A director of the 1997 Valhalla Renaissance Festival said occasional showers last weekend failed to dampen the enthusiasm of those who attended.

About 20,000 people went to the fifth annual festival at Camp Richardson, which for the first time was held on two weekends, June 7-8 and June 14-15, said Carol Spain, executive director of the Tahoe Tallac Association. The association co-sponsored the festival with Camp Richardson Resort.

“The attendance has doubled each year,” Spain said. “The attendance this year exceeded last year in spite of the rain. We’re very pleased.”

The possibility of expanding the festival to two three-day weekends next year has been raised.

But Spain said she would be surprised if the festival’s board of directors chose to expand so soon.

“We’re just processing the information that came in this year from the surveys, to get a clean picture of the event,” Spain said. “I would suspect that we would grow a little more before we expand to a third weekend.”

She added that festival organizers will discuss plans for the event at future meetings.

“We just barely tore down the fair, and picked ourselves up,” Spain said.

Proceeds from the Valhalla Renaissance Festival support the Tahoe Tallac Association’s cultural arts programs, which in turn supports the Tallac Historic Site. The summerlong Valhalla Summer Arts Music Festival features Tuesday concerts, Wednesday films, Thursday jazz, the Rhythm & Brews Festival, Reggae Sunday, the Boathouse Theatre and art exhibits.