Imagine Music
Music has been at the heart of the Irish experience in America over two centuries, taking root in its new home and shaping the American soundscape, from Appalachian and Old Time music to the roots of jazz and minstrelsy.
Over time these influences have come full circle, as the streams of tradition, innovation and renewal cross and re-cross the Atlantic. Many of the key moments in the preservation, recording and evolution of Irish traditional music have taken place in the United States. From Van Morrison to U2, some of Ireland’s greatest music has been inspired by America and seems equally at home on either side of the ocean. Contemporary and classical musicians from both countries collaborate ever more frequently.
Imagine Ireland celebrates diverse musical encounters from masters of tradition to world premieres of new music and opera, from virtuosic orchestras to choral tours, from rising bands to contemporary artists breaking through.
Past Events
Culture Ireland
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Over 1,000 Irish theatre-makers, musicians, singers, writers, dancers, visual artists, film-makers and more, presented their work to audiences from Alabama to Wyoming, in venues from…
- Location:
- Dates: January 01 – December 31
3epkano
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Dublin based ensemble 3epkano will provide live musical accompaniment to the silent classic Diary of a Lost Girl. This original score was premiered at BAM…
- Location: DC
- Dates: January 02 – January 03
Masters of Tradition
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A unique evening of Irish traditional music featuring Martin Hayes, Iarla Ó Lionaird, Dennis Cahill, Máirtín O’Connor, Cathal Hayden, Seamie O’Dowd and David Power. This…
- Location: NY
- Dates: January 08 – January 08
Julie Feeney
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Award-winning singer, composer, orchestrator and producer of critically acclaimed ‘13 songs’ and ‘pages’ Julie Feeney is a true artist with immense vision. She embarks on…
- Location: NY, DC, MA
- Dates: January 11 – May 30
Jane O’Leary
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The musical performance will include the premiere of Breathing Spaces for solo piano, performed by Isabelle O’Connell and Only Gestures Remain… for cello and piano,…
- Location: NY
- Dates: January 26 – January 26
Trio Festivale
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Trio Festivale Recital tour of the US, spanning five concerts in Texas, Florida and New York, including works by Gaubert, Weber, Martinu and a world…
- Location: TX, FL, NY
- Dates: February 06 – February 17
Susan McKeown & Lorin Sklamberg
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Grammy-winning vocalists Susan McKeown and Lorin Sklamberg blend effortlessly in Saints & Tzadiks, a vibrant collaboration of Irish and Yiddish song.
…
- Location: TX, CA
- Dates: February 16 – May 22
The Coronas
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The Coronas are THE band to watch with a platinum -selling record and a prestigious Meteor Award (Irish Grammy) for album of the year beating…
- Location: Various Locations
- Dates: February 17 – March 17
The Chieftains
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Six-time Grammy winners and the world’s most popular Irish traditional music group, The Chieftains’ U.S. tour will feature an array of surprise guests and local…
- Location: NY, NJ, PA, WA, TX, AR, IN, WI, IL
- Dates: February 17 – March 05
A Springtime of Irish Music
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A series of Irish concerts featuring the best of Irish traditional music featuring James Kelly, Eoin Ó Riabhaigh, Seamus Begley and Sean Tyrell. All performers…
- Location: MT
- Dates: February 17 – April 24
Savannah Irish Festival
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The 2011 Savannah Irish Festival includes performances by The Cathie Ryan Band, Gabriel Donohue with Deidre Connolly, Legacy with special guest Mairtin de Cogain, The…
- Location: GA
- Dates: February 18 – February 20
Fidelo Trio
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Internationally recognised as one of the most exciting piano trios with diverse and arresting programming, this tour showcases the Fidelio Trio, ambassadors of Irish contemporary…
- Location: NY, MA, IL
- Dates: February 21 – February 27
Brock McGuire Band
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“The Best Instrumental Band in the Business” Irish American News / “The Brock McGuire Band was stunning, spreading their magic blend of virtuosity and old…
- Location: AL, CT, NJ, TN, TX
- Dates: March 02 – March 13
Altan
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Over 25 years of playing together, Altan have established themselves as one of the most important live acts to play traditional Irish music in Ireland…
- Location: TX, VA, OH, PA, IL, NH, VT, NH, CT
- Dates: March 04 – March 20
David Munelly Band
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“The Irish band to see” (The Irish Voice) has won special acclaim for incorporating the sound of the 1920s and 1930s, and such bands from…
- Location: IL, MI, OH, NY, PA, TN, GA
- Dates: March 04 – March 19
Camerata Ireland
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Barry Douglas and Camerata Ireland, guest soloist Celine Byrne (Soprano). This concert tour will include arias by Mozart along with performances of well-known traditional Irish…
- Location: NY, TN, IL, IN
- Dates: March 05 – March 12
Charlie Lennon
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Orchestra of Indian Hill presents an evening of traditional and classical Irish music featuring the AMERICAN PREMIERE of Charlie Lennon’s “Island Wedding Suite” narrated by…
- Location: MA
- Dates: March 12 – March 12
Duke Special
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Musically ambitious and eccentric, Duke Special is blissfully at home in his own alluring genre of bruised romanticism, vaudeville and addictive melodies. A piano-based songwriter…
