A pirate's weekend in Virginia Beach

VIRGINIA BEACH

Sometime this week under the light of the moon, a crew of mischievous merrymakers hid a chest of pirates' plunder in the sand of Virginia Beach. It awaits those who brave the brainteasers of Cap'n Pete's Treasure Hunt, part of the Pirate Party on the Beach at the Oceanfront this Saturday.

"It's a series of clues that require going to different places at the Oceanfront," said Mike Hilton, marketing and program manager for Beachevents. "Participants will have to count objects at certain locations or, say, identify a date or name on a plaque at the Old Coast Guard Station and provide the information to get the next clue. The clues will lead to a certain area of the beach where the chest will be buried."

This year's Pirate Party grew into an all-day event, Hilton said, with weapons demonstrations, storytelling by Grandma Beach and Captain Fishbones, arts and crafts, and a pirate-themed athletic competition. The day will begin with a costumed pirate parade on the Boardwalk. Best costumes win prizes.

The Brigands, a band based in Brooklyn, N.Y., will sing sea chanteys and demonstrate pirate pastimes such as firing cannons. They will be joined by The Moody Crewe, a Virginia Beach-based group of pirate re-enactors who will pose for photos, sing rowdy songs and show off swordplay.

Local actors will star in three presentations of "Blackbeard and Calico Jack," an original 30-minute show written by Regent University professor Michael Hill-Kirkland.

"This is the premiere. What I had in mind is what is seen at Renaissance, Elizabethan and Shakespeare fairs," he said. "The premise is that Blackbeard and Calico Jack, along with consorts Mary Read and Anne Bonney, show up in port to recruit new crew members for their ships. We'll draw people out of the crowd and teach them how to walk, talk and fight like a pirate."

Hill-Kirkland is an expert in swordplay and stunt work. He's been swashbuckling since seeing "The Three Musketeers" in high school and went on to study the art of weapon-wielding. He was captain of the fencing team at California State University, Fullerton, has studied stage combat for years and now teaches it.

The party will conclude with a showing of the movie "Hook," on a 16-by-20-foot inflatable screen.

"People bring beach chairs and towels and spread out," Hilton said.

Of all the Pirate Party events, he is partial to the treasure hunt.

The booty includes pirate-themed movies, books and games - along with a trophy.

"The treasure hunt takes a lot of planning," Hilton said. "The fun part is burying the chest at one in the morning to arouse the least suspicion. When people come by and ask what we're doing, we have to lie.

"Last year we were stopped by some teenagers and their parents walking on the Boardwalk. We pretended like we were with the city doing important beach work."

Which, of course, they were.

Joy Vann, joyvann@cox.net