The Park has been closed due to Hurricane Earl. We will re-open on Saturday, September 4 at 11 a.m. The Art Gallery reception has also been cancelled for the evening of September 3. The show will be available for viewing On Tuesday, September 7.
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Board and explore Elizabeth II from every angle. Help costumed 16th century sailors set the sails, plot a course with an astrolabe, and swab the decks. Marvel at the lines and rigging that allow the ship to sail. Enjoy the view of the water from the quarterdeck. Turn the capstan to raise the ship’s anchor, play checkers with a wily sailor, and search for surprises in barrels and boxes onboard. The interpretive staff of sailors gladly answers questions about the ship, the historic Roanoke Voyages, or any other inquiry guests have about the beginnings of English-speaking America. |
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| Video: 16th Century Merchant |
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Explore Coastal Algonquian culture and history in American Indian Town, an exhibit that’s new to Roanoke Island Festival Park. The town represents an American Indian community similar to what the English explorers investigated and surveyed during their voyages to Roanoke Island and the surrounding area in the late 16th century. Homes, agricultural areas, and work shelters line the paths and await visitors’ discoveries. |
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Follow the sound of the blacksmith’s hammer to the Settlement Site at Roanoke Island Festival Park. Through the undergrowth and across generations emerges the first English military establishment on North American soil. The exhibit features costumed interpreters from the Roanoke Voyage of 1585. They show visitors what daily life was like for the soldiers and sailors who traversed the Atlantic Ocean to build a permanent colony for England. Today, guests of all ages try traditional woodworking, play Elizabethan games, or watch the blacksmith fashion his iron wares. Search the canvas tents for goods and supplies, try on armor, and practice an English accent with some of the settlers. |
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| Video: First Irish Mercenary |
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Discover 400 years of the region’s history in the interactive Roanoke Adventure Museum. Guests amble through the museum at whatever pace they like on a self-guided tour through the historical developments of Roanoke Island and the area at large. Land in 16th century North America and discover the culture of indigenous people who lived on Roanoke Island. Read quotes from Thomas Harris’s journal, and view a miniature version of a longhouse. Read about the Lost Colony—including a list of names of the settlers from England—and about the birth of North Carolina. Listen to Stumpy the Pirate as he jokes about the infamous Blackbeard down in Ocracoke. Learn about another “lost colony” on Roanoke Island—the Freedmen’s Colony. |
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Some of North Carolina’s best young talent performs at Roanoke Island Festival Park during the Performance Series. Offering year round music, dance, drama, opera and children shows for the community to enjoy, the series invites performing arts departments from all campuses of the University of North Carolina system to participate. Past performances have included The Fantasticks, “I Love a Piano,” Gilbert & Sullivan, “Steel Magnolias”, “Little Shop of Horrors” and many evenings of jazz, folk, and musical reviews. All performances are free and open to the public, promising great entertainment for family and friends of all ages. |
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The visual arts are in full swing at Roanoke Island Festival Park. With the art gallery as the centerpiece and Park programming fostering creativity, visitors are treated to multidisciplinary happenings from March through December.
East Coast artists exhibit their work solo or in group shows. This includes folk working in fiber, clay, wood, metal, paint, pencil, pastel, photography, stone, mixed media and more. Educational programming enhances many exhibitions and the visual arts partner with performance and literary arts to offer exciting collaborations. Annual shows include a quilt exhibition late winter that draws hundreds of fiber lovers. Receptions generally are held the first Sunday of the month. Visitors can purchase art and prints at most art gallery shows. The gallery is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free. Become a Friends of Elizabeth II member and get on the gallery shows mailing list. See our 2010 Calendar |
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