Author Spotlight
Peyton Moore
“Fairies and knights, come get a taste of my cinnamon buns or some ice cold water. Huzzah, huzzah!”
Hollering over the toot of bagpipes, sophomore Scout Jacobs has an impressive crowd to entice — an assortment of dragon slayers, kings, fairies and peasants. The exchange isn’t just a role-play, it’s her job as a concession worker at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival.
“My purpose here is basically to be rude, funny, nice and entertaining — whatever I have to be to get tips,” Scout said. “The way you read a person bases how much you get tipped. If you can spark a conversation, tell a joke or be a little rude, they’ll buy something because they came here for entertainment.”
Since she started hawking at the annual festival last fall, Scout has seen it all: glitter-drenched fairies, queens demanding respect from a peasant passerby and little boys banging their swords against the counter — daily entertainment that was the reason she chose the job.
At 14 years old, a family friend who’s a booth manager at the festival reached out to ask if she was interested in being a concession worker in the food booths during the fall season. She shrugged. Why not?
As a sixth-generation Celtic Irish immigrant, Scout finds comfort in the characters who roam the fair. Her knowledge of her Celtic culture and genealogy is useful for cracking jokes and entertaining the festival-goers’ fantasies, according to her boss, head-food-service manager Tina.
Tina explained that Scout’s character specialty seemed to be Irish, pulling from her Irish background — impressing common-goers with her knowledge about the potato famine or joking with another Celtic Irish, who she identifies based on an accent, about being poor in that time period.
“She can hold her own with people who want to talk about genealogy or Renaissance history,” Tina said. “It doesn’t matter if she’s talking to a child or an older person, they all get the same smile, the same attitude, the same customer service and the same Scout, and it’s super cool to watch.”
After years of working the festival herself, Tina knows it isn’t easy playing the winch or lowly peasant worker in the festival guests’ fantasies. Scout’s job description entails serving the intoxicated knights and fairies and frustrated and thirsty common folk once they’ve realized there were no credit card readers in the Renaissance era and aching in their ankle length skirts and leather corsets for a 10-hour shift while making near minimum wage. To survive the fair, employees explained the story is key — leaning into the Renaissance act and interacting with the people makes it worth it.
The fantasy that the festival brings to life has captivated Scout since childhood. Fascinated by the crowds of quirky, ancestrally-diverse people the festival draws in, Scout has had no problem stepping into her demanding-yet-fulfilling role in the fantasy universe.
In fact, it was Scout’s mom, Whitney Jacobs, who encouraged her to take the job. She knew her personality would suit the whimsical characters that frequent the fair.
“Scout’s a very friendly person,” Whitney said. “She is curious about others and has this insight, or a sixth sense, when she’s meeting strangers. I honestly don’t know if Scout’s ever met a stranger. It’s easy to feel warm and comfortable around her.”
Still, Scout’s people skills continue to sharpen after two years of Saturday shifts throughout fall, Whitney said. Serving candy and soda to sometimes rude pirates and intoxicated knights has given her confidence in dealing with confrontation. But knowing she can recite the same magic act across the festival ground she saw last weekend and spend her Saturday’s in this fantasy world is what keeps her going back.
“Scout’s one of the most open individuals to all different types of characteristics to people,” Whitney said. “She’s non-judgemental and really wants to see people thrive in their own skin and be who they are. That’s why this job works so well for her.”
After working only a couple Saturdays last season, the management advertised Scout as their best employee — an obvious choice, Tina said.
As she continues with her career path, whether Renaissance or not, Whitney believes employers will chase after her despite her unusual work experience. Her knack for customer service and working under pressure has given her an edge that employers will desire, she said.
“It’s pretty comforting to see this diverse group of people who are kinda like me,” Scout says. “It’s oddly calming because we see all these characters coming here for the same purpose — to be in this fantasy world — and, at the end of the night, it calms down and you realize the whole day it felt like you were actually in that fantasy.”
Leave a Reply