Belly Dancing at the Fort Tryon Park Medieval Festival, October 2009

What Is The Medieval Festival?

The Medieval Festival brings to life the customs and spirit of the Middle Ages. Manhattan's Fort Tryon Park is transformed into a medieval market town decorated with bright banners and processional flags. Performers, guests and festival goers dress in medieval costume. Visitors are greeted by authentic medieval music, dance, magic, and minstrels, as well as jugglers and jesters. The afternoon is concluded with a thrilling joust between four knights on horseback. Costumed vendors will be on hand to demonstrate and sell a wide variety of medieval crafts as well as food and drink.

The festival is free -- there are no charges for admission or entertainment. Donations at our wishing wells are welcome, however!

Where Will the Festival Take Place?
The festival is held in the area surrounding the world famous Cloisters, a magnificent museum of medieval art located in Fort Tryon Park near the northern end of Manhattan Island. The park offers vistas of the Hudson River and the picturesque Palisades: a setting reminiscent of Europe eight centuries ago.

When ?
The 2010 Festival will be held on Sunday October 3rd, 2010 from 11:30AM to 6 PM.

Who Produces The Festival?

This years festival will be the twenty-fourth presented by the Washington Heights & Inwood Development Corporation, a privately and publicly supported not-for-profit corporation. The event is produced in conjunction with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.

How Is The Festival Supported?

The City of New York Department of Parks and Recreation, in recognition of the importance of the festival to the City and to the entire metropolitan area, is providing half the total budget for this years faire, and has given substantial support since 1983. Past festival sponsors have included: the office of the Manhattan Borough President, Con Edison, David Rockefeller, WNCN Radio, the Lila Acheson Wallace Fund, the Samuel Newhouse Foundation, major New York City banks, the New York State Council on the Arts, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, and the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center Neighborhood Fund. Additional support comes from craft and food vendor fees and individual donations by festival visitors.

Corporate sponsorship of this event is available. Please contact Dennis Reeder for more information.

Who Attends?
Average attendance of the Medieval Festival at Fort Tryon Park has been forty thousand people.

Text from: www.whidc.org/home.html