- Location: DC
- Dates: March 14 – March 14
Frank Corcoran
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New York premiere of internationally renowned Irish composer, Frank Corcoran´s new SONGS OF TERROR AND LOVE (2010) for Basso Drammatico and Ensemble, to be performed…
- Location: NY
- Dates: March 14 – March 14
Irish bands at SXSW 2011
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More than 15 musical acts including Choice Prize nominees James Vincent McMorrow, Halves, Adebisi Shank and O Emperor, The Lost brothers, Ham Sandwich and many…
- Location: TX
- Dates: March 17 – March 20
Duke Special at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
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Musical sensation Duke Special will debut all-new songs in a performance presented by Spectrum at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. In this concert conceived specifically…
- Location: NY
- Dates: March 24 – March 24
Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh
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Described in the Irish Times as inhabiting the eccentric fringe of Irish music, the elliptical Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh orbits a different planet than most Irish…
- Location: DC
- Dates: March 24 – March 24
Jackie Daly and Matt Cranitch
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Through their respective performances over many years, Jackie Daly (accordion) and Matt Cranitch (fiddle) have established enviable individual reputations in the world of Irish traditional…
- Location: NJ, PA, MO, IL, WI, IL, ME, MA
- Dates: March 26 – April 07
Craobh Rua
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Craobh Rua will perform Irish Traditional music with their distinctive Northern style. They share with the audience the experience of living and playing music in…
- Location: WV, MD, DC, CT, RI, VT
- Dates: April 01 – July 16
Gerald Barry and the Los Angeles Philharmonic
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Gerald Barry’s The Importance of Being Earnest, an opera in three acts commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, will be world-premiered under the baton…
- Location: CA
- Dates: April 07 – April 08
Enda Bates
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The ISSUE Project Room Emerging Artist commission is awarded annually to support the development of new works of extraordinary innovation and creativity. This performance will…
- Location: NY
- Dates: April 13 – April 13
Masters in Collaboration V: Joanie Madden Meets Seamus Begley
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Our fifth installment of the acclaimed Masters in Collaboration series pairs Grammy-winning whistle and flute player and leader of Cherish the Ladies Joanie Madden with…
- Location: NY
- Dates: April 13 – April 17
Kevin Burke
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Traditional solo fiddle concert in an intimate setting.
- Location: CT
- Dates: April 14 – April 14
Cappella Caeciliana
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A concert of sacred music as part of Villanova University’s “Catholic Imagination in the Arts” series. The concert includes the US premiere of ‘Exsultet’, a…
- Location: PA
- Dates: April 27 – April 28
Cappella Caeciliana: Choral Evensong
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Since its foundation stone was laid in 1907, Washington National Cathedral has played a vital role in the history of the USA. The Cathedral has…
- Location: DC
- Dates: April 29 – April 29
Inter-changes: Irish Piano Music of the 21st Century
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A concert tour of the east coast of the US, Therese will perform four recitals, featuring a repertoire of piano music from the Irish contemporary…
- Location: MA, MD, VA, NY
- Dates: April 29 – May 30
Neff Brothers at the L.A .Composers’ Salon
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Following their highly acclaimed collaboration with renowned Icelandic composer, Atli Örvarsson, on his score for Oscar-winning director Kevin Macdonald’s latest film, “The Eagle,” the Neff…
- Location: CA
- Dates: May 08 – May 08
The Outside Track USA tour
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The Outside Track will perform Irish, Scottish and Cape Breton music, with their distinctive cross-cultural style. Their concerts, performed on fiddle, tin whistle, flute, harp,…
- Location: DE, NY, MA, WI
- Dates: June 03 – August 21
Judith Mok
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Molly Says No! is a dramatic recital with music by classical composers as well as folk songs, and a text by Michael O’Loughlin, which is…
- Location: NY, CA, IL, GA, FL
- Dates: June 06 – October 27
McPeake Band
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McPeake are conducting a sixteen venue tour across the United States
- Location: NY, PA, CT, MA, CO, IL, NJ, TN, MO, IN,
- Dates: June 16 – September 25
Kíla
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Kíla concerts will be mostly in festival settings, on main stages or collaborating with other artists on smaller stages. This is Kíla’s first trip to…
- Location: OR, WA, MO
- Dates: June 17 – September 04
New York Electronic Art Festival 2011
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The New York Electronic Art Festival was created to provide a responsive public context for the appreciation of cutting-edge electronic artwork through concerts, panels, workshops,…
- Location: NY
- Dates: June 17 – June 18
SC Irish Arts Weekend
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SC Irish Arts Weekend – featuring James Kelly, Turlach Boylan, Patsy O’Brien and more – offers a variety of quality instruction, performances and demonstrations: fiddle,…
- Location: SC
- Dates: June 17 – June 19
Pat O’Connor and Eoghan O’Sullivan
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“A unique cultural experience for the listener, and a true and sincere representation of this traditional and specialised art.”
