|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
VANCOUVER – After a one-year hiatus, due to its traditional March dates which conflicted with the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, CelticFest Vancouver is busy putting the wheels in motion for the 7th Annual Celtic Festival, in downtown Vancouver, March 16 - 20. Presented by Edgewater Casino, the 7th Annual Celtic Festival will offer a diverse menu of Celtic performance and culture, with hundreds of gifted world-class performing artists featured in over 50 live events. The festival is proud to present Canada’s own Spirit of the West with special guests The Starbirds (Tom Landa, Kalissa Hernandez, and Nick LaRiviere of The Paperboys) at the BIG St. Pat’s Night Out! at the Vogue Theatre on March 19. Other festival highlights include an AfroCeltic Fusion Dance Party at the Stadium Club at Edgewater Casino (March 18), The World’s Greatest Céilidh at the Yale (March 17), music workshops, champion step-dancers, the annual Whisky Kiss scotch-tasting, the inaugural Vancouver St. Patrick’s Day Lunch, a Brewmaster’s Dinner, Celtic music-themed film screenings, and much more. The festival’s most popular free event is sure to be the 7th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade, presented by Pacific Centre on March 20. This huge, colourful spectacle kicks off at 11 AM in downtown Vancouver (new parade route). It is estimated that more than 300,000 people will turn out to see almost a hundred parade entries. Approximately 2,000 participants will take to the streets, including international award-winning pipe and drum bands, marching colour guard, Celtic music and dance groups, the Vancouver police motorcycle drill team and fire brigades, acrobats, stilt walkers, rare, vintage cars, Irish and Scottish youth dance and music groups, multicultural organizations, distinguished local guests and much more. On March 19 and 20, the Celtic Village and Street Market will be relocated back on Granville Street (between Georgia & Smithe Street). The Village is the festival's big free weekend street fair where friends and family come together, to experience all things Celtic including an array of Celtic treasures, food and fare, gifted artisans, Irish storytelling and continuous free music performances, and other interactive entertainment for people of all ages to enjoy. There are also free weekday lunchtime concerts on the Plaza at Pacific Centre Mall (Georgia and Granville), as well as a traditional music session and free music workshops at Tom Lee Music. Vancouver’s Entertainment District will also be rocking throughout the festival, offering free music and dance performances at participating pubs and clubs. CelticFest Vancouver Society is honoured to announce that John Furlong recently accepted its invitation to become the Festival's first-ever Honorary Patron. Furlong, Chief Executive Officer of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, hails from Tipperary, Ireland and supports the festival's mandate to promote and celebrate Celtic culture. CelticFest Vancouver is the proud recipient of the DVBIA’s 2007 Annual Appreciation Award and in 2005, was recognized with Vancouver’s BEST Special Event Award, by the Vancouver Board of Trade’s Spirit of Vancouver. Tickets for the Vogue Theatre event (The BIG St. Pat’s Night Out! featuring Spirit of the West with Special Guests The Starbirds) are available after January 6 through the Vogue Theatre Box Office by calling (604) 569-1144, online at www.voguetheatre.com, or in person at 918 Granville Street and at www.celticfestvancouver.com. All other tickets and the CelticFest schedule will be available online after January 27 at www.celticfestvancouver.com. Tickets will also be available through Tickets Tonight by calling (604) 684-2787, or in person at the Tickets Tonight outlet, located in the Tourism Vancouver Visitor Centre, Plaza Level (200 Burrard Street).
|
TOP - or - Back to Headlines | ||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
