The UA chapter of the Society for Creative Anachronism, the College of St. Felix, will be holding a Renaissance Faire on the UA Mall tomorrow night starting at 7.
Armored duels, swordplay, musical performances, and arts and crafts exhibits are among the offerings the UA group will feature at the annual bash. However, it isn’t just for fun and entertainment; the fair also serves as the SCA’s main recruiting event.
Club president and history sophomore Will Emigh joined last year because the SCA helped him pursue lifelong interests in archery and history and escape the rigid rules of fencing.
“”I took some fencing classes in high school but found it way, way too limiting,”” Emigh said. “”They’d like you to stay in a straight line and only move your sword as much as you have to, and do very mechanical, precise little lunges and that wasn’t my kind of thing. I like a little flair to my fighting.””
Emigh said that over the course of the past year, he found other SCA members on campus and nationwide to be really pleasant because they uphold the values of chivalry.
“”Chivalry and honor aren’t just buzzwords. It’s the way (SCA members) are,”” said Curt Booth, administrative secretary in the electrical and computer engineering department and the club’s adviser for the past decade. “”I love the fact that I can go anywhere in the world where there’s (an SCA group), and I’ll have friends there. I’ll have people who will put me up for the night, give me a good meal and just show me a really good time, because that’s the same thing I would do for them if they came here.””
Kelli Daher, an advising office assistant in the psychology department who became the SCA’s co-adviser earlier this year, said the group decided in recent years to increase its visibility and recruiting efforts by expanding the fair — or “”uberdemo”” in SCA terms — on campus. The group has invited other SCA members in Tucson and Southern Arizona to participate again this year.
At the fair, Daher will be leading a troupe comprised of her students from the belly dancing class offered at the University Medical Center Health and Wellness Center.
Booth and Daher said anyone who is interested or curious about the group is welcome to ask questions during the fair. Emigh gave another reason why UA students should consider joining the SCA.
“”For people who maybe have thought about in the past picking up a sword and giving it a try, didn’t like the look of fencing, maybe in their backyard picked up a couple of sticks with their brothers and just smacked each other around — this is the best place to come to,”” Emigh said. “”Because at least we’ll put something on your head so you don’t give yourself a concussion.””