Ellen Cranitch
RTE Lyric… - Location: MA, NJ, NY, CT, NC,GA, SC
- Dates: June 24 – July 09
Séisiún an Sciobairín
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Seisiún an Sciobairín, a group of 25 musicians, singers and dancers from Skibbereen, Co. Cork will travel to St Louis, Missouri, USA as guests of…
- Location: MO
- Dates: June 26 – July 05
Catskills Irish Arts Week
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Artists from Ireland: Charlie Harris, Maeve Donnelly, Geraldine & Eamonn Cotter, John Carty, Bernadette and Caitlin nic Gabhann,Matt Cranitch,Jesse Smith, Conal O’Grada, Mary Bergin, Ivan…
- Location: NY
- Dates: July 11 – July 16
Summer Salon at New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
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In a collaboration between the National Library of Ireland and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in the Lincoln Center, writers and…
- Location: NY
- Dates: July 13 – July 27
Midsummer Night Swing
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Traditional Irish Ceili
Lively Irish Dance music for ceili, sets and old-time waltzes provided by Charlie Harris, Maeve Donnelly, Geraldine & Eamonn Cotter,…
- Location: NY,
- Dates: July 13 – July 13
Celebrate Brooklyn! Performing Arts Festival
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Prospect Park swells with traditional sounds from the Emerald Isle. DE DANNAN, presided over by Frankie Gavin, the world’s fastest fiddler (says Guinness, that’s who),…
- Location: NY
- Dates: July 14 – July 14
Goitse
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“Goitse’s music possesses a strength power and maturity that is well beyond their years” – John O Regan (Journalist, Irish Music Magazine)
“They…
- Location: OH, MO
- Dates: July 28 – September 18
Dervish
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Irish Heartbeat is a large scale stage and radio collaboration between Dervish and a selection of the very best singers, musicians and dancers from both…
- Location: MA, OH
- Dates: July 29 – August 07
Beoga
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Beoga will perform at the famous Dublin Irish Festival in Ohio and the highly acclaimed Michigan Irish Festival.
- Location: OH, MI
- Dates: August 05 – September 19
Téada
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One of Ireland’s top internationally-touring groups, Téada celebrates 10 years on the road with 2011 festival performances in the US, UK, Spain, Italy and Russia,…
- Location: OH, MI, MS, NY
- Dates: August 05 – September 17
Culture Ireland Tennessee – Authentic Irish Festival
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One of the goals of the ‘Authentic Ireland’ Festival is to celebrate Irish roots in music, song, dance, film and literature, with an interesting review…
- Location: TN
- Dates: August 05 – August 07
Milwaukee Irish Fest
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Milwaukee Irish Fest features more than 100 acts on 16 stages with performances by world-renowned artists like Gaelic Storm, Altan, Liz Doherty and more. In…
- Location: WI
- Dates: August 18 – August 21
Fiach
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Fiach has been invited to perform three shows at the prestigious Milwaukee Irish Festival from the 19th until the 21st of August 2011 with his…
- Location: WI
- Dates: August 19 – August 30
Altan
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After 25 years playing together, Altan have established themselves as one of the most important live acts to play traditional Irish music in Ireland and…
- Location: WI
- Dates: August 19 – August 21
The Henry Girls
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The band are touring the eastern US in August and September 2011, playing at Milwaukee Irish Festival and selected venues and festivals around Chicago and…
- Location: WI, VA, IL
- Dates: August 19 – August 27
Fidil
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First tour for Irish traditional fiddle trio Fidil in the USA. The tour will include performances at the Milwaukee Irish Fest, and also at the…
- Location: IL, WI
- Dates: August 27 – August 27
Brock McGuire Band
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Passion and precision, authenticity and diversity; these are the hallmarks of the Brock McGuire Band in concert. They are steeped in tradition and perform it…
- Location: TN, OH, KY, MO, MN, WI, IL, IN
- Dates: September 08 – September 23
The Mulcahy Family
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The Equinox Festival (produced by CTMS, a respected institution in the American folk arts community) has presented world-class artists from many traditions for 30 years. …
- Location: CA
- Dates: September 10 – September 11
Buffalo in the Castle
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The Frostburg State University Appalchian Festival is a celebration of regionalism. It is a celebration of the region’s natural landscape, history, culture, food, musical and…
- Location: MD
- Dates: September 15 – September 17
Masters in Collaboration VI: Iarla Ó Lionáird meets Ivan Goff
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Masters in Collaboration VI pairs sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionáird with uilleann piper and flutist Ivan Goff. Grammy-nominee Ó Lionáird is widely respected for his…
- Location: NY
- Dates: September 28 – October 02
Tryst
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A seamless show that re-imagines and re-defines conceptions of the singer’s role as interpreter. Drawing inspiration from jazz, contemporary, cabaret and folk performance cultures, Michelle…
- Location: NY
- Dates: September 28 – October 01
John O’Conor Solo Piano Concert
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The Washington Conservatory of Music is honored to present Irish pianist John O’Conor in a concert featuring music of Haydn, Irish composer John Field, Beethoven…
- Location: MD
- Dates: October 01 – October 01
Breanndán Ó Beaglaoich and Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh
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Two traditional musicians who have toured the US extensively in different formations are about to tour the US for the third time as a duo.
