February 2016 – Page 2 – Irish in Philly

Getting Ready for Dancing Like a Star

A funny thing happened this year to Wayne’s Mary Lou Sterge. The guy who came to remodel her house asked her to dance.

But no, it’s not what you think. The guy was Louie Bradley, chairperson of the board of the Delco Gaels, youth Gaelic sports club in Delaware County. Last year, Bradley was the winner of the silver mirrored trophy, along with dance partner Michelle Quinn, for the Delco Gaels’ “Dancing Like a Star” fundraiser, in which eight couples compete in various dance styles that they’ve learned over several months of intense rehearsals.

“Louie recently remodeled my house. My house looks great, and now I’m dancing,” said Sterge, a fundraiser, after rehearsal last Sunday at the McDade-Cara Irish Dance School studio in Newtown Square. She and her partner, Tom Gregory, were sharing some pizza after an hour of dancing to Ike and Tina Turner’s Proud Mary, he in silver platform shoes he bought from the internet.

February 5, 2016 by Denise Foley

How to Be Irish in Philly, Music

How to Be Irish in Philly This Week

We’re just a week away from the 24th annual Greater Philadelphia Mid-Winter Scottish and Irish Music Festival at the Valley Forge Events Center in King of Prussia. And as usual, organizer Bill Reid has come up with about a hundred ways to have a fabulous weekend of music, dance, food, drink, and other great Celtic stuff (sword fight, anyone?) just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Many local performers and bands, including The John Byrne Band, Jamison, The Hooligans, Oliver McElhone, Timlin & Kane, Charlie Zahm and Tad Marks, Gabriel Donohue and Seamus Kennedy (back by popular demand) will be on stage, along with long-time festival favorites Albannach, the Brigadoons, Searson, the Screaming Orphans, the MacLeod Fiddlers and the Washington Memorial Pipers and Drummers. While fan favorite Brother isn’t on the bill, the group’s Angus Richardson will be there. And new this year, the Canadian Celtic rock group, the Mudmen will be rousing the rabble, starting on Friday night, February 12.

This could be the perfect time for you to learn Irish, ceili dancing, and how to tell the difference between whiskies—there are also workshops daily over the three-day event. There’s always a great array of vendors whether you’re interested in jewelry, kilts, or haggis-flavored potato chips.

February 5, 2016 by Denise Foley