MOHAWK VALLEY IRISH CULTURAL Volume 14, Issue 6 EVENTS NEWSLETTER June 2017 Celebrate Joyce’s Legacy on Varick Street on “Bloomsday” The city of Utica will be transformed into Dublin for one day on Saturday, June 17, as the Utica NY Area Irish Coalition will present its first “Bloomsday” Celebration with a pub crawl visiting seven stops along Varick Street in the city’s brewery district. In James Joyce’s monumental classic “Ulysses,” (often cited as the greatest English-language novel of all time) June 16 is the date that the book’s protagonist, Leopold Bloom, undertakes his one day sojourn through the streets of Dublin. Since the first two-man Bloomsday celebration in 1954, that date (or as near as practicable) continues to be celebrated in countries as far-ranging as Hungary, Italy, Australia and the Czech Republic, with a range of cultural activities including readings and dramatizations of scenes from the novel (as well as the responsible partaking of adult beverages). The UNYAIC event will start at noon with a brief gathering at Utica Brews, located at 809 Court St., Utica, and will proceed, in order, to the Saranac Brewery, Nail Creek Pub, the new Irish Cultural Building site, O’Donnell’s, The Sanctuary, and will finish at 5 PM at the Celtic Harp. Each stop will feature short readings from the book and live Irish music, and food and drinks will be available for purchase. Participants will receive a special commemorative T-shirt and will also get a passport stamped at each stop to be eligible for prize drawings at the end of the crawl. Tickets are $10 and are available at the UNYAIC website at UNYAIC.weebly.com and at Eventbrite. Due to space, only 40 tickets will be sold. The Utica NY Area Irish Coalition consists of six Irish cultural groups in Central New York who have joined forces to host events in celebration of Irish culture, history, music and dance. Riverdance – The 20th Anniversary World Tour The international Irish dance phenomenon, Riverdance, will be giving five performances over three big days at Proctor’s Theater in Schenectady, direct from a sold-out run of their 20th Anniversary Tour across Europe and Asia. Drawing on Irish traditions, the combined talents of the performers propel Irish dancing and music into the present day, capturing the imagination of audiences across all ages and cultures in an innovative and exciting blend of dance, music and song. Of all the performances to emerge from Ireland – in rock, music, theatre and film – nothing has carried the energy, the sensuality and the spectacle of Riverdance. On June16th you can catch Riverdance at 8 PM, and there are two performances on the 17th (2 PM and 8 PM) and two more on the 18th (1:30 PM and 6:30 PM). Tickets for the shows, which range from $20 - $75, are available at the Box Office ((518) 346-6204) or by going on-line. Proctors Theatre is located at 432 state Street in Schenectady NY. Mohawk Valley Irish Cultural Events - 1 Celtic Woman Brings “Voices of Angels” to Central New York If you’ve ever caught any of the Celtic Woman specials on PBS and wished you could see them live, you wish has come true…in spades. Multi-platinum international music sensation Celtic Woman presents “Voices of Angels,” a captivating new show for 2017, at two venues this month. The OnCenter (800 South State Street, Syracuse) will host the troupe for a 7 PM show on June 21st, and then they travel to the Clemens Center in Elmira on the 23rd for a special 7:30 PM show. “Voices of Angels” showcases the angelic voices of Susan McFadden, Mairéad Carlin, Eabha McMahon and introduces the breathtaking new Celtic violinist Tara McNeill, accompanied by a group of equally talented musicians and dancers whose exceptional skill and high energy bring a fresh fusion to centuries of musical and cultural tradition. Featuring many songs from the forthcoming Voices of Angels album, this inspiring live concert experience features all new stage designs, stunning wardrobes, superb choreography and magnificent arrangements of timeless Irish traditional and contemporary standards in the group’s award-winning signature style. A true celebration of an incredible journey that has captivated millions, don’t miss Celtic Woman live in concert! “Voices of Angels” at the OnCenter range from $34 to $69, and are available on-line. Tickets for the Clemens Center performance range from $35-$105, and are available by calling (607) 734-8191 or (800) 724-0159, or by clicking here. The Clemens Center is located in downtown Elmira at the corner of Clemens Center Parkway and East Gray Street. The street address is 207 Clemens Center Parkway, Elmira, New York. “The Irish and the Erie” As many of our proud locals know, July 4, 2017 marks the 200th anniversary of the beginning of the digging of the Erie