Description: Street theatre, music, comedy, outdoor spectaculars, international performers, dance, art and all that’s just a taster for what is planned for Ireland’s largest annual national celebration. |
Celebrating its 15th anniversary, St. Patrick’s Festival brings the nation alive with a programme of events for six lively days and nights of ‘free fun’ and celebration.
On Friday evening the festival opens with a programme of film, comedy and visual arts for all and on Saturday morning the streets of Dublin will be thronged with thrill-seekers taking part in the Festival Treasure Hunt - a fun-filled way for all the family to explore and enjoy our Capital City. The much-loved fireworks spectacular, The National Lottery Skyfest will light up the skies over the majestic Treaty city of Limerick on the evening of Saturday 13th March. For those taking a trip to Limerick, the city will be in celebration with its Springfest programme; featuring street theatre & carnival, markets and topped off with an International bands parade on Sunday 14th.
Back in Dublin, Big Day Out; A festival within a festival, opens for all the public on Merrion Square, featuring the cream of street theatre and performance in the heart of Georgian Dublin – a must for visitors and families alike!
You can immerse yourself in Irish culture and craic by joining in free Irish language and culture events, as part of GaelSpraoi which runs throughout the festival. For the more adventurous, dance in the streets at the Festival Céilí – a contemporary outdoor celebration of traditional Irish dance. Taking place on 16th March, St. Patrick’s Eve, it will be an outdoor celebration of all things Irish and open to all – even those with two left feet.
If you enjoy something a little less energetic than Céilí, make a plan to attend The Festival Talks; Voices- an opportunity to vent some “Irish” opinion, and what better way to appreciate and understand our “gift of the gab”?
Dublin’s Cultural Quarter Temple Bar will play host to an inspiring visual art trail “Shop If You Can Look If You Want” an new addition to the Festival programme this year. This exhibition will showcase some of the interesting existing art in the Temple Bar area and also platform innovative new Irish artists and their work. Curated in conjunction with The Temple Bar Cultural Trust this event is an opportunity of visitors and Dubliners alike to experience some of our finest urban artists as part of the Festival celebrations.
We will be rolling out the green carpet as ever on the 17th March for the world’s No. 1 St. Patrick’s Day Parade – a raucous 3km long street celebration. Get your “green” on and be part of the fun on the streets of Dublin for the number one St. Patricks Parade in the world.
The Festival finale is a performance by the cream of contemporary traditional music in Ireland today, Donal Lunny in “A Celebration of Irish Voices” at the National Concert Hall and Kíla at the Olympia. “A Celebration of Irish Voices”, a premiere performance by renowned Irish traditional musician, Donal Lunny promises to be a truly uplifting Irish traditional music experience in our National Concert Hall. While Kíla perform in the heart of the city in the Olympia, easily one of Ireland's most innovative and exciting bands, with their roots in traditional Irish, their music features a strong percussive like singing and gorgeous melodies driven by a serious rhythmical undercurrent.
St. Patrick’s Festival attracts more than one and a half million people to its events each year, including 50,000 overseas visitors, making it the ideal showcase for modern Ireland. The Festival each year is the best contemporary celebration of Irish music, heritage, culture and community and encompasses a feeling of what it means to be or just feel Irish!
Don’t miss your chance to be part of the biggest and best celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, in Dublin over six days so the fun lasts even longer!
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