Drake OranwoodHi all,
So people have started asking questions. (Yes, the idea that some people will miss me onstage does give me a warm feeling.) So let me take a few minutes to clarify why this year’s Pennsic concert (War Tuesday, 9-10 pm, Performing Arts tent in Pennsic U) is subtitled “Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow”.
Hi all. Pennsic is approaching so I wanted to give you a few updates.
Other than that, I plan on taking it mostly easy this war. I’m up for meeting up with people when possible and taking in some bardic circles.
Hope to see you there.
Drake
So we’ve been home for Pennsic a little over a week, but Herself tested positive for Covid right after we got home, so we’ve been quarantining, and my head wasn’t in the right space to post yet.
Yes, there was a lot of Covid going around at Pennsic, much closer at hand for us than previous years. From opening weekend to middle weekend to packout, it was taking down good friends of ours left and right. Ultimately it got a good chunk of our camp. How it keeps missing me I’ll never know, but I don’t want to jinx it. Current mood:
Sooo, it’s time to talk about something.
This will be the ninth Pennsic where I have the privilege of performing on the Performing Arts stage (aka the Three Crowns). Next year will be the tenth…and my last planned one.
Well, now that we’ve gotten that out of the way…let’s talk about this summer. Pennsic is less than a month away (aaaaaaaaa!), and there are a few things going on…but first, you probably wanna know about the concert, right? So let’s talk about the concert.
My “Troubadour Next Door” concert will be happening Wednesday of War Week from 7 to 8 pm (August 7), in the big Performing Arts tent, now known as The Three Crowns. (I learned last year that some people have not been there and don’t know where it is. This is not the PA Rehearsal Tent. This is the giant yellow tent at the heart of Pennsic University, behind Aethelmearc Royal). PLEASE NOTE the 7 pm time slot, earlier than usual. However, I’m okay with it because I am opening for Heather Dale, whose concert is at 8 pm, which means there should be some solid turnout.
It’s a little over a week that we’re home from Pennsic 50. As usual, I’ve needed some time to process my thoughts. Here we go.
This was our first full Pennsic since before the pandemic. We did just Peace Week from a hotel room last year, which gave us a taste, but it wasn’t the same as really being there. Most of it was fear of Covid, and we managed to avoid it. (We managed not to get sick this year too, which was better than a number of our friends. We may be “done” with Covid, but it really isn’t done with us.) It was good to really be back, to be set up fully with our pavilion and moved in and living onsite, and not needing to head out every evening just as the night life was getting started.
So we’re back from Pennsic. I have lots of thoughts, and I will be writing them down and sharing them soon.
But in the meantime…we did get video of the full Performing Arts concert, for those who missed it.
We head out for Pennsic today. I’m excited to be doing the whole thing this year and camping on-site once more, even as I’m nervous about factors beyond our control that we never used to worry about (Covid, air quality).
And I’m excited to be doing my concert again, having opted not to stay for war week last year. Barring things we can’t prevent, I’ll be performing on the big stage for the first time in four years. So I wanted to do something special. Ambitious. Maybe a little crazy? (For someone who isn’t exactly made out of spare time.)
I decided to perform Hold the Door Open with a full voice cast for the four main characters. A representative voice cast, including performers who could demonstrate the diversity of sometimes marginalized experiences the song is about.
Pennsic is less than a month away. We’re planning to go for the full two weeks this year. We camp at McGuire’s Marauders, block N06 (next to Ansteorra Royal).
My plans at a glance:
If you’re coming to Pennsic, feel free to ping me on FB if you want to try to meet up. It’s going to be hot and very people-y, being Pennsic 50, and there’s no telling a month out what the air quality will be like, so I have no idea how much wandering I’ll be doing.
We just got back from Pennsic (and boy is our everything tired). We’re extremely happy with our decision to only go for peace week this year and manage our risks. More about that later.
While I was at war, I debuted my newest song, “Homecoming”, which I finished last Friday, just in time for Pennsic. I was able to share it at a couple of bardic circles and a number of private performances for friends and chosen family.
Drake Oranwood