Canal, right here in Rome, NY. To commemorate the bicentennial – and to highlight the major role that members of the Irish community had in ensuring its success (a prospect which was questioned by no less than Thomas Jefferson!) – Craobh Dugan’s Mike Hoke has put together an hour-long program called “The Irish and the Erie – The Irish Contribution to the Building of the Erie Canal.” On June 8th at 7 PM, members of Craobh Dugan will be doing the world premiere of “The Irish and the Erie” long program at the Westernville Town Hall, located at 9219 Main Street in Westernville. (The hall itself has a bit of history, as it was built as the Empire Hotel in 1840 in the town of Delta and serviced the canal trade from the Black River Canal. It was taken down piece by piece when the village of Delta was going to be flooded due to the construction of Delta Dam, and rebuilt on the current site in the early 1900’s). The show -- written, compiled and arranged by Mike – pairs historical narratives with appropriate songs and dance tunes (including some Craobh Dugan original material) to connote what life was like for the Irish canal worker, the recruiting process, the work day itself and the social interaction. The program, in long- or short-form, is available to other venues as well. Interested organizations can contact Bill Fahy at [email protected], or visit the Craobh Dugan web site, at www.uticairish.org. Mohawk Valley Irish Cultural Events - 2 Historic Unity Hall to Present An Evening of Celtic Music and Stories Unity Hall of Barneveld is thrilled to present nationally-recognized master fiddler Jamie Laval in an acoustic concert of Celtic music and storytelling on Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30 pm. In addition to his fiddle wizardry and irresistible groove-making, Laval will also recount ancient mythic Celtic legends. The performance will take place at the historic Unity Hall performance space, 101 Vanderkamp Ave, Barneveld, NY, 13304. As a U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Champion, Jamie Laval creates rapt audiences with his passionate, virtuosic performances, uncanny imitation of Highland bagpipes, and engaging stories. Dubbed “One of the hottest fiddlers out there,” (Asheville Citizen-Times), Laval has appeared on the NBC Today Show, performed on Dave Matthews’ platinum album Some Devil, and gave a private performance for Her Majesty the Queen. Laval’s album, Murmurs and Drones, won the popular vote for “Best World Traditional Album” in the 2012 Independent Music Awards. “I am excited to make my Central New York debut at Unity Hall,” says Laval. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to play in this unique and intimate venue. I love sharing the magic of ancient Celtic music in such an historic atmosphere.” Celtic music is known for its toe-tapping rhythms, bouncy jigs, and galloping reels. Jamie promises an evening of both the warmly familiar and the bracingly surprising in this program themed towards Celtic music from Brittany, the Gaelic-speaking region of France. Like their northern relatives, the Bretons favor bagpipes and high-energy village dances. Yet the minor keys and hypnotic syncopation give the music of Brittany a strikingly exotic quality. Tarentellas, Laridées, Gavottes, and Ronds are just some of the surprises in store. Currently making his home near Asheville, NC, Laval grew up in the Pacific Northwest where he received his musical training at the Victoria Conservatory of Music. Laval initially made his living as a professional symphony musician, recording studio artist, improvising violinist, and contra dance fiddler. But his passion for the haunting sounds of rural Scottish folk music eventually usurped all other preoccupations, and he now devotes himself exclusively to Celtic music. In 2002 Laval won the U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Championship which helped launch his touring career which includes over 100 engagements per year throughout the U.S. and Scotland. Keenly devoted to the role of the arts in our lives, Jamie has presented a TEDx Talk titled “How a Fiddle Tune Can Change the World.” Visit his website at www.JamieLaval.com and see his highlights video at https://vimeo.com/204972822. Tickets for this special concert are $20 for the General Public/$16 for Unity Hall Foundation members. Doors open at 7 PM and the show begins at 7:30. Tickets are available at http://www.unityhall.com/tickets.html and locally at the Adirondack Cheese Company, 8190 NY-12, Barneveld, NY. This event is sponsored by the Unity Hall Foundation, a not-for-profit organization founded in 1995 to maintain the 1896 Hall as a center for the arts and community activities in Barneveld, New York. The Hall is available for public and private functions.