The Experience from the Point of View of a Novice Steampunker
I am taking the time to write this account
of our first-time venture to this festival in hopes that it not only encourages
others to participate in the future, but that the tremendous potential for this
festival be realized and the event improved upon. It would not take much to
make the experience truly wonderful. I hope my comments can be seen in a
constructive light, which is what I intend by them.
I wonder whether some of the old hands at
Steampunk in Oamaru might have forgotten what it feels like to be new to the
genre and the event.
My sister and I constructed our outfits and
accessories by hard work and imagination with our sewing machines and art
equipment, for months leading up to the event. We live in Auckland, and have no
contact with other Steampunkers in the same city, but know a number who are
interested, have already started on costumes, and are eager to hear how it went
for us.
In case you wonder, yes, it does cost a lot
in time and in money, by the time you build a costume and travel from Auckland
to Oamaru. No matter how you look at it, you need to fly down and find a way to
get to the big ‘O’. Then you pay for accommodation et al. After weeks of
buildup, we were both greatly enjoying the prospect of showing off our efforts,
and of finally seeing a part of the South Island we had never been to before.
(It takes a bit of courage to fill your suitcase with corsets and top hats, and
full length Victorian garb with the expectation you will be parading around in
it among strangers as well.)
We wanted to be well-prepared, and so we
got online and looked for all we could about the Oamaru Festival. There’s a
Facebook page, which does not have any programme, but does talk about the
weekend, and have various hints and pics of what might be on offer. Eventually
I found the tickets on Eventfinder website, but they were pretty basic outlines
of what the tickets were for. We bought tickets to the ‘Mess Dinner’ and
separate tickets to the programme that followed. Then tickets to the
‘Steamtrain ride’ the next day, and then tickets to the Fashion Show that
afternoon.
Arriving late afternoon in Oamaru, we found
our motel and were told the SP venue was only a 7 min walk away. It was about
eight blocks before we reached the end of the main street and saw the Festival
lights to the left down the T-section. From then on we took the car. Having not
worn our costumes because we thought we’d check things out first, we didn’t go
all the way back to change but thoroughly enjoyed the milling crowds in the
Light and Steam extravaganza that filled the Victorian block on Friday night.
(We had eaten on the main road, thinking the festival hadn’t started, because
there was no map I had to indicate the precinct, and we had to go by what we
saw).
What a huge success this event was. I only
wish it was held on Sunday night. Many out-of-towners went to bed out of
exhaustion a bit earlier in the evening, and missed the fireworks. Still, it
was well worth it. HIGHLIGHTS: wandering Donna Demente's studio at night - so surreal. Loved that studio and all the artist's work in it. Enjoyed a delicious fudge from the shop on the street. Got up close to a working steam engine. Met a trio from Whangarei who were down for the event in full costume.
Saturday morning we went in full regalia
down to breakfast, and enjoyed wearing our costumes, and seeing the Steampunk
HQ. I particularly enjoyed the fact that a small group of children were
startled to find I was not one of the macabre displays in the darkened room
downstairs. I was asked by two separate parties where the events were and what
the programme was, but was unable to enlighten them much.
That evening we headed off to the ‘Annual
Mess Dinner’ in full expectation of a good, if plain, meal, and some evening
interaction and entertainment. When we googled the map of where the event was,
it was disappointingly at a rather ordinary tavern outside the older parts of
town. A group of we outsiders gathered by the side door, unable to ascertain
where we were meant to be. The tables and crockery were still being set up
inside, and it was after 6pm. So after a while and some chatting we ten or so
walked inside and were told to wait in the hall, as they weren’t finished. Someone
walked further into the building and around a corner and found the locals and
older hands at this all congregated in the main bar area, where they had known
to gather. How I wish there had been a programme with a map, or at least
someone to welcome us and show us where to wait in company.
When we did get ushered in to dinner, we
found a table and sat down, and it was pleasant to see so many in costume and
meet the ones at our table.
I do wish there had been a simple ‘show and
tell’ for everyone at this point. It may be old hat for some of the ones who
have done this for years, but for everyone else who have gone to some trouble
to get here in costume, a chance to stroll in front of people, have a short
intro, and then sit down again, would have been a much better use of the
earlier time.
When dinner came, it was a watery vegetable
soup and bread followed by berry/apple crumble. Sorry – that is not my
expectation of a mess dinner. Nor that of people around me at the table. Can I
suggest we ditch the dinner altogether, and eat beforehand and then come at 7pm
for the whole evening show?
Great costumes, wildly enthusiastic fans,
make for an easy and engaging gathering. I loved the teapot racing, but had no
idea it was even a possibility until we got there. Would have made one
ourselves and entered it, had we known. And if there were a lot of entries,
perhaps a race to eliminate the majority leaving the best to negotiate the
obstacle course?
Te Radar was an excellent host, and held
the evening together well.
Sunday morning, we dressed again in our
steampunk gear and headed down for an early start at the Steamtrain ride we had
paid for. We had a tight schedule planned for the day, and so wanted to get
away by 10am. By 10:30, a group of keen fans were all waiting on the station,
(which we had to find by GPS), and no train. News arrived by someone who went
to find out that the engineers didn’t even know they should be there. Too late
to fire up the steam train, the driver was going to have his cup of tea and
come later. By the time the diesel engine was hauling the little red carriage
up to the station, the majority of the earlier crowd who like us, had a
schedule, had gone. We left at 10:45, because we had too much else to try and
do.
(Pic: Waiting for the train)
Coming back from Moeraki at 3pm, (I read my
ticket wrongly), I saw we had missed the Fashion Show by one hour. I was
disappointed to see it was at the same tavern as the previous night’s event. We
had learned that to be in the Fashion Show, it would cost an additional $40
each, and we needed a story to back up our costumes, so we had declined. I’m sure
it was a fun event, but at that point, tiredness won out and we did not make
it.
All accounts of the Festival have been
superlative as written up in the local papers. It has everything going for it –
a steady and growing base of enthusiastic fans, a wonderful setting in the
Victorian district of Oamaru, friendly and supportive townsfolk. If these
factors could be married with some tight organization, and a good
well-publicised programme, it would be worthy of the adjective ‘superlative’.
I hope the overall tone of my account has
not been too negative. MY hope is that someone in the administration of the
festival cares enough about my experience and the comments others made to me
while there, that they build upon these criticisms to make next year’s even
better. It wouldn’t take much.
Meanwhile I have a good group of friends
and associates who are very interested in how it went down there, and I in
turn, am very interested to see if my own concerns will be addressed before I
return or encourage them to.
_________________UPDATE to the above post_________________________
I heard from a lady involved in the organisation of Oamaru Steampunk Festival. She thanked me for my comments and has responded to all of the concerns I mentioned in the article above. I am very happy that she did so, and feel satisfied that the festival will continue to improve as the years go by. Looking forward to Aethercon in Auckland at the end of July.
_________________UPDATE to the above post_________________________
I heard from a lady involved in the organisation of Oamaru Steampunk Festival. She thanked me for my comments and has responded to all of the concerns I mentioned in the article above. I am very happy that she did so, and feel satisfied that the festival will continue to improve as the years go by. Looking forward to Aethercon in Auckland at the end of July.
