A CD that lets Irish set dance strut its stuff

By Sean Smith
February 1, 2017
Sean Smith

Perhaps the best metaphor to evoke the Irish set dance is to think of that odd piece of furniture – you know, historically and aesthetically valuable, but tricky to set up, doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the décor, and so it sits off by itself mostly out of sight and out of mind.

But a recently released CD conceived by the Boston-area Irish dancer, choreographer, and dance teacher Kieran Jordan and involving local musician Sean Clohessy may just help land the set dance a well-deserved place in the 21st-century parlor of Irish tradition.

Solas says it’s time to say ‘goodbye for a while’ But not before a show in Beverly this month, and a five-week tour

By Sean Smith
February 1, 2017
Sean Smith


Having marked their 20th anniversary this past year in grand style – with the release of the crowd-funded album “All These Years,” which included appearances from all its former members – the groundbreaking Irish-American band Solas is about to head back out on the road, with a stop at the Cabot Theatre in Beverly on Feb., 18 at 8 p.m. (Go to thecabot.org for tickets and other details.)
But after that, don’t count on seeing them again anytime soon.

Recently, the band announced on its Facebook page that it will take a sabbatical for an undetermined interval after this tour – which kicks off on Feb. 9 and concludes on March 19. “It is time to hit the reset button and rest, write, teach, be with family and loved ones, and just breathe. This isn’t goodbye forever, necessarily, but it is goodbye for a while.”

February's Here & There

By Bill O'Donnell
February 1, 2017
Bill O'Donnell

Welcome to the Trump Era, or what is known as ‘Liar’s Politics in the White House,” and the advent of WWFN, the Wide World of Fake News. The battle lines are set for four years of confrontation pitting some 65 million Americans and many journalists, except for Fox, which doesn’t hire any, against Trump International and its lineup of spin doctors led by its chief caped crusader, President Donald Trump.  Good luck & caveat emptor.

•••

In the land of ‘alternative facts’ and political whitewash

By Peter F. Stevens
February 1, 2017
Peter F. Stevens

Finally! We have the answer to everything that comes from the mouths of Donald Trump and his acolytes. The answer? “Alternative facts.” Kellyanne Conway snapped at NBC’s Chuck Todd that “alternative facts” now govern the nation in which we live.

When President Trump went ballistic at The New York Times photos proving that far fewer people attended his inauguration than President Obama’s 2009 event and sent cannon fodder press secretary Sean Spicer out to chastise the “lying media, the spokesman lied for his boss.

One last time: “We want Sullivan!’

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
February 1, 2017

By James W. Dolan
Special to the Reporter

It was an intra-service football game between US Navy and US Army bases in Bellingham, Wash., in late 1945. Sitting in the stands were members of the crew of a destroyer that had been escorting troops returning from the Pacific. Among them was a 20-year-old ensign from Walpole who had left Notre Dame to join the Navy.

One more time: Another crisis in Northern Ireland

By Joe Leary
February 1, 2017
Joe Leary

Northern Ireland, a small, artificial enclave of 1.8 million people, has been in constant turmoil since 1922 when Great Britain separated it from the rest of Ireland. In the years since it was created, thousands of its people have died in protest of that mistake and hundreds of soldiers have died trying to preserve it. The territory is so small that it cannot support itself, so Britain provides the financial support to pay the bills and keep it alive.

Visiting Ireland a popular pursuit

Ed Forry
By Ed Forry
February 1, 2017

Is this the year to take that first trip to Ireland?

For many, the allure of a visit to the ancestral homeland remains strong, and the efforts of the Irish government to promote tourism to the Emerald Isle are showing promising results.

Statistics for 2016 showed record numbers – almost 9.6 million people came to Ireland from overseas last year, an increase of 10.9 percent from 2015

On immigration: Today’s Irish should recall our story

By Veronica Keys, Irish Pastoral Centre
February 1, 2017
Veronica Keys, Irish Pastoral Centre

 The Irish story of immigration to America started in the second half of the 19th century when Irish peasants fleeing theIn famine were stereotyped as a “sub-class of clannish, bedraggled, no-good drunks who had too many babies.” Working-class Americans resented Irish laborers who drove down wages. Signs stating “No Irish Need Apply” were seen in Boston. 

By 1855 it was estimated that one of every three people living in Boston were foreign-born Irish; the city was becoming known as “the Dublin of America.”

April gala to support Ireland’s amateur athletes

By BIR News Room
February 1, 2017

Hurling Champs: Smiling faces and rugged play dominated the scene at Fenway Park on Nov. 22, 2015 as Galway beat Dublin in an exhibition hurling match under drizzly skies. Photos courtesy of Fenway Sports GroupHurling Champs: Smiling faces and rugged play dominated the scene at Fenway Park on Nov. 22, 2015 as Galway beat Dublin in an exhibition hurling match under drizzly skies. Photos courtesy of Fenway Sports Group

The Boston Friends of the Gaelic Players Association, in partnership with the Irish American Partnership, have planned an evening gala in support of the GPA for Fri., April 7 at 60 State Street in Boston.

A committee of more than 40 Boston Irish leaders expect as many as 400 guests to celebrate alongside elite amateur Gaelic players past and present. Organizers, hoping to replicate similar dinners that have been held in New York, seek to build on the momentum of the hugely successful hurling match between Galway and Dublin that was held at Fenway Park in November 2015.

‘BEAUTY QUEEN IS BACK’

By R.J. Donovan
February 1, 2017
R.J. Donovan

Marie Mullen talks about ‘Mag,’ the manipulative mother

Druid Theatre Company — founded in Galway in 1975 by Garry Hynes, Marie Mullen, and the late Mick Lally — stands not only as one of the world’s most respected arts organizations, but also at the forefront of the development of Irish theatre. 

More than 20 years ago, an unsolicited script landed in their offices.  Penned by a little-known writer, the play would become “The Beauty Queen of Leenane.”
Marie Mullen and Aisling O’Sullivan clash in Druid Theatre’s production of Martin McDonagh’s “The Beauty Queen of Leenane,” at the Paramount, February 8 - 26. Craig Schwartz photoMarie Mullen and Aisling O’Sullivan clash in Druid Theatre’s production of Martin McDonagh’s “The Beauty Queen of Leenane,” at the Paramount, February 8 - 26. Craig Schwartz photo
Set in a bleak house in rural Ireland, the dark-but-comic subversive thriller examined the cat-and-mouse relationship between a tyrannical, house-bound mother and her lonely, isolated daughter. 

As soon as Hynes read the piece, she knew the play was extraordinary. She was struck by the compelling dialogue and riveting characters.  This was not a rough draft from a fledging author but a taut, tense, fully realized work from someone with an exceptional voice.  

The author was Irish playwright Martin McDonagh, today internationally renowned for such stage works as “A Skull in Connemara,” “The Pillowman,” “The Lieutenant of Inishmore,” and others.

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