Great Dickens Christmas Fair



A long-running, immersive San Francisco tourist attraction created in 1970 by the same people who pioneered the modern Renaissance Fair. The Dickens Fair recreates 19th century London in a landmark warehouse for four weekends following Thanksgiving. As the name suggests, Charles Dickens and his literary creations are featured heavily, but there are also plenty of other sights, sounds and even smells offered in terms of food, crafts, and entertainment. It's basically for people who feel that Renn Fairs are a little too far in the past, but Comic Con / Cosplay events are equally too modern/futuristic. That qualifies the Fair as a tourist trap, or the most fun you can have with too many clothes on...


 * Burlesque: The adults-only "Naughty French Postcards Review" and their bare-breasted "Tableaux Vivant."
 * Celebrity Impersonator: Dickens, Poe, Queen Victoria, etc.
 * Chorus Girls: Many Fair goers will tell you flat-out that they attend solely for the performances of Le Cancan Bijou. Being a cancan troupe, expect examples of She's Got Legs, Stocking Filler, Panty Shot, Ms. Fanservice, and Zettai Ryouiki (Grade A). Also Public Domain Soundtrack (they perform to the traditional Offenbach "Infernal Galop").
 * Costume Drama / Costume Porn / Gorgeous Period Dress
 * Culture Equals Costume: Street urchins don't dress like the Royal Family, and vice versa.
 * Deadpan Snarker: The "Chairman" character at Mad Sal's Revue.
 * Den of Iniquity: Mad Sal's Dockside Alehouse. Might also qualify as The City Narrows and Not-So-Safe Harbor.
 * Elegant Gothic Lolita
 * Getting Crap Past the Radar: You'd have to go back to the glory days of Benny Hill to count this many English-accented double entendres per minute.
 * Hawaiian-Shirted Tourist: The roughly 50% of the audience NOT in period garb.
 * Hollywood History / Nostalgia Ain't Like It Used to Be
 * Large and In Charge: Mad Sal. (Also Queen Victoria.)
 * Loveable Rogue: Pretty much any male character at Mad Sal's.
 * Of Corset Hurts / Of Corsets Sexy: The Dark Gardens corset shop, with its front windows featuring live models, rivals Mad Sal's as a popular destination for visitors and photographers alike. Dancers from Le Cancan Bijou not only double as window models, but wear corsets (and not much else) during the end-of-the-night blowouts at Mad Sal's.
 * Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: Pretty much averted, considering there's a large cast of Californians portraying gentry and Cockney alike.
 * Pantomime: Where you park the kids who aren't ready for Mad Sal's...
 * Spoiled Brat: Miss Kitty Purswell. Her signature song ("Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow-Wow") is also a MAJOR Ear Worm.
 * Steampunk
 * Street Performer
 * The Alcoholic: "Edgar Allen Poe" not only plays piano at Mad Sal's for drinks, he's dragged onstage and forced to sing a silly song to pay for his bar/floozy tab.
 * The Drunken Sailor: Paddy West's band sings classic sea shanties, and also shills their own "brand" of booze.
 * The Patriarch: Arguably, Charles Dickens himself.
 * The Piano Player: This lucky bastard...
 * The Scrooge / Jacob Marley Apparel: Well, duh...
 * Ye Goode Olde Days