Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – The Red Wolf Renaissance Fair is bringing medieval merriment to Craighead Forest Park for a good cause this weekend.
This is the second annual Renaissance festival held by Red Wolf Renaissance in partnership with the Arkansas State University student organization, the Red Wolf Renaissance Society.
Lauren Hopkins, founding director of Red Wolf Renaissance, said the festival has expanded since last year, thanks to guest feedback.
“This year is truly special as we have had a full year to think through and implement feedback from our guest surveys,” Hopkins said. “The main points were more shade, more bathrooms, more performances and more knight duels.”
New this year is the Red Wolf Clash of Steel Tournament, which invites buhurt fighters from around the region to compete for gift card prizes and even the chance to qualify for the International Medieval Combat Federation’s national tournament. Buhurt is a full-contact sport in which participants fight each other with steel blunt weapons while dressed in suits of armor and knight helmets.
Another new addition to the festival is a scavenger hunt that combines art with historical facts about red wolves.
“The prize at the end of the scavenger hunt will be an extra sweepstakes entry and an invitation to our knighting ceremony on Sunday,” Hopkins said.
Sweepstakes prizes include five Red Wolf prize packages; as well as one 2-buffet entry with drink certificate from Larry’s Pizza of Paragould, one $50 gift certificate from Extra Lives Arcade, one copy of “Shayde: Beginning” by Jasen R. Dobson, and one free entry for up to four individuals during both days of the 2026 Red Wolf Renaissance Fair.
The number of vendors has also increased from 55 to 76, with merchandise ranging from food to costumes to handmade crafts.
Festival goers may also run into an expansive cast of characters, such as HelFyre the fire spinner and the Architect of Arrows. The full entertainment list and performance schedule can be found here.
“Being able to see and interact with the cast is always a treat for the crowds,” Danielle Kelley, cast and production director, said. “King William, Queen Rosalie, Lady Scarborough, and other members of the court welcome everyone, but be warned against thieves, pirates, and highlanders.”
The fair’s goal is to bring awareness to red wolf conservation, something Hopkins said is important to her as an A-State student majoring in wildlife, fisheries and conservation.
The fair is also raising money for the $5 million American Red Wolf Conservation and Research Center, a project A-State proposed in 2022 that would bring a total of 12 red wolves to Jonesboro to be housed in fenced enclosures.
“The Red Wolf Renaissance Fair operates on a conservation-focused mission that recognizes that traditional fundraising methods alone are often insufficient to meet the needs of critically endangered species,” she said. “While some conservationists questioned the nature of the event in its early stages, we believe our mission proves that blending community revelry with fundraising plays an essential role as part of the solution.”
During its first year, Red Wolf Renaissance allocated $3,000 to organizations that care and advocate for red wolves, including the Red Wolf Coalition, the Endangered Wolf Center, the Wolf Conservation Center, the North Carolina Museum of Life & Science and the Arkansas Center for Biodiversity Collections.
“In the end, the key with our mission of Arkansas Revelry for Red Wolf Recovery is to inform the public about the critically endangered status of the American red wolf, celebrate the Red Wolf Recovery Program’s efforts, and to blend conservation with entertaining community-oriented events,” Hopkins said.
While Saturday’s festivities have ended, the fair will reopen Sunday, Nov. 2, starting at 10 a.m. and concluding at 5 p.m. along Access Road 6 at Craighead Forest Park.