Consul General Michael Lonergan (center), presented grants totaling $ 0.5 million in ceremomies at the Boston Consulate on July 20, 2010. Also pictured from left: Mike O'Connor, Irish Cultural Centre of New England; Beth Keenan, Worcester Hibernian Cultural Center; Sr., Lena Deevey, Irish Immigration Center; and Sr. Marguerite Kelly, Irish Pastoral Centre.
The Consulate General of Ireland has announced continued Irish Government support for Irish groups from the Emigrant Support Programme. The total amount awarded by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mícheál Martin, this year to four Massachusetts based organisations is over $500,000. Read more
Three Local Irish Festivals Planned For Late Summer, Fall
The Irish Cultural Centre of New England has announced plans to stage a 20th annual Irish Festival at its Canton campus. The three day event is set for Sept.17 to 19, and the non-profit has sent out invitations for vendors, musicians, entertainers and dancers to sign-up. For more information, email festival@irishculture.org or phone 781-821-8291. Read more
June 11-13 – Worcester Irish Music Festival, Hibernian Cultural Centre & Fiddlers’ Green, 19 Temple Street, Worcester. worcesteririshmusicfestival.com. Read more
Rev. Daniel J. Finn, pastor extraordinaire of St. Mark’s Parish in Dorchester and a persistent advocate for immigrant rights and causes, especially Irish affairs, is now in the real estate business.
Four score and seven years after it was founded, his parish’s grammar school will be closing its doors this month, a casualty, like so many other urban Catholic parochial schools, of a dramatic decline in attendance as memories of full-to-overflowing classrooms and streets chock full of involved parishioners fade into the far distance. Read more
To hear Colin Donnell tell it, his family hasn't ever actually researched its roots in Ireland and Scotland. He says his Irish credentials are more physical. "Look at me: Black hair. Blue eyes. It's only been a matter of just how Irish we are," Donnell said. "We are Irish, I just don't know the full story. I hope that one day we do find out our story better."
That day may have to come soon for Donnell, a singer/actor who has been tapped by the American Repertory Theater to play the lead in the world premiere of "Johnny Baseball," a musical about the Red Sox. Read more
Well-known on the local theater scene, Alice Duffy sure took her time to make her Broadway debut. The 83-year-old is just wrapping up her run in Noel Coward’s “Present Laughter” at the American Airlines Theater in Boston. The child of performers, Duffy is the sister of the late Peter Boyle, best know to TV viewers as the ornery father on “Everybody Loves Raymond.” Duffy has called Boston home for a number of years and is a favorite among local theater companies. Read more
Tanya McRae simply describes the best title for her work in television production as "I do it all." And as anyone who works with her can attest, that's an accurate description. Read more
If you've been in Boston for more than a few minutes, you've probably heard Joan Quinn Eastman's voice, and most likely seen her at a social event or even in a movie. The multi-media maven has been involved in Boston's emerging film and television business for years, but has recently taken on a few more projects that are bringing Eastman to whole new audiences. Read more
With his iPhone in hand, veteran Boston casting director Kevin Fennessy is working his extensive contacts lists to find people willing to work for little money -- very little -- on a low-budget indie movie called "Slip & Fall," which is filming in the Boston area this spring. Read more
