Shawn Bauldree is a preschool teacher, but this weekend, she donned a purple gown and fairy wings, her identity further concealed by the swirled and glittery makeup around her eyes.
At the 24th annual Hoggetown Medieval Faire, Bauldree, 46, goes by Tatiana, this year’s fairy queen.
An actress at the fair, she greeted about 15,000 damsels and knights who came to the festival this weekend for an afternoon of jousting and fire-juggling fun.
The festival, organized by the City of Gainesville’s Division of Cultural Affairs, featured animal rides, more than a dozen games and 150 artisan booths selling medieval clothing.
Linda Piper, the fair’s coordinator, said in the 15 years she has organized the event, it gets bigger each year.
Besides the fair’s returning entertainment, several new acts were added, including Albannach, a Scottish band, and Menagé Á Cirque, a group of acrobatic performers.
Piper said she expects about 50,000 people to visit the fair during the two weekends it runs.
Adam Richards, a UF computer engineering junior who has gone to the fair for the past two years, said he was looking forward to watching this year’s jousting match and acrobatic performers.
“I just really like the atmosphere, and it’s not a bad price for the experience,” said Richards. “It’s really awesome to see everyone dressing up in all the outfits.”
And some students like Loren Plunkett drove three hours to attend the festival.
“It’s just a really cool period,” said Plunkett, an art history major at the University of South Florida. “I love the [medieval] movies, so it’s really cool to see it walking all around you.”
For the past three years, it has taken $250,000 to put on the fair, according to Piper.
The fair continues for one more weekend: Feb. 5 from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and from Feb. 6 to 7 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Alachua County Fairgrounds, 2900 NE 39th Ave.
Admission is $14 for adults and $7 for children 5 to 17. Friday admission is half price.
