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Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Al Olson - The History of the American Renaissance Festival. This is episode 602 of Teaching Learning Leading K12, an audio podcast.
Al Olson is one of a select handful of eccentric, quirky, and entertaining people who helped grow the American Renaissance Festivals into being a very popular ticket. He shares his story in his comprehensive book, A History of the American Renaissance Festival. While attending the University of Minnesota, working nights in a parking ramp and pumping iron at the Dove’s bicep gym, he also performed his original songs in the same coffee houses that Bob Dylan had a few years earlier on the west bank of the Mississippi. The artistic director of the Minnesota Renaissance Festival attended a theatrical presentation of his original works at Theatre in the Round and hired him on the spot.
He began performing at Renfairs as a member of the group, “Pumpkin,” writing original Renaissance music. After less than a season, he noted the greater crowd impact of groups like Penn and Teller, Avner the Eccentric, the Flying Karamazov Brothers, and Puke and Snot. As a result, Smee and Blogg were formed out of frustration and a desire to present something unique. The tandem comedic vaudeville act performed for 36 years, singing and dancing across the U.S. and Canada at 56 renaissance festivals and medieval faires.
After the act stopped performing in 2013, he continued as the Singing Executioner and renaissance and medieval faires in Texas and Oklahoma to this day. For the past decade he has served as the master of properties for Texas Ballet Theatre. For six years he was the general manager and co-founder of the Tennessee Renaissance Festival. Over the past two decades he has performed voice-overs for radio commercials for various festivals. Earlier in his career, he produced a musical album and served on the board of directors for Real Community Theater in Minneapolis. He’s been interviewed on dozens of radio and TV shows and has been featured in over100 newspaper articles. Olson, who grew up in South Minneapolis, now resides in Ft. Worth, Texas. For more information, please see: www.singingexecutioners.com and https://www.smeebuchs.square.site.
Love this talk!
Time to go to a Renaissance Festival!!!
Don't forget to reach out to Al and get a signed copy of his book - The History of the American Renaissance Festival.
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Connect & Learn More:
https://www.amazon.com/History-American-Renaissance-Festival-Hippies/dp/B09NHD9FSK
https://www.travelchannel.com/interests/arts-and-culture/photos/best-renaissance-festivals-in-the-us
https://www.therenlist.com/all-fairs
https://www.smeebuchs.square.site
Length - 42:48