Bedlam Bards

2002 Schedule

The North Texas Irish Festival

March 2, 3. State Fair Park, Dallas.
The Bedlam Bards have long wanted to play at one of the nation’s largest Celtic music festivals, and they’ve long wanted a chance to play more children’s music. Both birds were killed with one stone when they were approached about performing on NTIF’s Urchin Street stage. Come hear the bards as you’ve never heard them before! Okay, whoever said that the Bedlam Bards would play NTIF when all Hell freezes over was right! What are the chances of almost missing a show in Texas due to a blizzard? We made it just on time for our sound check on Saturday, only to discover that the mikes were also stuck in winter traffic. Calling on our renfaire experience, we stepped a little closer to the small but enthusiastic audience and performed unplugged. It was our debut of "The Frozen Logger," a comical little ditty about a man freezing to death. How's that for irony? The sun came out for Sunday, bringing the patrons with it, and our final show for the fest was SRO. Afterwards, one fan commented, "Wow, you bards do clean songs as well as you do dirty ones!"

The Gin-U-Wine Oyster Bar

March 8. Located at 707 Chestnut, Bastrop, TX 512-321-9864
Gathering of the Irish Clans. Some people just can’t wait until Saturday morning to dress up and have fun, so TJ (a proud member of Clan Byrne, a sept of the M’Crack) is hosting a pre-Excalibur party at the Gin-U-Wine Oyster Bar in Bastrop. This celebration coincides with the BedHead weekend at Excalibur, and we’ve heard that a number of rennie households will be hoisting pints with us, so this looks to be a party of legendary proportions. The Bedlam Bards will headline, and several other ren acts may perform, including Scott Boswell and Owl Morrison.

Excalibur Fantasy Faire

March 9, 10, 16, 17, 23, 24, 30, 31. Located at the Rocky Hill Ranch, Smithville, TX. Phone 512-303-3801 With the passing of Hawkwood——a moment of silence, please——the Excalibur Fantasy Faire has become the Bedlam Bards’ new home. Each year, this festival gets bigger and better; and we’re expecting record-breaking crowds to join us for full-contact jousting from Noble Cause, outrageous actics from the cast, fantastic jamming with some of our favorite bands and bards, and of course, more Bedlam than ever in 2002. The first weekend is BedHead weekend, so show up and show your pride! The 2002 season saw phenomenal growth and record-breaking turnout, no doubt spurred along by dedicated BedHead support. Hawke, Cedric, and Lilly had a fabulous time running like mad to keep up with
their schedule. Even so, this faire saw some great pre-opening-into-first-hour jam sessions on the Drum Stage, where many of the faire’s musicians gathered to warm up. A bit of pre-opening fun
included dueling Beatles covers from both sets of B. Bards (Bedlam and Brobdingnagian).

The Blarney Stone Pub

March 14. Located at 2116 Greenville, Dallas, TX 214-821-7099
The Bedlam Bards (minus Cedric) will be performing at the Blarney Stone in Dallas as part of an annual benefit. There will be great live Celtic music and FREE BEER! I'm not making up the last part!
Remember, there's a Blarney Stone pub in Fort Worth and one in Dallas. Go to the one in Dallas because otherwise, you won't get to hear the Bedlam Bards!

The Gin-U-Wine Oyster Bar

March 16. Located at 707 Chestnut, Bastrop, TX 512-321-9864
South by Southeast. Once again jumping the gun, the Gin-U-Wine Oyster Bar in Bastrop will begin its Saint Paddy’s Day party a day early, pulling in fans and bands from Excalibur Fantasy Faire. Last year, we had an amazing jam session with the other Excalibur performers; we’re expecting even better this year!

Oklahoma Renaissance Festival at The Castle of Muskogee

May 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19. Located at 3400 Fern Mountain Rd. Muskogee, OK. Phone 918-687-3625. Ah, the Castle of Muskogee, home to the fairest of the faire! Hawke and Cedric will be making the trek up to Muskogee for fun and festivity with one of the happiest casts on the planet. Every year, we go there; and every year, it’s that much harder to leave. If you’ve never been to Muskogee, then you have no idea how much fun you are missing. See you there! It’s a truly magical faire that gets better every year, but OkRF manages to do it. The 2002 season saw the faire developing in several new ways, including special offerings such as the Queen’s Tea, a
highly civilized afternoon meal, and the Royal Smoker, an hour of low-brow entertainment. Guess which one your favorite bards were invited to. 2002 also welcomed a new band to the Castle: Boru’s Ghost, with whom Hawke and Cedric enjoyed many fine jam sessions. But of course most of the fun was in seeing old friends from the court, the maypole dances, the wenches, and all the other things we’ve come to love about Muskogee. If you missed this great season, don’t despair: It’s now available on video! Contact Karen@thecastle.org for more information.

The Valhalla Renaissance Festival

June 1, 2. Located on Highway 89, 2 1/2 miles north of South Lake Tahoe. Phone 530-544-7348. As summer comes upon us, it's time for the birds to spread their wings and start migrating north to cooler weather. Hawke is no exception. This will be Hawke's second year at the Valhalla festival; he will be performing high-energy Celtic music with Red Hugh. The Hall of the Slain never rocked so hard! More costume per foot than any faire I have attended. Great fun. Love you Sea Dogs.

Northwest Renaissance Festival

June 15, 16, 22, 23, 29, 30,July 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21. Located 6493 Hwy 291 Nine Miles Falls, WA. 18 Miles from Spokane. Phone 509-487-2041.    Once again Hawke will be flying solo, though Red Hugh may show up for some merriment.   This was the best season ever for this little faire. Had the pleasure of playing with some great musicians. Heather Alexander made two appearances and a lovely mud pit concert. Pint and Dale, and Dan Maher also made appearances. Mud Pit concerts some of the best music I have ever heard.

The Washington Renaissance Faire in Gig Harbor

Aug. 3, 4, 10, 11. Located at Minter Creek Ranch, 10215 State Road 302, in Gig Harbor, Washington. This will be Hawke's third year there. This little faire is growing, and fastly becoming one of Hawke's favorites. (Wonder if it has anything to do with Heather Alexander playing there?) This is one of the fastest growing faires I have come across. I do have a lot of fun there. (Yes it has something to do with Heather)

King Richard's Faire

August 31, Sept. 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 29, 30, Oct. 7, 8, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20, 2002.   Located 235 S Main ST, Carver, MA; from Boston, take SR-128 to SR-24 S to I-495, Exit SR-58 Phone (508) 866-5391.   Hawke and Cedric are looking forward to the first Bedlam Bards excursion into the Great Northeast. Someone might want to warn New England that we’re coming.

Boars Head Feast at The Castle of Muskogee

Nov. 16.    Located at 3400 Fern Mountain Rd. Muskogee, OK. Phone 918-687-3625.

Ingleside Renaissance Festival

December 14 and 15.    Located This will be our first year at Ingleside, and we’re looking forward to small but fun faire. BedHeads, take advantage of this last chance to hear your favorite bards before spending the holidays with your dysfunctional families at your smother’s house—I mean, your mother’s house. Contact [check Cedric’s email for contact or look for website] for directions.