Residence life hosts USU’s first Ren Faire
The rain clouds that lingered over Utah State University’s Quad cleared just in time for students to step into another era. By early afternoon, the green space had transformed into a miniature medieval fairground complete with costumes, crafts and even a mock “potion” bar serving colorful sodas.
Hosted by USU Residence Life, the Renaissance Faire marked the department’s first event of its kind. Organizers said the goal was to bring residents together for an afternoon of creative fun and community building.
“This is the first time residence life has ever held an event like this,” said Kinsley Sorensen, a resident assistant for West Campus. “I’ll admit, I was a little bit nervous in the beginning, but once the event started and we really got going, everything came together.”
Sorensen said the fair attracted around 200 participants who stopped by for games, food and themed activities. The event featured Tarot readings, a jousting tournament using inflatable horses and pool noodles and the Performance Whipcracking Club.
Alyssa Cook At the Residence Life Renaissance Fair on Oct. 15, Morgan Duke does a Tarot reading.
“I petitioned for a jousting tournament, which we thankfully got approved,” Sorensen said. “Originally, health and safety wouldn’t let us do jousting on campus. I was also surprised that we were allowed to have the whip cracking club there, but they were a big hit.”
Resident assistant Luke Christner, who first proposed the fair, said the event had been in planning since the summer.
“I had the idea over the summer and decided to start putting it in action during the school year. My advocacy team and a couple other RAs helped me plan everything out,” Christner said.
Christner said the weather added some suspense to the day’s setup.
“We lucked out with the rain,” he said.
Costumes were a highlight for many attendees. Students arrived dressed as knights, wizards and nobles for a contest judged by the event staff.
“The costume contest was one of my favorite parts,” Christner said. “Seeing everyone dressed up and the outfits they came up with was really cool.”
Along with the games and contests, a “potion” bar served custom soda drinks while students crafted medieval-inspired art projects. The Tarot reading station drew a long line throughout the evening, and the whip cracking club demonstrated their skills in the center of the Quad.
Sorensen said the planning team drew inspiration from other campus events and wanted something unique to the fall semester.
“In the planning of this event, we were a lot more ambitious. We’d just had our sustainability barbecue two weeks before, so we had to pull this together fast. But I think it turned out great,” she said.
Both Sorensen and Christner said they hope to make the fair an annual USU Residence Life tradition.
“We want to partner with more clubs and departments next year, maybe the history or folklore departments,” Sorensen said. “If we put this together again, maybe when it’s a little warmer, we could get even more people involved.”
Christner acknowledged the lack of this kind of event in northern Utah.
“I wanted to do this because there aren’t many Renaissance Faires up in northern Utah. This was a good opportunity to bring that kind of spirit up to Logan and have some fun with it,” he said.
As the sun broke through the clouds, students lingered across the Quad, sipping their “potions” and cheering for the final jousting matches, marking the end to the first of what organizers hope will be many more years of medieval festivities.