Friday's Schedule

Mooncoin Ceili Dancers knows the excitement of Irish dance is mainly in the legs and feet, with quick, graceful movements or vigorous battering steps carrying dancers though the complex, often geometrically patterned dances. Irish ceili and set dance are forms of dance that have traditionally been practiced socially. These are the dances that have brought people together for celebrations of all kinds throughout Irish history. Mooncoin Ceili Dancers honor these traditional dances, while infusing them with a modern performance spirit. We also create new dances in the ceili and set styles, demonstrating that all traditions are living, growing, constantly evolving entities that bring many and varied meanings into the lives of those who share them.

The Rince na Chroi Irish Dancers are a performance-based Irish dance school from St. Paul. Founded in 2003 by owner and director Katie Stephens Spangler, Rince na Chroi averages over 100 public performances throughout the year- and the Irish Fair of Minnesota is always a highlight! Rince na Chroi has over 200 dancers of all ages, and they accept students as young as three, up through adults. Their dancers perform year-round at venues and events all over the Twin Cities and the Midwest. Visit their website or find Rince na Chroi on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for more information.

Anna, Sheila and Clare Friel are traditional musicians born in Glasgow with their family roots firmly entrenched in the Donegal Gaeltacht (Derrynamansher). Being siblings, they achieve a close blend on fiddle, flute and uilleann pipes interspersed with wonderful harmony, many from their family and local repertoire. Fresh and invigorating, we welcome the Friel Sisters for their first visit to the Irish Fair stage. Learn more. 

Adam Coolong - vocals and guitar
Tony Comeau - fiddle
Cole Mickelson - guitar
Andy Schuster - bass
Pete James Johnson - drums

Wild Colonial Bhoys is more than just an Irish band - they are an Irish American band. Theirs is like a blended whiskey: it’s a musical melding of both the old and the new, from the peat smoke scent of the ould sod to the can-do spirit that embodies the American dream. See more...

Biddies Galore -- 3 women who can't stop dancing

Ever wonder if there really is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, if fairies grant wishes, or if your little brother is really a changeling? Come explore the emerald isle's rich storytelling tradition with Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre's Irish Myths and Legends. Join us for a rousing, interactive adventure for the entire family, filled with laughter, singing, and, perhaps, a surprise or two.

Comedy comes to Irish Fair! Irish comedians, Dave Nihill, Sean Finnerty and Mick Thomas will be taking the stage. Friday and Saturday at Celtic Corner. Catch these hilarious voices of modern Ireland, accents included.

From Dublin, Dave Nihill is the first ever-Irish winner of the prestigious San Francisco International Comedy Competition, runner up in the NPR, the Moth’s largest US Grandslam storytelling competition, and the first ever-Irish comedian to have a special on Dar Bar Comedy.

From Longford, Ireland, Sean Finnerty decided to move stateside where a series of mature decisions that he failed to make led him to stand-up comedy. Recently he was rewarded for his efforts as he became the first ever Irish comedian to perform on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

Born and raised in Wexford, it wasn’t until moving to New York that Mick Thomas's stand-up comedy career was born. A natural performer and insightful writer, in a few short years Mick has blown away one club owner after the next with his honest and genuinely original takes on American society and life as a young and dedicated family man.Mick has performed with the biggest names in comedy including Dom Irrera, Norm Macdonald, Jim Breuer, Carl LaBove, John Pinette, and Greg Giraldo.

Get a glimpse!

Joe Carey, a MN singer-songwriter, has been around the music scene for years. Join him for an engaging performance on the stage at Irish Fair!

The Eddies sing songs with and without accompaniment. We sing sea songs, sea shanties, and other songs of work. We sing songs of emigration, immigration, sadness, joy and silliness. We are all about the fun and all about the harmony.

Paul McCluskey will be leading YOU in social dance.  Don't worry: lots of basic instruction will be offered. 

Music by the Twin Cities Ceili Band:

Based in the St. Paul & Minneapolis metropolitan area, the Twin Cities Céilí Band (TCCB) have been providing traditional Irish céilí music for all manner of Irish dance: step, set, sean-nós, and céilí for almost 20 years. Live traditional music, played by musicians who are in touch with the Irish music tradition, invites people to tap their feet, clap their hands, and get up and dance. Live music for dancers is a conversation between the dancers and the musicians. The Twin Cities Céilí Band strives to be part of that conversation by playing for local céilí dances, set dances, and pretty much for anyone willing to dance.  Give it a whirl! 

No words necessary!

Celtgrass! Irish Americana! Galway-based We Banjo 3 has one foot in Irish music and one foot in Americana music, seamlessly combining the virtuosity and precision in each genre’s traditional disciplines with the artful song-craft and infectious live performance of today’s musical landscape. See more.

Release the Craicen was a startup band new to the Irish scene in 2017. They debuted in a pub sing along on St. Patrick's Day, and you can often find them down at the Dubliner Pub in St. Paul. Focusing on a Pogues and Flogging Molly influenced Irish Rock-Folk-Punk style; classic rock rhythms raise up rousing choruses while fiddle and accordion tunes reminisce days gone by. Between classic pub songs, modern Paddy Rock covers and an original or two, Release the Craicen has something for everyone 

Join us for 15 minutes at the Dublin Stage to hear from our Board Chair, Tom Whelan, meet members of the Board, Mr. Pat and Miss Shamrock, members of the Consulate General of Ireland's office, and our 2023 Curtin Conway award winner.  Every year, we give an award to a person/persons within the Irish community who have consistently gone above and beyond over time to promote and perpertuate Irish culture.  These award winners are tireless and generous and deserving of your attention for this brief ceremony. 

Born in 2005, Doolin' takes its name from a small village on the west coast of Ireland, renowned for its traditional music and high-rise craic, this typically Irish holiday spirit.

