DIS

DISCOVER! | NOVEMBER 28, 2015
Sounds | 5
At a Glance:
WHAT: Iowa Lakes Community
College’s 16th Annual Elizabethan
Madrigal Feaste
WHERE: VFW Post 3388, 314 S.
1st St., Estherville, IA
WHEN: 6:30 p.m. both Saturday,
Dec. 5 and Sunday, Dec. 6
COST: $20 - Reservations must be
made and paid in full by Dec. 3
CONTACT: 712-362-8345 or 1-800-
242-5106 Ext. 8345
ONLINE: www.iowalakes.edu/music/madrigal_feaste/
Ye Olde
Christmas
RYLAN HOWE | STAFF WRITER
Feaste
Elizabethan Madrigal brings medieval times to Estherville
Definition:
Madrigal
1. A secular part song without
instrumental accompaniment,
usually for four to six voices, making
abundant use of contrapuntal
imitation, popular especially in the
16th and 17th centuries.
2. A lyric poem suitable for being
set to music, usually short
and often of amatory character,
especially fashionable in the 16th
century and later, in Italy, France,
England, etc.
-From www.dictionary.com
Rewind to the Renaissance this
Christmas season.
Iowa Lakes Community College’s
music department will host its
16th annual Elizabethan Madrigal
Feaste on Dec. 5-6 at the VFW Post in
Estherville.
Visitors to the event will feel like
they’re walking back in time as VFW
Post 3388 is transformed into a 16th
century castle for a lord and lady’s
Christmas feast.
“It’s like a giant play the whole evening
and the guests are all part of it as
nobility attending a Christmas feast
hosted by the lord and lady,” Iowa
Lakes Community College instrumental
director Carol Ayres said.
The event came to Estherville by
way of Wayne, NE, and Iowa Lakes
Community College choir director
Brett Fuelberth. As a student at Wayne
State College, Fuelberth had a professor
who wrote scripts for madrigal
dinners.
“He kind of pioneered them in the
Midwest and I bought some of the
scripts from him,” Fuelberth said.
“We were looking to perform something
here and it has turned into a
wonderful evening of food and entertainment.”
The entertainment starts the minute
guests enter under a canopy of swords
to the announcement of their names.
It continues throughout the evening
with jokes from the court jester, stories,
songs and musical performances.
The sounds of the Royal Iowa Lakes
Chamber Choir, My Lady of the Lakers
Handbell Ringers, The King’s Brass
Ensemble and Her Majesty’s Recorder
Consort ring throughout the hall during
the five-course meal.
Some guests will already be familiar
with the festivities at the Madrigal
Feaste.
“Some of our audience members
have been here every year and some
even wear costumes,” Ayres said. “It’s
become a tradition for some people.”
Medieval-themed attire is not a requirement
for attendance, but reservations
should be made soon.
The Madrigal Feaste regularly sells
out both nights. Tickets are $20 and
reservations must be made and paid
for by Dec. 3 to secure a spot at the
king’s castle.
“It’s a really fun night,” Ayres said.
“The VFW has wonderful food, it’s a
really festive atmosphere with a play
going on in the middle of it all.”
While the true Christmas feasts of
the middle ages would often last for
several days, this one concludes after
about three hours.
Some traditions originating in 16thcentury
England, like wassail toasting,
flaming pudding and parading a
boar’s head into the dining hall, live
on during the madrigal in Estherville.
It all makes for quite an evening.
“We work on the music for four
months and it’s our big performance
of the fall semester,” Fuelbert said.
“It’s more than an event, it’s really
an experience. You really get into the
Christmas mood and it’s truly a fun
night.”
So, if you’re looking for a unique
experience to kick-off this Christmas
season reserve your seats now.
Plan your pilgrimage to Estherville
and transport yourself back to medieval
England for a night of Christmas
carols, fantastic food, merrymaking
and much more. F
Estherville | Iowa