Knott's Taste of Boysenberry Festival 2021: Characters, Entertainment, and Ambiance
Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park, CA
Happy Pi Day, folks! In honor of 3/14, we’re featuring the second half of our coverage of Knott’s celebration devoted to the best pie ingredient ever, the boysenberry! Okay, so that might stir up some debate, but I’m going to tell you that the boysenberry pie at Knott’s is certainly an outstanding offering that holds its own against the best circular baked goodies out there, and the Taste of Boysenberry Festival event as a whole is a sweet delight that packs a delectable punch of fantastic ambiance, good entertainment, and the good ol’ nostalgia that comes with the setting of America’s first theme park.
Today, we take a deeper dive into some of the experiences at the Taste of Boysenberry Festival. A lot of this is eye candy, highlighting the beautiful decorations and lovely atmosphere that Knott’s has put on for its springtime celebration. But it’s also a feature on the people who make this such a great event—both on stage and behind the scenes. So sit back, grab a pie, and enjoy this sweet Sunday update. And savor the extra hour of daylight too!
The sumptuously decorated front entrance photo op is bursting with boysenberry hues and decor!
Characters & Entertainment
As Knott’s Taste Of… events have done since last summer, the Taste of Boysenberry Festival features a variety of unscheduled shows and performances and character interactions—all conducted in socially distanced settings that still manage to wrangle some amount of interactivity. Knott’s has been excellent at harnessing the same brand of intimate engagement between actor and guest without losing effectiveness from the increased physical space, and the Taste of Boysenberry features plenty of this on both an informal guest calling setting and on the performance stage.
Guests entering Ghost Town will undoubtedly notice some familiar faces from the little town of Calico. The Deputy Mayor, Milton C. Howell is often out to greet incoming visitors, welcoming them to this celebration of the berry. Mayor’s wife, Pearl Parnell can sometimes be found as well, also often on the elevated porch of the Gold Trails Hotel. The same sequence occurs over at the Calico Saloon too.
Calico Deputy Mayor Howell greets everyone who walks by.
At the Calico Park Stage, the Magic of Hayden Allcorn takes on a new disguise under the feint of a traveling salesman representing the not-at-all-driven-out-of-town-in-under-suspicions-of-fraud Dr. Dillard Marsh and selling his incredible, amazing, stupendous Mother Murphy’s Magic Boysenberry Elixir. Demonstrating a series of illusions to showcase the tonic’s direct effects on people and objects or its benefits in improving people’s mental acuity (and, apparently, magic tricks), this 15 minute show delivers a comedic, entertaining mixture of sleight of hand, prestidigitation, and transposition. The tie-in to a running beverage joke of Calico adds a clever touch to maintaining the pretense of Ghost Town serving as Calico in the Ghost Town Alive! era. If the interactive event makes a return in some capacity this summer, could this sort of entertainment come along with it?
Hayden Allcorn can do amazing things, just as long as he’s got a swig of Mother Murphy’s Magic Boysenberry Elixir nearby!
During the day, the Calico Mine Stage plays a video loop of Snoopy’s Boysenberry Jam-boree. This fun stage show has been a Boysenberry Festival staple the past few years (minus last year, since the Festival didn’t happen due to COVID), and the professionally recorded version offers an ode to the charming live stage show. The backdrop provides nice passive entertainment for guests who are enjoying their Festival munchies and drinks at the plethora of benches around.
As with other Taste Of… events, pro-shot video of iconic Knott’s stage performances plays at the Calico Min Stage.
At the Fiesta Village stage, a DJ continues to spin tunes over several sets in the afternoon and evening for guests also dining nearby. The stage area is still dispersed with seating, and the set-up is not meant to accommodate dancing, but the music provides some livelihood in the area nonetheless. What’s pretty neat about the Fiesta Village stage for this current festival are the boysenberry-inspired lotería cards that can be found as decor around the stage area. These are a really creative blending of Latin culture and the boysenberry aesthetic that forms something uniquely Knott’s!
