While Queen Elizabeth gets courted by her two most fervent admirers, Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Francis Drake, Thom Sellectomy will be nailing nails into his head and swallowing swords.

Paolo Garbanzo will be throwing knives (at people!) and eating fire.

And Sloanwolfe, with its tribal drums and bagpipes, will play music.

The 30th annual Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire, which opens Saturday and runs weekends through Oct. 31, really does have something for everyone, even people who want to see a man hammer a nail into his head!

"Thom is a human blockhead," says Jessy Hamel, the entertainment coordinator for the faire, who chooses and oversees the independent performers. "He's pretty big around the country for freakhead stuff."

Elizabethan freakhead stuff to boot.

While the faire days unfold with a theme and a story, with more than 100 costumed characters interacting with the guests, the independents, as they are called, perform on stages at scheduled times throughout the day.

Once the faire opens, it's Hamel's job is to make sure it all runs smoothly.

She jokes that working at the faire is a lot like the movie "Groundhog Day."

"Every day you have to keep doing it like it's the first time you are doing it, even though it may be the 40th," she says with a laugh.

Every day of the faire, Hamel walks the grounds and checks out how things are going.

"We have what I guess you could call an audit (of the performers) every faire day," she explains. "We look to see if people are showing up for their shows and if they are laughing and enjoying it. Are they offended by the humor? We have to be careful because we're a family establishment."

She's also checking out how the performers are doing.

"A show can change drastically over the course of a season," she says. "Are they getting lazy? Jaded? Are they phoning it in?"

"We get a lot of feedback from visitors," she says. "And we approach people to ask how they like the performers. People are not shy about commenting."

The best performers, who keep people laughing or enjoying the music faire day in and faire day out, are asked back, or asked to extend their time at the faire the following year.

Some become staples.

The band Empty Hats, which performs traditional and Celtic music, is returning this year.

"People would be upset if we didn't bring them back," Hamel says.

Another popular group is Don Juan and Miguel.

"They do sword fighting and whip cracking, all types of stuff like that," Hamel says. "They too have been a big staple around here. I'm really proud we got them for seven weeks instead of the usual four. People go nuts for them."

And she's excited about Tribal Circus, who appeared for a few weeks last year but will be here for the full season.

"They do aerial and trapeze work, and their juggling will amaze the audience," Hamel says.

Some acts only come for a weekend or two.

London Broil, a comedy juggling trio, will be at the faire the first two weekends.

"They were here last year, but only for one weekend," Hamel says. "They are a great show -- just hysterical and super nice guys."

Being nice and dependable helps a lot.

"We look at whether they are easy or hard to work with," Hamel says. "That comes into account when we're deciding whether to invite them back."

The competition can be tough on both sides.

"I can't tell you the number of DVDs I get in the mail from people hoping we'll hire them," Hamel says.

But getting the best performers can be tough.

"There is a New York Renaissance faire that runs over the (beginning of) ours and one that runs over the ending, so I really have my work cut out for me," Hamel says. "I work hard to take care of my people. Then they are more apt to return."

Pa. Renaissance Faire

Opens Sat. Cont. through Oct. 31

Sat. and Sun. and Labor Day Monday

11 a.m.-8 p.m.

$29.95 adults, $9.95 children

Grounds of Mount Hope Estate

2775 Lebanon Road, Manheim

665-7021. www.parenfaire.com