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Touring Blues singer-songwriter musician Ryan Lee Crosby talks punk roots, new album and what draws him to music

Posted on July 15 by The Sleepless Critic

Mississippi blues singer-songwriter, guitarist and teacher has punk roots?

Ryan Lee Crosby has navigated quite a journey into the music world after setting his sights on his first guitar at three years old. I had the honor of interviewing Mississippi blues singer-songwriter, guitarist and teacher Ryan Lee Crosby about a new album, current international tour and what ultimately draws him to music. Click here to learn more about Blues musician Ryan Lee Crosby, hear his music and where he will perform next.

Sleepless Critic: I understand you were involved in punk at one point?

Ryan Lee Crosby: Yeah, when I first started performing publicly, I was involved in a post punk band called Cancer to the Stars. Labels are a tricky thing, but I suppose you could say that it was a post punk band.

SC: Ok, and what kind of sound did you have?

RLC: Well, we played together just shy of four years and our sound changed quite a bit over time. When we initially began about 25 years ago, we were drawing from electronic music like drum, bass and early ambient music from The Imbeciles, Brian Eno, Joy Division and Gang of Four. It was a rock trio, but we were interested in evoking electronic sounds with guitar, bass, drums and vocals.

Our sound became louder, more aggressive and noisier. By the time we ended, it was more like *sigh* a dark sounding rock band. It’s hard to describe. I think we had a lot of unusual influences such as Hip hop and trip hop. It was electronic and Nirvana was an influence too, so it was a lot of different things.

SC: I ask you that because I reviewed a documentary of a hard core punk band at the NYC Indie Film Festival a few years ago and the punk documentary was paired with a jazz documentary. You can make your own rules with jazz and punk, so perhaps that is how they related.

RLC: Yeah, I feel that there is an overlap between punk and blues too and it doesn’t surprise me to hear that punk and jazz can be considered in the same context. Where things become really interesting is in all those styles of music, I think it is also embedded in blues and punk.

I’m not a jazz musician, but I own some jazz records and within all of those, they are musical expressions of a yearning for freedom and a longing to transcend boundaries, make your own rules and your own community. Those are the threads that make them feel resonant.

I think of how brisk the momentum might be in 1940s bebop holding it alongside the hardcore punk of a band like Bad Brains. They may sound like completely different types of music to the casual listener, but I think there’s a lot we can get when we let go of what something looks like or where it’s from and feel into the underlying quality of the work. So, I think the rhythm and a sense of the momentum and drive in the rhythm a lot of times have a lot to do with that.

Ryan Lee Crosby with guitar Photo by Lisette Rooney

SC: I agree and great insight into how all these genres can tie together. You are a blues musician now, but how did you discover the guitar and how did you evolve into the artist you are now?

RLC: My first memory of the guitar is the one my mom had when I was three years old. It was kept in a separate room and I was not supposed to go in there. I remember going into this room and seeing the guitar under a light bulb so there was this light shining down on it. I didn’t start to play until much later. My uncle and both my brothers played guitar so I came to it a little bit late. My mom didn’t play, but I used that guitar on my first record and it disappeared somewhere in my early 20s. I don’t know what happened to it. Guitar was kind of a means of relieving pressure and something that helped me relax into myself.

I am a guitarist, music teacher and have an English degree. I never used my English degree, but it was something I enjoyed studying in school. I went to Northeastern University because I was interested in their Music Business program, but after about a year of being in the program, I realized that it wasn’t really for me. My parents didn’t want me to drop out of college and I didn’t have the heart to disappoint them so I stayed in school and got an English degree.

SC: I understand you have an avant guard blues style of playing the guitar.

