! -- in public before, much less before a paying audience! That REALLY impressed Ryleh: obviously, the lovely lass is not only a quick learner and a most-capable student, but a talented and natural dancer, besides. Her exhibition was unique, memorable and refreshingly different from all the many, many other sword dances Ryleh has viewed at other faires. Needless to say, it was a real pleasure watching her perform! But hardly had Lady Tanya finished her act, however, when one of the Royal Guards approached Ryleh with a message: Queen Anne wished to see Ryleh again. Now!!!
Ryleh has never been one to keep The Royals at any faire waiting, nor was he about to start at that moment in time. So he quickly scampered back to the Royal Pavilion as fast as he could go and once again presented himself before Their Majesties. Queen Anne then inquired if Ryleh still carried Her Royal Favor on his person. In answer, Ryleh pulled Her heart-shaped crystal from his pouch as proof of his faithfulness to the Crown. Queen Anne was delighted! As a reward for being such a true and loyal subject, Her Majesty then presented Ryleh with yet another wond'rous gift: a replica in miniature of Her Own Royal Crown, with a small bag of sweet goodies nestled within [insert another long "Awww!" here]. Ryleh tried to stammer out his sincere appreciation for Her Majesty's exquisite present but before he could even begin, King James entered the act. His Royal Highness leaned over at that point to award Ryleh with His Majesty's Own Royal Favor -- a small, handsome badge proudly displaying His Majesty's Royal Coat of Arms! As if that weren't enough, he then produced one of the LRF2003 Participant Patches (beautifully designed and elegantly crafted by Lady Mary AKA Mary Dugas, Photo, Left) and added it to the many honors already heaped on Ryleh that day. Needless to say, Ryleh was truly overwhelmed! Such a generous display of Their Most Royal Majesties' thoughtfulness, hospitality and kindness had -- once again! -- left him totally speechless. Ah, only at LRF! At that point, the Queen rose and invited all within to join Her at the upcoming roast at the nearby Dripping Dog Inn. She must've seen the look of dismay crossing Ryleh's face at that announcement, for She reached out, touched Ryleh's arm reassuringly and said with a smile and a laugh: "Not you, Sir Ryleh!" What a relief: knowing Our Good Queen's droll sense of humor betimes, it would not have surprised Ryleh one bit to have Her Majesty heap gifts, honors and favors on him with one hand, then turn him over to the tender mercies of Christophe the Insulter with the other! THAT dubious achievement was reserved for Angel, one of LRF's own (Photo, Below: Christophe -- center, holding chapbook -- rips into Angel's defenseless ego, flaying the young man's self-esteem unmercifully, shredding his dignity without pity and ruthlessly crushing any sense of self-worth Angel might have had left as Queen Anne -- in foreground, right -- watches with glee. Angel is shown, at left, shedding tears -- OF LAUGHTER, for Christophe's insults are not only creative and most original, but they are always HILARIOUS, even to his victims! In fact, it is not unusual for members of Christophe's audience -- as well as the target of his ridicule! -- to tip him, just to keep his insults rolling)!!!
After Angel's roasting at the Dripping Dog Inn, Ryleh had the great personal pleasure of meeting another wanderer there: the Right Honorable Ambassador of England and newly-knighted Sir Teddy the Bear (Photo, Right), who was making the rounds of American festivals at the time. At LRF, Sir Teddy was not only knighted by our Royals and his photograph taken with King James as a memento of his tour but he also participated in the Royal Procession through Albright, with Sir Nicholas Lipscomb and Louis-Phillipe Richard de Paris acting as his Escort of Honor. Following his visit to LRF, Sir Teddy then enjoyed the gracious hospitality of Gabby Chattemoore, who provided him with an entirely new wardrobe for his continuing travels. After the ambassadorial reception, Ryleh wandered on over to the new Gypsy Camp to view the wonderful vardo there; stopped by the King's Stage to enjoy an enthusiastic demonstration of Keltic stepdancing; visited the newly re-arranged Food Court for some much-needed food and drink; then made the complete circuit of the lake before returning to the Royal Pavilion...
stickiness during Afternoon Court). By happy coincidence, the brandname of these cordials was also "Queen Anne's Cherries". So Our Queen Anne turns to Ryleh, smiles sweetly, bats her eyelashes right innocently and coyly purrs: "Sir Ryleh, would you like my cherry?" O YE GODZ! The sheer, uncountable cascade of possible replies that thundered thru Ryleh's mind at that specific moment, none of which bears repeating here. Fortunately, Ryleh recovered swiftly enough, with but a moment's pause before croaking out a weak -- but audible -- "Aye!" And aye, too, but The Queen's cherry was sweet, indeed (*cough* ahem!). With a merry laugh, Our Good Queen then opened Court, granting audience to numerous visitors to LRF, knighting quite a few young patrons and enjoying the music and song from the nearby Eastglen Stage with Her courtiers in the meantime. Eventually, all the Royal Business was finished: it was now high time for Her Majesty and Her entourage to wend their way to the Main Gate for the Musicians' Jam before the closing cannon roared. There was no rush to get there, so along the way Queen Anne challenged Ryleh to an axe throw (Photo, Left: Ryleh prepares to hurl his axe at his target while Her Majesty waits in the background. For safety sake, Ryleh had to wear one of the game's own helmets as his black leather cap -- seen resting on the green bench behind him -- just wasn't sturdy enough). OF COURSE, Her Majesty won -- and NOT because Ryleh didn't try. Had he been throwing in earnest, his foemen would definitely've been sporting well-bruised shins and heavily-battered feet! All of which goes to prove what Ryleh has known, all along: he is a LOVER -- NOT a fighter!!!
Standard Disclaimer: This webpage is strictly an *Unofficial* look at the Louisiana Renaissance Festival held near Hammond, LA in the Parish of Tangipahoa. All opinions expressed herein are strictly this author's own. Unless noted otherwise, all photographs are copyright ©2003-2004 by George Laking.