St. Henry's Guild Blog

Fair Oaks 08 Casting

If anyone wishes a copy of the Noon show and wedding scripts, please e-mail me off list.  Thanks! 

Guild Masters, please note that there is an opportunity for guild presentations to the newly single King from 1 p.m. to 2:30 on both days.  We'd love to see you in court!

~Heather, St. Henry's Guild

Casting—

Fair Oaks, 2008

"The Royal Wedding" of H8 and Catherine Howard

 

Jason Strong—Henry VIII

David Masters-- Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk (Acting Chamberlain for this faire)

Heather Parish—Princess Anne of Cleves

Joe Harney—Henry Radclyffe, Earl of Sussex (guest)

Rebecca Strong—Jane Wriosthley, Countess of Southampton

Candace Metzler—Jane Boleyn, Viscountess Rochford

Jerry Senseney—Baron Marney, Captain of the Guard

Kat Brinkley— Lady Catherine Howard

Zack McCormick—Thomas Culpepper, favorite courtier of H8

Andrew Walton—Master Middleton, knight attainder

Ruth McCormick—Jane the Fool

Lynn Masters—Mistress Elspeth

Kim Furgerson—Mistress Thorne

 

 

Support Court: St. Margaret's Guild

Musicians:  Queen's Ha'Penny Consort

 

Plot Points: FAIR OAKS Court08

§ Street Gig #1: Two Norfolk (Joe and Dave) discuss the short reign of their Queen.

o Extol her modesty and virtue and how popular she had become

o How this affects the religious/political agendas of the Court.

o How the Norfolks can use this to advantage

o What the King plans to do next

 

11:30

King Arrives- Progress  (11:45-Noon  Meeting place, TBA)

 

NOON: Mainstage show

• Prologue by Anne ofCleves
• King Greets his People
• Presentations by villagers
• Welcoming of Margaret, Queen of Scotland (we'll pretend she's still alive)
• Finalization of Annulment—King and Anne make nice.
• King announces that he is open to greeting the young women of his Kingdom in a grand festival celebrating feminine attractions! (Single again! Woot Woot!)
• Catherine is introduced to Court. She sings a song.

 
Repast- 2:30: Interguild presentations  (contact Heather or reply here to arrange something)

§         Guilds on site are encouraged to develop a presentation to court of the finest examples of femininity they have to offer.  Our court will dance, play games, and greet visitors.

§ Street Gig #2: Cat Howard and Thomas Culpepper are seen around site flirting, dancing, and carrying on most illicitly.

o Joking, carrying on.

o Practicing a most elegant dance

o Thomas shows overt signs of love and attraction

o Kat explains that her Uncle Norfolk intends her for the King

o Thomas makes light of it and suggests they find a more private place to continue their conversations.

 

2:30: Cat Howard makes a presentation to the King and he asks her to step into his private quarters. (Break. . . Changing for Wedding)

 

3 p.m. The Royal Wedding to Kat Howard (location: glade)

 

3:30 p.m. Children's Court with the Newlyweds

 

4 p.m. Anne of Cleves presents herself to the New Queen and is given a place in Court by Henry and Catherine. Catherine, Anne, Culpepper, and others dance to Henry's delight

 

4:15 p.m.: The King Retires. Catherine and her Court continue to make merry until the end of the day.

Bard's Bash

Ten or eleven of our fabulous guild members spent Sunday evening at the grand Lester Estates to celebrate the 444th birthday of William Shakespeare with the folks at the Woodward Shakespeare Festival. 

Rebecca Strong turned out a generous and beautiful performance as Queen Elizabeth I while her husband, Jason Strong, mingled with guests as Master Shakespeare himself. 

The Queen arrived via "barge" on the banks of the San Joaquin River to an island landing where her attendants awaited her.  After a progress in and a welcoming speech, the revels began!

St. Henry's was pleased to be a part of this fund raiser whose proceeds go directly to the 4th Season of the Woodward Shakespeare Festival in Fresno.  Hopefully this will be the beginning of a longstanding relationship between St. Henry's Guild and the Woodward Shakespeare Festival. 

The photo album of the event is up in the lefthand sidebar. 