Another Taste Of… festival, another DJ at the Fiesta Village stage.
KNOT Radio, a mid-century-style, fast-talking, slapstick, pun-tastic, witty talk show and radiodrama performance returns over on the Boardwalk. A highlight of the Taste of Merry Farm, this unscheduled show takes place every hour or so near the Sky Cabin. With Barry Farmer and Shelly Jelly Jamson as the hosts, KNOT Radio provides hilarious absurd comedy radio ads, dramatic performances, street interviews, and berry entertaining commentary in between tracks of classic mid-century pop/rock hits. What’s great is that the broadcast literally emanates on the speakers throughout the Boardwalk, so guests don’t necessarily have to be in front of the studio set to hear. But it’s worth dropping by for a spell to enjoy in person nonetheless, as the actors running through the verbal gymnastics do an incredible job speed-talking through all their quips with a completely straight face. Plus the classic mid-century modern set is absolutely adorable.
KNOT Radio is one of our favorites at Knott’s and is not to be missed!
At Camp Snoopy, Peanuts fans can meet the marvelous and beloved Easter Beagle at the Camp Snoopy Theater. Snoopy, dressed as everyone’s favorite spring treat provider, stands on the stage and provides photo-ops in a safe and socially distanced manner with guests that still allows for a nice pictorial souvenir. In addition, a little down the way in Camp Snoopy, guests can meet Peanuts characters over near the Camp Bus attraction.
It’s the Easter Beagle, and he’s wonderful!
Finally, Krazy Kirk and the Hillbillies make their Taste Of… festival live debut, performing several shoes in the afternoon and evening hours on the Calico Mine Stage. This is the first time they have played in person since last March, before the pandemic shut down the park. During the Taste of Knott’s and Taste of Fall-O-Ween events, they recorded shows that were played on the Calico Mine Train big screen. I imagine that COVID safety precautions, especially for gentlemen of their age, precluded them from being at the park in person. But now that the coronavirus situation is notable improving (and, presumably, they’ve also been vaccinated), it makes more sense to bring in these Knott’s fan favorites to provide a boost to the Taste of Boysenberry Festival offerings and perform.
Besides Krazy Kirk and Ko., Knott’s also announced earlier last week that the Mariachi Divas will also be playing at the Taste of Boysenberry Festival. They will play select evenings—specifically March 31, April 7, and April 8. Seems like there might be a trend of Disney live performers migrating to Knott’s? Well, many actually move around the theme park circuit, but it’s still exciting for fans of that Grammy-winning Latin group also!
Krazy Kirk and his band combine country, bluegrass, slapstick, and silliness for a raucous on-stage time.
Park Ambiance
Beyond that, it’s also nice just to enjoy the springtime vibes that pervade the entire park. Just as with the Taste of Merry Farm, every inch of Knott’s normal public footprint is accessible to guests for the Taste of Merry Farm, including the walkway from Calico Rapids to the Charles Schulz Theater. It’s fun to see different ways the boysenberry manifests itself in visual motifs in the various areas, and just strolling around and enjoying the environment is just a lovely and joy-inspiring activity.
I love this mural on the side of the new Bear-y Tales ride.
This old-fashioned berry deliver truck is charming too!
The Boardwalk’s biggest boysenberry vibes is naturally centered around the new and yet-to-be-opened Bear-y Tales 4D: Back to the Fair attraction, which presents a throwback to classic Knott’s—boysenberry and all. The purples are prominently on display in this area, before giving way to the more casual beachside vibe of the main Boardwalk area. But come nighttime, several areas are bathed in indigo to represent Mr. Boysen’s berry, and it looks pretty neat!
The Timber Mountain Log Ride and Supreme Scream are bathed in purple at night to represent the boysenberry.
Fiesta Village is a little less overtly decorated, which makes sense, given that there’s not a lot of overt Latin connection to the boysenberry. But in addition to the lotería cards, we noticed some lavender parasols strung up over the fountain area that created an interesting visual. There are also four boutique vendors set up in Fiesta Village as well, similar to the arrangement at the last few Taste Of… events.
