As The Chieftains Prep for Bay State Gigs, It's a Good Time to Chat with Paddy Moloney

By Sean Smith
March 1, 2010
Sean Smith

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 the Lowell Auditorium (March 11). The band also has collaborated with Ry Cooder to produce a new album, "San Patricio," inspired by the story of the San Patricio Battalion of Irish-Americans who deserted the United States Army to join the Mexican side in the Mexican-American War of 1847.

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Reagle Players Celebrate 'A Little Bit Of Ireland'

By R. J. Donovan
March 1, 2010
R. J. Donovan

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 entertainment offers something for everyone, from classic step dancing to pub music, lullabies, standards, reels, jigs, comedy and a magnificent troupe of harpists.  Performances run March 12 - 14.

Performers set to appear in this year's show, the revue's 12th annual edition, include:

Boston Real Estate is Tom Hynes's Game, But This Marathon Man Doesn't Stop There

By Greg O'Brien
March 1, 2010
Greg O'Brien

A student of the classics and ancient Greece, Tom Hynes delights in the story of Pheidippides, the Athenian herald who in 490 B.C. announced the Greek victory over Persia in the Battle of Marathon. As legend has it, Pheidippides ran a marathon 150 miles in two days, then raced 25 miles from the battlefield to Athens to proclaim victory. "We have won," he declared. He then collapsed, dead from exhaustion.

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What Is It About Irish Passports?

By Bill O'Donnell
March 1, 2010
Bill O'Donnell

Last month's assassination in Dubai of a major Hamas leader by a hit squad, possibly Israeli secret service Mossad agents, that included five men with forged Irish passports, has erupted into a diplomatic firestorm between Ireland and Israel. Ireland's Foreign Affairs Minister, Micheal Martin, has met with the Israeli foreign minister in Brussels to express the Irish government's outrage while the public debate continues to rage on in the press.

SDLP Elects Margaret Ritchie as 'Leader' - First Woman to Head Major Party in North

By Joe Leary
March 1, 2010
Joe Leary

In a close election last month, the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) of Northern Ireland elected Minister Margaret Ritchie, 51, as its "leader" to guide the party into the second decade of the 21st century. With her ascension, Miss Ritchie becomes the first female head of a major party in Northern Ireland.

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Officials See North's Policing Accord As Signaling End to 'Troubles' Era

By Robert P. Connolly
March 1, 2010
Robert P. Connolly

Northern Ireland's Troubles began with its police force front and center and in a very real sense may have ended with a grand compromise on the vexing question of where the ultimate control over policing should rest.

In many people's minds, Northern Ireland's Troubles began on Oct. 5, 1968, when civil rights demonstrators marching peacefully in Derry were beaten by baton-wielding police. Images of the attack were captured by television cameras and beamed into living rooms across Ireland and Britain.

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Remembering the Great Hunger in Our Port 'o Call

Ed Forry
By Ed Forry
March 1, 2010

Ireland's great Famine, also known as the Great Hunger (An Gorta Mór) took place in the middle of the 19th century, caused by a blight on the potato crop in the Emerald Isle. Beginning with the harvest of 1846, and lasting fully for five years, the fungus caused the potato crop to fail. It was devastating to huge numbers of poor Irish families. A family of six could be fed for a year on one acre of potatoes; the vegetable provided all the nutrients needed to preserve life.

Patrick Shea: Hair-Raising Master of Mayhem at ‘Shear Madness’

By by R.J.Donovan
February 10, 2010
by R.J.Donovan

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 unisex hair salon on Newbury Street.

Karan Casey and John Doyle Serve Up 'Emotional Depth. It's in Our Nature'

By Sean Smith
February 6, 2010
Sean Smith

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, creating an Irish-American sound built on tradition but clearly pointed toward contemporary styles and influences.

Irish Immigration Center Is Quick to Pitch In

By Sue Asci
February 6, 2010
Sue Asci

The Irish Immigration Center is partnering with several organizations throughout the city to help Haitian immigrants seeking Temporary Protected Status (TPS) complete applications by a June deadline.

In recent weeks, the Obama administration granted TPS for Haitian immigrants who were in the U.S. prior to the earthquake. The status allows undocumented immigrants to remain in the country for up to 18 months and avoid deportation back to the devastation in Haiti. The program also gives immigrants the ability to work in the U.S.

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