Membership Update

In the last few weeks, I've been culling our records and purging members on our roster who have not paid their dues or been active in the guild in the last year or two.  This can always be a disheartening procedure since we GM's like to view the health of our membership in terms of the size of our gatelist.  They don't always (or even usually) correspond, though.

But for us, we've purged a few folks and added a few new members, so all in all, we're not doing too badly. 

On our current Membership Roster we have a total of:  18 individuals. 

Of those 18, 3 are Members Emeriti (meaning their past service and current activities make them members for life even if they aren't fully active) (16%);

11 are full members (61%);

4 are friends of the guild-- essentially part-time members (22%).

But the meaningful numbers break down like this: 

Of that total 18, ten are regular meeting attendees (55%);
12 will likely  attend three of our four faires this year (66%);
and 17 will likely attend two of our four faires this year (94%). 

14 attended the FCC Feast (77%)
11 are expected to attend the Bard's Bash (61%)

And as for the work that gets done in the guild:
4 attended the work day in February (22%)
7 members regularly tend to the administrative duties of the guild and volunteer for projects.  (38%)
8 members routinely show up for set up (at least two of our four faires), (44%)

Overall, these are okay numbers.  We have good membership attendance at most of our events, which shows how much we enjoy each other.  But we are unbalanced regarding the actual work that gets done in between events.  All guilds have that issue-- all organizations have that issue, in fact.  However, that doesn't mean it shouldn't be a goal to raise those numbers in the coming year. 

Just ask yourself, what are you doing to help out?  And where do you fall in the above numbers. 

~Heather

Sewing Circle for May

On May 17th, immediately following our regular meeting at Dave Masters' home, the guild will hold a Sewing Circle at Hancock Fabrics' classrooms in Fresno. 

Our costume mistress, Kat Brinkley, will lead all comers in the basics of building one of our most essential items:  smocks and chemises.  Every member always needs a few extras on hand for those hot events, and the guild always needs a few for loaners to our guests. 

If you've never sewn before, or sewn only a little, this is a perfect opportunity to begin to learn the basics of a craft that will support your Faire Life immensely!

For those of you who are more intermediate or advanced in your skill, this is a great opportunity to review basic technique and learn a few tips from Kat's experience.  OR you can bring whatever project you're working on currently and spend the time making progress on it with your guild friends.  Kat will be on hand to help you with whatever you need, as well several others. 

So pack up your machine and items and bring them to Fresno on May 17th for a fun and productive Saturday evening. 

WSF 4th Annual Bard's Bash

We've started lining up the details of our next gig at the 4th Annual Bard's Bash hosted by the Woodward Shakespeare Festival.  Every year they host a casual celebration of William Shakespeare's birthday featuring a live auction and entertainment. 

This year, we will be assisting them with festive nobles, rogues, and poets to add to the party atmosphere and a Queen Elizabeth to knight the highest bidder at the auction. 

Held at the beautiful gardens of the Lester Estate in Fresno, the party sits along the banks of the San Joaquin River almost as though it were an Estate on the Thames.   

The Bard's Bash is on April 13th from 4 to 9 p.m.  If you wish to attend the cost is $25 if you come in garb and $40 if you don't.  RSVP's 559.974.5601 by April 6th. 

FCC Feast 2008- Done!

Last night, the guild completed another successful event for the FCC Feast of Scholars.  Swordfighters, Queen Bess, Shakespeare's Sisters, Scottish Highland Dancing, Soloists, and Tribal Dancers all brought together a terrific show for patrons giving for charitable scholarships to Fresno City College. 

The preliminary photo album is up on the sidebar.  Hopefully some shots from the professional photographer will be forthcoming. 

Due(s)date has passed

Yesterday, March 8th was the final duedate for continuing members' dues to be paid.  Anyone who has been a friend of the guild, a full member, or has guested with us more than twice will have to pay at least Friends dues to be placed back on our gatelist and e-mail group. 

As a GM, I really don't relish adhering to such deadlines, but it is necessary to keep our membership roster up to date with people who are sincerely interested in being active with the group.  If you've guested with us in the past and are still considering St. Henry's as your home guild, please come and discuss your options with me.  The Friend of the Guild status is a terrific option for those with limited time or other commitments. 