After only a few months of existence, Doolin' is already rubbing shoulders with the biggest and shares the stage with Alan Stivell in the framework of the festival of skin of Carmaux

Raise ‘em up. Drink ‘em down. Gaelic Storm brings an energetic mix of Irish and Scottish traditional fare – including some drinking songs – and bring so much more to audiences everywhere. Country music fans adore their storytelling, Bluegrass fans love the instrumentals, Celtic fans love their devotion to tradition, and Rock fans simply relish the passion they have for their instruments and the energy they bring to stage each night.

Good music raised local! Serious string band featuring Twin Cities teen duo Derek Anderson (banjo, bouzouki) and Morien McBurnie (banjo, guitar). These lads play Irish tunes both traditional and modern, along with their own compositions. Serious students of the instruments, these banjo boys have been playing and busking around town for four years. Learn more here! 

The Lóma mór Irish Dance Club was formed in 1999 to promote set, ceili, 2-hand, and sean nós dancing as a lifelong social, cultural, and community-building activity in the Twin Cities area. 

Learn more here!

Connemara Patch plays traditional Irish tunes and songs. Patrick Maun (uilleann pipes), Mary Vanorny (fiddle) and Buddy Ferrari (bouzouki). Learn more on Facebook!

The Wild Rose Cloggers currently range in age from 18 – 70-something. We are not only all ages but all abilities. We have diverse backgrounds, different strengths and weaknesses, and dance at different levels of difficulty. Some of us love being on stage, and some can’t wait until the show is done.

Wild Rose Cloggers share a love of the dance, the great exercise clogging affords, and the fun we have together. The best news of all is anyone can be a clogger and enjoy this form of dance and performance for a lifetime.

Mooncoin Ceili Dancers knows the excitement of Irish dance is mainly in the legs and feet, with quick, graceful movements or vigorous battering steps carrying dancers though the complex, often geometrically patterned dances. Irish ceili and set dance are forms of dance that have traditionally been practiced socially. These are the dances that have brought people together for celebrations of all kinds throughout Irish history. Mooncoin Ceili Dancers honor these traditional dances, while infusing them with a modern performance spirit. We also create new dances in the ceili and set styles, demonstrating that all traditions are living, growing, constantly evolving entities that bring many and varied meanings into the lives of those who share them.

Wild Rose Cloggers currently range in age from 18 – 70-something. We are not only all ages but all abilities. We have diverse backgrounds, different strengths and weaknesses, and dance at different levels of difficulty. Some of us love being on stage, and some can’t wait until the show is done.

Wild Rose Cloggers share a love of the dance, the great exercise clogging affords, and the fun we have together. The best news of all is anyone can be a clogger and enjoy this form of dance and performance for a lifetime.

The Keegan's Learners Session is a group of novice traditional Irish musicians who meet to learn tunes commonly played in sessions in the Twin Cities. Our goal is to get proficient enough to blend in at a more advanced level in regular session settings. We're welcoming to all folks interested in achieving that goal, or just in having fun playing together at a more beginning to intermediate level. MEET AT THE FLAGPOLE PATIO AREA! 

The Hounds of Finn is a high-energy folk-rock group forged from the roots of Celtic and American traditions.

Leslie Rich  grew up in Northern Ireland, listening to a mix of indie rock, acoustic songwriters and traditional Celtic music. Inspired by artists like Luka Bloom and Throwing Muses, Leslie became the principal songwriter, singer and guitarist for bands such as Emily Ryder, A Little Of The Ready and the Celtic folk band Hounds of Finn, recording on various labels including Immortal Recordings, Time To Be Proud Records, New Folk Records and Loud Folk Records. He founded the Rocket Soul Choir in 1994, mainly as an acoustic response to the heavy, guitar-driven, Irish bands cropping up at that time. Even while Leslie recorded solo albums, played in other projects and relocated to Minneapolis, the Rocket Soul Choir continued in various configurations over the years--always with the mission to create stripped-down rock. The band has released four albums, including the 2016 EP Kidder's Son, which received high praise on both sides of the pond, and their new album The Butcher Boy--the first featuring the current lineup. When not making music, Leslie loves to bake and cook and claims his best songs have come from picking up a guitar while waiting on a cheesecake to come out of the oven.

Wild Colonial Bhoys—The Irish-American band from Minnesota. Their sound is a blending of old Irish traditions handed down through the generations, with modern American rock that inspired them to make music from the time they were just wee lads. Celtic Rock that Rocks!  See more...

Adrienne’s musicality reveals a transcontinental experience, seeped in old-world style but with a young, modern energy. Born in Dublin to a family steeped in Irish culture, and immigrating young to a unique Irish pocket in St. Paul, MN, Adrienne has feverishly sought and soaked up her traditional roots. She has studied Irish music, dance, and language from the age of 4 under the tutelage of Norah Rendell, Cory Froelich, Seán Gavin, Brian Miller, and Dáithí Sproule. She holds multiple titles in flute, whistle, piano, and song from the Midwest Fleadh Cheoil, qualifying in nearly every event for the All Ireland Music Championships eight years running.

Bundle & Go - David and Suzanne Rhees

Offering an eclectic mix of traditional tunes and songs from Ireland and Wales to Cape Breton and beyond, including original tunes and songs, on flute, fiddle, accordions, and more.  

This duo of fiddle and accordion players of traditional Irish music are recent graduates of the Center for Irish Music, and have recently (Jan 2022) released their first album; Star of the North with Brian Miller. They've been playing and competing together in fleadhs for the past 4-5 years, and are the next generation of traditional irish musicians in the community. Their duo playing was awarded 3rd place in the All Ireland Fleadh Cheoil in 2019.