Camp Snoopy goes a different direction and embraces all that is Easter kitsch. The land is adorned with a series of stylized classic cartoon animal characters—mostly bunnies, set up with the bounties of the spring. These fiberglass mold characters are animated and expressive, and perhaps a little creepy in some cases, but they’re kid-friendly and meant to evoke cheer for springtime and Easter.
The entrance to Camp Snoopy is flanked by ecstatic animals.
The decorations feel similar to the penguins and other winter animals featured in the Taste of Merry Farm. The animals seem to be celebrating the rebirth and renewal of the seasons, and the arrangements provide plenty of photogenic opportunities for photos.
These bunny figures and giant carrots and flowers are spread out throughout Camp Snoopy.
At night, Camp Snoopy really shines with splashes of color all over—on trees, rockwork, and even the ground. Gobo lights project Easter patterns, and bunny and egg projections shine on the geology of the play caves. The vibrance and visual movement provide a wonderful joy to Camp Snoopy, and guest who stay till dark should definitely take a swing through the area to enjoy all the delightful visuals!
These great projections add life to the CS Taste of Boysenberry Festival nightlife.
Finally, Ghost Town brings that classic springtime celebration, filling Calico with color and foliage with heapings of boysenberry and real bloom decorations throughout the streets of town. The seasonal decorations always look so enchanting, and the Taste of Boysenberry Festival is no different. The splashes of color balance nicely against the dusty Ghost Town facades, and they provide an uplifting aura.
Ghost Town always looks great, and springtime is no exception.
There seem to be more Boysenberry Festival decorations than ever!
Peek into some of the Calico buildings, and you’ll find all sorts of little nods to the Boynseberry Festival. The School House has pie tins all the desks, perhaps anticipating a culinary lesson of sorts. A look through a specific shop window might reveal a series of glass dishware in a light purple tone. And head over by the Wilderness Dance Hall to see a recreation of an early 19th century kitchen set-up, focused especially on pie-making. Dubbed “Mrs. Knott’s Pie Kitchen,” it’s also where guests can pick up the boysenberry shape cookie decorating kit that can be a part of tasting pass.
A look inside the Schoolhouse.
The Taste of Fall-O-Ween and Taste of Merry Farm brought supernatural projected happenings at the Boot Hill Cemetery after dark, as notable ghosts came out to tell their stories. I don’t believe any thing of that sort happens at night at the Taste of Boysenberry Festival, but there is a new tombstone in town, and it’s awfully opulent! I guess that’s what that rail baron money can bring.
R. R. Crossing provides another entry in the long line of punny theme park grave stones.
Finally, the Calico Mine Ride is also bathed in purple at night to honor the boysenberry. Though the attraction remains closed, the sight is pretty fantastic, so kudos to the Knott’s lighting team for creating these fantastic visuals!
The Calico Mine Ride and Supreme Scream glow with purple at night.
That does it for our coverage of this year’s Taste of Boysenberry Festival. We expect this will revert to the regular, full Knott’s Boysenberry Festival by next year. This is paired with the encouraging news that Knott’s plans to reopen its theme park in May. An exact date hasn’t been established yet, but the Taste of Boysenberry Festival will continue through Sunday, May 2nd. The revised State of California Guidelines will allow a full reopening by April 1st, assuming Orange County moves into the red tier (and it should officially do so tomorrow).
So all of this goes to indicate things are slowly returning to normal. Of course, it won’t be completely pre-pandemic conditions immediately. Capacity will still be capped, guests will still need to social distance, and masks will be mandatory (covering the mouth and nose). So don’t abandon those practices just yet. But these developments do count for something, and we can’t wait to have Knott’s and our other Southern California theme parks return to even a limited sense of normalcy. After a year of COVID and counting, we could all use it!
Architect. Photographer. Disney nerd. Haunt enthusiast. Travel bugged. Concert fiend. Asian.
