Irish Fest
Henry Maier Festival Park is distinctively quieter this summer, with the lack of weekly ethnic festivals that celebrate Milwaukee’s diverse makeup. However, CelticMKE, the group responsible for organizing Irish Fest annually, are providing a four-day streaming program called Milwaukee Irish Fest At Home in place of a physical festival this year. The stream will take place from Thursday through Sunday, the dates and times in which Irish Fest would have normally taken place, on the official Irish Fest YouTube channel, Facebook page, and website.
“Our mission has always been to celebrate and promote Celtic music and culture” said Melissa Ward, director of marketing for CelticMKE. “While we do that primarily through the festival, it is our mission as a non-profit, and that carries us and guides us year-round.”
Programming for the virtual festival will include both new and archived content, including at-home performances from festival favorites like Gaelic Storm and The Henry Girls. In addition, Irish dance schools from both national and international organizations will make up three Irish dance power hours, and cooking segments from Irish chefs will round out an entertainment lineup that is as close to the traditional festival as possible given the current circumstances.
“The minute we knew that we weren’t going to have the festival this year, we knew that we still wanted to get something out for the people that celebrate the culture” said Ward. “We just want people to be able to celebrate what they normally would about the festival. You don’t have to be Irish to enjoy Irish fest.”
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Viewers of the festival are encouraged to support CelticMKE through donations, purchasing merchandise via the organization’s web store, and sharing the Irish Fest At Home streams on social media. For a full streaming lineup of Milwaukee Irish Fest At Home events, visit the Irish Fest website or download the Irish Fest mobile app.
