THE HISTORY OF THE KING RICHARD'S FAIRE APPRENTICE PROGRAM
So who are these people, anyway?
The King Richard's Faire Apprentice Program (as presented on this site) began in 1994 when brothers Dave and Paul Stickney, both actors at the faire, decided to re-invent the faire's "intern program." At the time the intern program was little more than a weekend of general instruction and the assignment of costumes to wear on-site.
Seeing untapped potential, the Stickneys turned one weekend of instruction into four weekends of rehearsals. The interns, now dubbed "apprentices," were given lessons in interactive theater, improvisation, and dialect in order to help them create fully-realized and fleshed-out characters to portray.
The result was, in the words of Paul, "the theatrical equivalent of a monster truck rally." The "apprenti" filled the village with lively, sometimes cartoonish characters who interacted with patrons on the street and performed in a handful of stage shows. Before long the apprenti had become an integral part of the faire and could be seen everywhere, from the tilt yard leading cheers to the stages performing in the extremely popular Pub Sing.
The term "zombie slaves" comes directly from the Stickneys, who have oft been heard to bark the command, "Attack, my zombie slaves!" to the apprenti, who obediently respond with outstretched arms and mournful moans. It is believed that the term originated in part from the apprentices' exhausted appearance after a day of performing.
Many of the apprenti later moved on to paying gigs at KRF and other faires, while others just kept coming back for more punishment. Still others vanished into thin air, never to be heard from again...sometimes in the middle of the season.
Alas, the 2000 season was the final year for the Stickney-era apprentice program. Dave left the faire to pursue other projects, and Paul opted not to continue with the program without his brother. While we wish the best of luck to those who will bear the name "apprentice" in the future, it is with regret to say that the true zombie slaves of KRF have staggered off into the mists of history.
WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ZOMBIE SLAVES?
You can read more about zombie slaves in your local library! Well, not really...but if you can get your hands on issue 13 of Renaissance Magazine, you can read "Have Cassock, Will Travel," co-written by zombie slave and site manager Mike Bailey.
You can also click on "Zombie Links," which will lead you to other web sites by, for, and about the apprentices!
CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE!
Thanks to:
* Dave and Paul Stickney, who created the Apprentice Program as we know it...
* The Faboo Tom "Bob Crumpet" Epstein, the swell chap who took all the "class photo" shots that appear on this site as well as some individual shots...
* Jan "Cookie Lady" Perlmutter, who provided a number of Pub Sing shots from 1996 (from which a number of individual pictures were creatively lifted)...
* Mark Aberdeen for his picture of himself...
* Bill 'The Evil Duke' Chapman for pictures from the 1997 and 1998 seasons...
* Paul Littlehale for a variety of shots, including the first pic from the 1994 season, as well as some information on Scott Goodspeed...