RLC: Well, I’m very interested in regional traditions and Mississippi in particular. I spent time with a number of older practitioners down there, especially my primary mentor, Jimmy “Duck” Holmes. I relate to playing the blues in that way. That is oral tradition passed from person to person and my relationship to the blues is being as traditionally oriented as I can be. I want to honor the way as I understand music is taught and passed on. I also have these other genres and styles in my background and while I am organized around traditional Mississippi Blues, it all goes through the filter of my own life experience which includes a lot of other contexts. It’s traditional to a degree, but there are a lot of entrances that come into it so I end up doing things like playing an electric 12 string guitar or sometimes using an ambient slide guitar and other things that you wouldn’t normally hear in traditional Mississippi blues.

SC: You are in the middle of a big tour, but you are a Boston guitarist and singer-songwriter.

RLC: I lived in Boston for just shy of 25 years and that is home to me. A lot of my formative experiences all happened living in or around the city. I feel like a Bostonian at heart, but I have been living in Rhode Island for the last three years.

I recently played at Satellite at Remnant Brewing in Cambridge, MA and it was really lovely. A couple of shows in Boston this year, but for a lot of my life, I would play around town pretty frequently at places like TT the Bears, the Middle East, Atwoods, The Lizard Lounge and Passim. For the past few years, rather than trying to play in town every month, I’ll try to do two really intentional performances a year.

I have two or three weeks worth of tour dates that have not been announced yet, but this fall, I plan to do a good loop around New England, New York, NYC and then go down to Mississippi and do a loop in the South.

SC: What makes the concerts in the South different than the ones in Boston? If the blues is influenced in Mississippi, it must be a different feeling there.

RLC: Oh yeah, absolutely because the cultures are so different. Blues traditions were influenced by and created in Mississippi. If I go to play the Bentonia Blues Festival, that’s the style of music I love in the town it was created. If I’m playing that style in Blues in Boston, Rhode Island, Europe and elsewhere in the world, sometimes I’ll have to explain this kind of music. If I’m playing where the music originated, I don’t have to explain anything. If I do have to explain anything, I have to explain why I’m there.

In the South, audiences respond to an outgoingness that is not second nature to me as a New Englander. The mood of the exchanges is just different in lots of ways. Performing in Europe feels more like performing in New England. Europe has cultural differences too, but I feel more cultural differences in the South than in the Netherlands or in Germany. Going to the source where the music originates from is a powerful feeling.

I grew up in Northern Virginia until I was 11 and then moved to New England. Northern Virginia is just barely in the South and I don’t know how to connect what draws me to Mississippi, but it draws me somehow.

SC: Are you working on new music?

RLC: My new record, At the Bluefront, is out August 20 and we’ve been putting singles out from that album once a month or so. I believe there are three songs that they can listen to either at my band camp page, my website or through streaming services and I am working on new material as well.

SC: Do you have a favorite track that you really want people to listen to?

RLC: The first song is Catfish Blues featuring Jimmy “Duck” Holmes who sings and plays on the track which is a real honor. He’s on half the album. People can hear another song called Mistreating People which is a pretty traditional Bentonia Blues style as well.

SC: It’s a tough industry to be a musician. What is your biggest joy in what you do?

RLC: What keeps me going is a heartfelt desire and a longing that comes from what feels like right from the center of my being to feel connected. Music is an opportunity for us to connect to ourselves, connect to beauty, to meaning, to purpose and can give us a path and connect us to each other in community and in collaboration and to a sense of something bigger than ourselves. That’s what I’ve always wanted my life to be about and I feel very fortunate that I’ve been able to live that life and to keep on going.

SC: What I love the most about music is after a song is created, it doesn’t change. You can revisit it and you can change as you get older, but the music stays the same.

RLC: When you produce a recording or document, it can live on. It’s a beautiful thing.

Ryan Lee Crosby is currently on tour. Click here to learn more about Blues musician Ryan Lee Crosby, hear his music and where he will next take the stage.

Know before you go: fun facts and behind the scenes interview at ‘Cirque du Soleil: OVO’

Posted on July 24, 2024 by The Sleepless Critic

Insects can be elegant and extraordinary…and it all starts with an egg.

