A Christmas-time appreciation: Harry Clarke. an Irish stained glass master

By Ed Forry
December 1, 2015

By Judy Enright
Special to the BIR

Christmas seems like a perfect time to remind future visitors to Ireland about the wondrous works of the stained glass artist Harry Clarke. His magnificent windows can be found in numerous places around the country, and you won’t be sorry if you spend time looking for them.

Born on March 17, 1889, he left school at 14 to join his father’s stained glass and ecclesiastical decorating business. He won several scholarships and studied stained glass in London and France.

Bringing "Once" home to Boston

By R.J. Donovan
December 1, 2015
R.J. Donovan

By R. J. Donovan
Special to the BIR

Erica Spyres – actress, singer and classical violinist – has spent her life surrounded by music. Her parents are both music teachers. Her brothers are both singers. And her family was honored as “The Most Musical Family in Missouri.” The Ozarks native relocated to Boston when her composer-husband was accepted to study at Boston Conservatory.

Christmas Celtic Sojourn is a family party; new faces, old faces revel in music-making

By Sean Smith
December 1, 2015
Sean Smith

Christmas Celtic Sojourn is a family party;
new faces, old faces revel in music-making
By Sean Smith
Special to the BIR
“A Christmas Celtic Sojourn,” which opens for its 13th year on Dec. 11 at Boston’s Cutler Majestic Theater, has become as much a family-style tradition for its performers as for the crowds that flock to see the show every year.

A look at Irish-Celtic music events for December:

By Sean Smith
December 1, 2015
Sean Smith

In addition to “A Christmas Celtic Sojourn,” holiday-related happenings in the area include a performance by “The Celtic Kates” – Kate Chadbourne, Katie Mahoney, Katie O’Neill and Cait Sargent Lubelczyk – on December 4 at 7:30 p.m. in the Hibernian Cultural Centre in Worcester. This will be the debut for this quartet, all with local ties and diverse backgrounds, and an affinity for Celtic music.

Meet Cousin Cian, musical prodigy

Ed Forry
By Ed Forry
December 1, 2015

By Ed Forry

When the American Ireland Fund hosted its annual November Boston Dinner last month, the AIF’s Steve Greeley arranged to present a performance by a young uilleann piper they brought in as a featured guest.
It was a champion piper from Co Waterford, a young fellow named Cian Smith, and he’s just 10 years old.

Turns out, young Cian is a cousin of the Forry clan – we each trace our Irish roots back to the family of my grandmother, Hannah Crotty Forry, who came to Boston in 1890, where she met and married my father's father, Patrick Forry.
Cian Smith, a young musician from Ireland who performed at the dinner. © Michael Casey photoCian Smith, a young musician from Ireland who performed at the dinner. © Michael Casey photo
It was Cian’s first-ever visit to our country, and he traveled here with his parents, Cillian and Nollaig Smith, who live near the land of my grandmother’s home in Ballymacarbry, near the Tipperary border town of Clonmel.

Where to stay in Ireland? You can count on hospitality experts

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
November 10, 2015

By Judy Enright
Special to the BIR

Nothing enhances an Irish experience like having a wonderful place to stay – and no one knows that better than the owners of assorted types of accommodation whether hotels or bed and breakfast homes.
Temple House: Temple House in Ballymote, Co. Sligo, was awarded best Country House Breakfast for 2016Temple House: Temple House in Ballymote, Co. Sligo, was awarded best Country House Breakfast for 2016
Visitors and Irish travelers, too, are looking for comfort but also value, location, a warm welcome, and charm. Thankfully, there are still many places where you will find all of the above – and more.

For Low Lily, nee Annalivia, there’s a rebirth in the making

By Sean Smith
October 30, 2015
Sean Smith

Low Lily: The trio Low Lily, formerly known as Annalivia, is (L-R) Lissa Schneckenburger, Liz Simmons and Flynn Cohen. Andy Cambria photoLow Lily: The trio Low Lily, formerly known as Annalivia, is (L-R) Lissa Schneckenburger, Liz Simmons and Flynn Cohen. Andy Cambria photo

Adieu, Annalivia. Hello, Low Lily.

For the better part of a decade, the Eastern Massachusetts-based band Annalivia presented an intriguing brew of folk/acoustic music that encompassed material from Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton, English, and American traditions, marked by a skillful level of arrangement and performance, at venues and events such as Club Passim, Irish Connections (ICONS), BCMFest ,and the New Bedford Folk Festival. In their early years, an Annalivia set list or CD would include a brisk Cape Breton march-strathspey-reel medley, a centuries-old ballad from the British Isles that found its way to the Appalachians, a couple of Irish jigs, even a Richard Thompson cover or two.

He makes “Elf” dance

By R. J. Donovan
October 30, 2015
R. J. Donovan

Elf: Buddy The Elf spreads his holiday cheer in “Elf The Musical,” playing The Citi Wang Theater from November 17 - December 6. Joan Marcus photoElf: Buddy The Elf spreads his holiday cheer in “Elf The Musical,” playing The Citi Wang Theater from November 17 - December 6. Joan Marcus photo

“Elf” first jingled to life as a holiday film in 2003.  It immediately became an audience favorite, taking in more than $30 million in ticket sales in its first week.  

“Elf” tells the story of Buddy, a young orphan who mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts only to be transported back to the North Pole.  He’s unaware that he’s human, but his enormous size and poor toy-making skills cause him to face the fact that he has never been an elf at all.

Boston Irish Reporter’s Here & There October 2015

By Bill O’Donnell
October 30, 2015
Bill O’Donnell


To A Good Friend – Jim Murphy and I were pals for 40 years, and both of us being mouthy, it was a miracle when one of us took time between exhortations to grab a breath. Jim was one of a kind. He was generous with his time, and he had a comedic ease that allowed him to blow kisses one minute and damn the pharisees when it came to that. He was the funniest man I knew who never charged a performance fee.  

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