Avast ye maties, Yar(mouth) in for some swashbuckling hijinks at Cape Cod Pirate Fest

There was a time when Massachusetts, including Cape Cod, was a port of call for pirates, from Black Sam Bellamy, who went down with his purloined ship off Wellfleet in 1717, to William Kidd, said to have buried some of his booty right here on the Cape.

Those days are long gone, but Dennis resident Christopher Schultz has a vision for reviving them — at least the adventure-loving, shanty-singing, flamboyant, romantic aspects — and making Cape Cod as much a home port for pirate reenactment as Carver is a destination for medieval and fantasy entertainment through its annual fall event, King Richard's Faire.

Schultz is the mastermind behind the Cape Cod Pirate Festival, returning for a third year of swashbuckling fun to the old Yarmouth Drive-In, now known as the Yarmouth Fairgrounds. There are two weekends of pirate hijinks planned, June 3 and 4 and June 10 and 11.

It's the event's second year at the fairgrounds, after getting its start at Skull Island at Bass River Sports World in South Yarmouth in 2021.

"Last year we decided to move it to the old drive-in site because we wanted some room to grow and expand," said Schultz, an experienced events producer.

Acquiring the extra space paid off, allowing for more vendors and more entertainment.

"We had a 150% increase in attendance from year one to year two," he said. "And the buzz this year is very strong. I'm hoping for at least a 75% increase in attendance."

There will be more carousing, music and rides at this year's Cape Cod Pirate Festival

This year, there is even more pirate carousing in store for visitors, who are encouraged to come in costume — but beware, only fake pistols are allowed, and swords must remain secured and sheathed, or there will be a long walk off a short plank in store.

"If'n ye draw ye'll be 'asked' ta leave" is the warning issued by Schultz's pirate alter ego, Capt. Buck Kinnear.

"We've added a fourth stage in our pub, quite a few new vendors, new games, and some new entertainment acts, and we have some old favorites," he said. "It's going to be a very exciting show."

The fun also includes rides by New World Games, like the ones visitors to King Richard's Faire may have encountered, such as the human-powered carousel and "the Hurlinator," which Schultz describes as a "human-powered centrifuge."

"Many of the rides we have we bought from the company that used to provide the rides to King Richard's," he said.

In addition to all of that, visitors can try out the festival's axe- and knife-throwing challenges, as well as some new games the festival's team has created.

Cape Cod Pirate Festival created during pandemic

The immersive event "for families and adventure seekers" is a production of Schultz's company, New Latitude Event Solutions, which he started during the pandemic.

"Like most people, I found myself unemployed," he said.

He had done a lot of work with nonprofits and served as artistic director for Dennis' Eventide Theater Company, so he saw firsthand how they were struggling to stay afloat during the lockdown. He put his theatrical and event-producing skills to work, creating his company to help nonprofits and charitable organizations develop creative solutions that started with Zoom-hosted events.

Eventually, he began thinking about a live pirate event.

"I thought, 'I'm here on Cape. What goes better on Cape than pirates?' So I decided to give it a try," said Schultz.

He was no stranger to historical reenactment events, having served as the general manager of the Florida Renaissance Festival, worked as a reenactor guide on Boston's Freedom Trail, and helped start up the Cambridge Historical Tours and a Pirates and Patriots walking tour in Boston. In addition, he led a "pirate pub crawl" event that he's thinking he may introduce in Hyannis in the future.

Unlike at King Richard's Faire, there is no overarching storyline at the pirate festival — yet.

"We're not quite big enough to have the storyline and all the characters yet, but I'd like to add that in the future," Schultz said.

He's got lots of ideas, and he's hoping as word about the pirate fest gets around, more actors interested in doing environmental theater will come aboard. For now, "we're focused on making sure we're bringing world-class entertainment," Schultz said.

Ultimately, his dream is for the pirate fest to become a harbinger of summer on the Cape in the same way that King Richard's Faire heralds the autumn.

What to know if you go

When: June 3, 4, 10 and 11

Where: Yarmouth Fairgrounds (old Yarmouth drive-in),  657 Route 28, West Yarmouth

Times: 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Admission: $15 adults, $10 children ages 3-12

Unlimited games and rides: $75

Where to get tickets: www.capecodpiratefestival.com

Parking: Available on-site, $5 per vehicle

Some highlights: Multiple stages of pirate-themed entertainment, music, shanties, interactive pirate actors, games, rides, black powder demonstrations, pirate-themed vendors, knife and axe throwing and fantasy face painting.

Interactive bar entertainment includes the “Stationary Pub Crawl," a pirate-led experience in Old Tom’s Tavern full of toasts, a few songs, some tales, and some pirate drinking games, in addition to a PG-13 revelry of the Harlot Queens.

Performances by the festival's pirate house band, The Plankwalkers, in addition to the Crimson Pirates and new entertainers such as the Foxy Bard.

The Yarmouth Minutemen Militia return as their piratical alter egos “Jeramiah’s Gunners” and will provide explosive live-fire demonstrations from flintlocks and a canon. The “Rogue’s Armada,” a pirate reenactment troupe raising money for Feeding America, returns as well, with interactive family entertainment and performances throughout the day.

Heather McCarron writes about climate change, environment, energy, science and the natural world, in addition to news and features in Barnstable, Brewster and Falmouth Reach her at hmccarron@capecodonline.com, or follow her on Twitter @HMcCarron_CCT

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod Pirate Festival returns to Yarmouth June 3,4, 10 and 11.