Arts and Entertainment
A column of news and updates on the Boston Celtic Music Fest (BCMFest), which celebrates the Boston area’s rich heritage of Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton music and dance with a grassroots, musician-run winter music festival and other events during the year... Read more
By Sean Smith
Special to the BIR
Starting a new Irish music festival just a few months before one of the biggest financial meltdowns in modern history occurred might seem an inauspicious beginning, but the organizers of the Worcester Irish Music Festival... Read more
By Thomas O’Grady
Special to the BIR
Recently, I happened upon an interview with Seamus Heaney published more than thirty years ago in the literary journal Ploughshares. Having read countless other interviews with Heaney over the decades, most of them... Read more
The actress and singer Mary Callanan is currently appearing in the campy and colorful off-Broadway hit, "The Great American Trailer Park Musical" at SpeakEasy Stage. When the curtain comes down at the end of the month, she'll move on to star in the one-... Read more
First, just to dispel any rumors or urban folklore that may be percolating: No, Hanneke Cassel has never played with U2, in concert or anywhere else.
"I wish!" laughs Cassel, a native Oregonian who has been living in Boston for the past several years -... Read more
April 8 – Rambling House, a Singing Workshop at the Irish Cultural Centre, 200 New Boston Drive, Canton. 1-888-GO-IRISH or irishculture.org. Learn about Ireland's rich history through the art of song while also learning traditional Irish songs in both... Read more
Ask just about anyone whoever experienced the Gaelic Roots festival at Boston College - "experienced" is really the most appropriate verb - and chances are you'll get an earful of fond memories and anecdotes, along with a sigh of regret that it didn't... Read more
Frankie Gavin, one of the most iconic fiddlers in the modern Irish music revival, will lead a new, dynamic version of his band De Dannan when he joins Celtic guitar virtuoso Tony McManus and innovative harpist-vocalist (and Boston area resident) Maeve... Read more
The Seaport Boston Hotel has booked legendary Irish fiddle player Seamus Connolly to perform on St. Patrick's Day, March 17, as Boston celebrates its title as America's most Irish city.
Considered one of the world's finest exponents of traditional Irish... Read more
Regaled as the grand "ambassadors" of traditional Irish music, The Chieftains will get St. Patrick's Day festivities started early in Massachusetts with performances at Worcester's Hanover Theater (March 9), the Amherst Fine Arts Center (March 10), and... Read more
One of the liveliest places in town this month will be Robinson Theatre in Waltham as The Reagle Players present "A Little Bit Of Ireland." Conceived and directed by Reagle Executive Producer Robert J. Eagle, the impressive revue of uniquely Irish... Read more
The confetti has just settled at The Charles Playhouse following the 30th-anniversary celebration for "Shear Madness." Set in present-day Boston, "Shear Madness" is all about the scissor-stabbing murder of a famous concert pianist who lives above a... Read more
It seems hard to imagine, somehow, but more than a decade has passed (almost 14 years to be exact) since the debut album of Solas, whose members at the time included guitarist John Doyle and lead singer Karan Casey. To many ears, Solas was a revelation,... Read more
IT'S TIME -- The 7th annual BCMFest is all set to go, with a weekend full of music and dance showcasing some of Boston's best performers in the Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton, and other Celtic-related traditions. The festival, which runs January 8 and 9,... Read more
Seaghan McKay is a man of many talents. Born and raised on the Cape, he attended both Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Boston College. For the past decade he has been on staff at Brandeis University, where he designs multimedia content for the... Read more
It seems so natural, such an everyday event, says Lindsay O'Donovan, for an adult to share music with a child, to sing and dance together – as O'Donovan has, whether with her own four children or the kids of relatives and friends.
But there are far too... Read more
One month to go - Just a few more weeks to go before the 7th annual BCMFest on January 8 and 9, including performances by The Makem and Spain Brothers; Tina Lech and Ted Davis; David O'Docherty; The Gobshites; Liam Hart; Sean and John Connor; Tri; Colm O'... Read more
"Christmas Revels," one of Boston's most beloved holiday traditions, returns for its 39th season on December 11. Celebrating the winter solstice, "Revels" includes holiday carols, dancing, storytelling, folk songs, and the production's signature piece, "... Read more
Sometimes, the craziest-sounding ideas turn out not to be so crazy after all. Case in point: last year's "A Christmas Celtic Sojourn."
Given the dire economic situation last fall, it would hardly have been surprising if the annual holiday offering of... Read more
"Fine Winter's Night," the holiday album and live show by Irish duo Matt & Shannon Heaton, features traditional, updated, and original Irish music to help usher in Christmas. The Heatons will perform throughout the Northeast and Midwest this December... Read more