- Location: CA, WI, MN, WI, IL, PA, NJ, CT, NY
- Dates: October 06 – October 23
Ergodos
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The backbone of this production is the music of twelfth century French master, Léonin, in particular his elegant and suave organa on the plainchant Viderunt…
- Location: NY
- Dates: October 06 – October 06
The National Chamber Choir of Ireland
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Programme:
J.S. Bach: Jauchzet dem Herrn
Johannes Brahms:
O süsser Mai
All meine Herzgedanken
Dein Herzlein mild
WaldesnachtSiobhán Cleary:…
- Location: IN, OH, PA, NJ, IA
- Dates: October 13 – October 20
The Irish Chamber Orchestra
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Programme
Haydn Symphony Nr. 96, D major (The Miracle)
Prokofiev Piano Concerto (Left Hand), Nr. 4, op.53Interval
…
- Location: WY, CO, IA, IL, MI, NY, ME, PA
- Dates: October 24 – November 04
Iarla Ó Lionáird at Joe’s Pub
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Iarla O’Lionaird launches his new album Foxlight (Real World Records). For his third solo album, he delivers an impassioned and sublime set of personal songs,…
- Location: NY
- Dates: October 26 – October 26
Other Voices NYC
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Other Voices NYC is presented by Imagine Ireland in association with The Burgundy Stain Sessions and will feature performances by Oscar winning Irish artist Glen…
- Location: NY
- Dates: October 27 – October 29
An Evening with Bill Whelan
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In an encore presentation of one of IAC’s most exhilarating concert series, Grammy-winning Riverdance composer Bill Whelan and fiddler Athena Tergis return for four unforgettable…
- Location: NY
- Dates: October 29 – November 01
Jackie Daly, Matt Cranitch and Paul De Grae in Concert
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Through their respective performances over many years, Jackie Daly (accordion), Matt Cranitch (fiddle) and Paul De Grae (guitar) have established enviable individual reputations in the…
- Location: MN, WI, IL
- Dates: November 04 – November 13
Ensemble Avalon US Autumn Tour 2011
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Ensemble Avalon will present three concerts in the US during their Autumn 2011 tour, visiting Washington Conservatory, Princeton University and the Irish Arts Center. The…
- Location: MD, NJ, NY
- Dates: November 13 – November 16
Irish Christmas in America
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‘Irish Christmas in America’ returns to the United States during November/December 2011 for a 7th consecutive tour of East and West coasts. Produced by Oisin…
- Location: CA, MT, NE, IA, MA, NJ, DC, DE, IL, WI
- Dates: November 25 – December 18
Cathal Breslin
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U.S. National Concert Tour in December 2011; solo piano recitals and masterclasses.
“Superb intensity and passion” – The Cleveland Plain Dealer
…
- Location: NY, FL, MI, OH, PA, TX
- Dates: December 01 – December 16
Jennifer Walshe & Bent Frequency
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“The music of what happens?” is a music theatre piece in the marionette opera tradition. In this case, the marionettes are fashion dolls of the…
- Location: GA
- Dates: December 05 – December 05
An Irish Christmas: A Musical Solstice Celebration
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Your entire family will enjoy our annual holiday tradition, featuring an eclectic mix of tunes and stories to warm the heart, hosted by the legendary…
- Location: NY
- Dates: December 07 – December 18
An Irish Holiday Festival
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An Irish Holiday Festival at Bowers.org as part of the Bowers Museum Arts and Culture events. As part of the Festival there will be a…
- Location: FL
- Dates: December 11 – December 11
Jennifer Walshe
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Jennifer Walshe will perform her new piece ‘All The Many Peopls’, for solo voice and electronics.
- Location: NY
- Dates: December 30 – December 30