St. Henry's still wants to play with all of our friends; we simply need to clarify who our members are and what we'll be asking of them in the coming year. 

Thanks,
Heather

FCC Feast 2008

Hey, all. . .  Well, things are progressing with the FCC Feast.  We have another good line up this year and the folks at FCC are doing their best to keep the night rolling well. 

A few added things:  The nobles will be expected to be on duty earlier than before to greet the guests and mix with them.  The Queen will be holding an audience for VIP guests (Brooke will be back as QEI again) and Kat and Heather will be handling floor duties during the feast. 

Our line up looks like this:
The Highland Step Dancers from the Cal Arts Academy.
A display of swordsmanship (James and Andy with help from Kat and Heather)
A solo song from St. Henry's.
The Dancers of Banat Tanjora
A Battle of Wits between The Queen and Shakespeare's Sisters.
The auction
And then the final dance-- the Schiarazula Marazula. 

This is a terrific evening for the folks at St. Henry's.  It's a glittering affair and everyone appreciates the show we help put on.  Hopefully, it will get our faire year off to a terrific start!

2008 Dues are Due!

Here's  your first reminder that 2008 St. Henry's Dues are Due!  Ack!

Full Membership Dues are $25 per person.  (Couples and Families get a 20% discount). 
Friends of the Guild dues are $10 per person. 

Full Members receive:
Voting rights in the guild.
Eligibility for privy council membership/leadership positions.
Principle casting consideration.
Enrollment in apprenticeship program (if not already a master member). 
Eligibility to be elevated to noble status after one year. 
Quarterly newsletter.
Membership to the Yahoo Group. 
Gatelisting to every faire and event for the year. 

Friends of the Guild receive:
Voting rights in the guild.
Secondary casting consideration on an as needed basis.
Quarterly newsletter.
Membership to the Yahoo Group.
Gatelisting to every faire and event for the year. 

Consider your goals with the guild and your availability for meetings and events when deciding your membership level. 

Currently active member dues will be collected through March 8th, 2008. 

You may submit dues at guild meetings and events through that date OR mail a check to
St. Henry's Guild
PO Box 12
Sultana, CA  93666

Thank you,
Heather

PS-- a new member info form is in the works.  I'll forward a copy when it is finished. 

2008 is just days away!

So, the guild has been eagerly anticipating Twelfth Night 2008!  We are again imposing on the kindness of Full Circle Brewing Company to have their space overrun for the event.  This year we're expecting around 100 guests; if that sort of turn out continues we're going to have to put some limitations on invitees!  Well, lets just hope that everyone behaves and we're invited back again in 2009!

Jason Strong is stepping into Michael Butler's shoes as Henry VIII at this year's feast.  Change is inevitable in all things and while Michael's presence will always be missed and welcomed at any time, duties with his business have kept his interests elsewhere for the time being. 

We are excited, though, to give a new young man the opportunity to try his hand at playing Monarch.  As a theatrical director I've always had the opinion that leading players don't know what they can do as leading players UNTIL they're give the opportunity to BE a leading player.  This event will give Jason an opportunity to try his hand at greater theatrical responsibility and get feedback for his further growth as a potential young Henry for faires.  We have at least four potential Queens at any give time in St. Henry's, having two Henry's can't hurt! 

In other guild news:
Our 2008 Master Calendar is complete and includes Saturday guild meetings, faires, community events, and a few resurrected activities for our members. 

In February, the guild is planning a trip to the garment district in L.A.  Many of us are planning new garb for 2008 and this will allow us to purchase quality fabrics at lower prices. 

Then, we've scheduled two sewing circles at Hancock Fabrics for Saturday evenings after meetings in May and September.  This will give members the opportunity to learn new skills from each other in garb-making and allow us to help each other out with fitting garb as it is being constructed.

We've added events with Woodward Shakespeare Festival this year as well-- the Bard's Bash in April and the Opening Weekend of their Festival of Plays.

All in all, it is a full year already with the potential for more to be added as we go along!

Happy New Year to every good gentle!

Heather