Live the magic at the Wizard Fair in Sydney this week

BY SHERRY D. RAMSEY

The Old Sydney Society’s Wizard Fair will celebrate Harry Potter’s 20^th Anniversary by offering even more magical goodness in its second year. The fair is a fund-raiser for the St. Patrick’s Church Museum, where the event takes place, as well as a Sydney Waterfront Festival event. Admission is free.

With more than 300 wizards, witches, and muggles visiting each day of the first Wizard Fair in 2016, it’s evident that magic is alive and well in Cape Breton. Costumes are encouraged at this all-ages event, with perhaps 70% of attendees donning costumes last year. Of course, muggle attire is also welcome.

“Ollivander’s Wands were a big hit,” at last year’s fair, says Joyce Rankin, a member of the Old Sydney Society. “We sold butterbeer, and we had a Honeydukes Candy table (candy wands, chocolate frogs, poisonfish, dragon’s tears, etc.) and a Potions table. We also had some free booths, like the Sorting Hat, the Quidditch try-outs, and the Have You Seen This Wizard photo op.”

This year’s event will feature all of the booths from last year, and add new magical adventures as well. An expanded selection of handmade wands will be on offer, as well as quill-writing, fortune-telling, and the Cupboard-Under-the-Stairs. Aspiring wizards will also be able to turn their hand to real chemistry experiments in Potions Class, sponsored by the CBU Chemistry Department.

St. Patrick’s is one of four Sydney museums administered by the Old Sydney Society, and Rankin says it makes the perfect venue for the Wizard Fair. “I loved the way that fans and wizards of all ages mingled among the stone walls and wooden beams,” she says.

The fair will run on August 3^rd and 4^th, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. both days, at St. Patrick’s Church Museum, 87 Esplanade in Sydney. For more information, call 902-539-1572.