New Genre of Interactive Theatre (Heinemann Drama, 1997) and Acting Interactive Theatre: A Handbook (Pearson Education, 1998). Other regular acts at the Fair include the following: Patron participation Many Fair attendees come in costume ("garb"), and booths inside the grounds offer garb for sale or rent. Renaissance, fantasy, pirate, and steampunk are favorite themes. In 2008, for the first time, peace-tied period weapons were permitted. Sterling has an active group of long-time season ticket-holders known as "Family of Faire", many of whom have developed their own characters and attend every weekend of the season. Ownership The Festival was founded in 1976 by Dennis Ouellette Sr., and later owned and operated by Gerald and Virginia Young for more than thirty years. In early 2008 the Fair was purchased by Doug Waterbury, who also owns an amusement park in Sylvan Beach and other entertainment venues in Central New York. Waterbury invested $2 million in the business. Several new stages were constructed and existing ones refurbished, and the number of performers was boosted for the 2008 season. Waterbury planned to use the site for additional events, and install a larger jousting theater which could also be used for outdoor concerts. Since taking ownership of the Festival, Doug Waterbury has been involved in a number of legal controversies, including refusals to provide legally-required safety inspections for the Festival as well as numerous sexual harassment allegations, arrests, and lawsuits. In popular culture Jamie Denbo, creator of Lifetime's American Princess, is a former Sterling cast member. See also Renaissance fair List of Renaissance fairs Reenactment Jousting Society for Creative Anachronism List of open air and living history museums in the United States References External links Festival Facebook page Festival website Virtual Sterling New Riders of the Golden Age (jousting company) Recurring events established in 1976 Renaissance fairs Festivals in New York (state) Tourist attractions in Cayuga County, New York