The Foreigner (Blue Fly) with a mysterious OVO (Egg). Photo credit Vlad Lorenzo courtesy of Cirque Du Soleil: OVO

Cirque du Soleil: OVO continues live and in person at the Agganis Arena in Boston, Massachusetts through Sunday, July 28 before continuing in at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island August 1 through 4 and then at the SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire August 8 through 11. Click here for more information and for tickets.

Going behind the scenes at Cirque du Soleil: OVO, some intriguing facts were unveiled about how this tremendous production comes together. From the preparation to the performers which includes two Olympians to Liz Vandal’s kaleidoscopic costumes from Montreal, this unique production is brought to life in distinctive venues all over the world. The following are some amazing facts from Senior Publicist Janie Mallet of OVO:

Cirque du Soleil is celebrating its 40^th anniversary! OVO’s cast and crew is a multi-cultural group that has been traveling around the world since 2009. A quick paced touring production, OVO has spent fifteen years on the road changing city or country every single week. The show did break during the pandemic before returning in 2022 with a revamped production featuring new acts and new music.
‘Ovo’ is Portuguese for ‘egg’. The production starts when The Foreigner arrives at this new colony of insects with an egg on his back. The show explores how we interact with one another and learn to accept and celebrate our differences. There is a love story, curiosities, and a bit of a confrontation in a world likened to a Brazilian rainforest.
Not only does the production travel with a full gym backstage, but with a full time coach, access to nutritionists, two performance therapists, doctors and an artistic team of 100 people with 52 performing onstage.
The artists and athletes do their own cardio, strength training, and flexibility before attending meetings and trainings for the show. The performers expend so much energy and do not follow a diet. They eat what is best for them at their own discretion, but if they want to work on a specialized thing, they have three chefs and a catering team on hand.
The production has a lot of moving parts and the size and how the trucks are packed for the tours are different, especially if they fly across the ocean. Everything is meticulously labeled and the teams need to be ready to adapt to any last minute changes.
The production has over 1000 costumes. These costumes are built for the function of each performer and there are four full time technicians on tour to take care of the costumes. All the costumes require some training in order to wear them comfortably. The clowns have larger costumes while the crickets’ costumes are light and contain a lot of stretch for performing flips and jumps. The aerial acts also have lighter costumes as they fly from one platform to the next.
The production has six washers and three dryers that travel with them all over the world. Delicate costumes and wardrobes are dried with the fans and 60 loads of laundry are completed prior to each performance.

Gary portrays Master Flipo, the chief of the insect colony. Alongside Canadian poles artist acrobat David, they deliver some insight into their history in the circus, their favorite insects, and anticipating OVO’s opening night in Boston. In real life, Gary is from Austria and lives in Spain.

Gary: When I was 12, I decided I wanted to be a clown. I told my mom and never lost this dream. I ended up in a mime and circus school and then started to work in the circus before I joined Cirque de Soleil. They said, ‘We like your stupid face’ in 1992. I moved and did a show in Las Vegas and then back to Europe and then I’ve been here almost 7 years.

David: I started in the circus quite late at the age of 20. Usually acrobats start at a much younger age with gymnastics but at 20, I started from nothing. I saw a circus show and said that I want to do that and found out there were circus schools. I didn’t know they existed in Quebec City so I trained really hard for two years to get in because I found out that there are people all over the world who are trying to enter these professional schools. You need to already be good at something to get in and then somehow I got in. I did my three years of circus school for like 40 hours a week of training. Ever since, I’ve been in the circus and working with different circuses. I’ve been with OVO since the re-launch in 2022 with new artists and music. I’m part of the new acts.

We are very excited about the show and don’t know how the public is going to react yet, but we’re all feeling super rested because we just came back from three weeks of tour break from home. We’re very happy to be in Boston with the beautiful summer weather. We’ve met Bostonians on the street and they seem very nice.

Gary: Especially for us clowns it is very interesting in Boston to find out where they laugh and where they don’t laugh. We have to adjust the timing and are already having butterflies.

David: We toured with the show everywhere in the world. Depending on the different cultures, finding out how the audience will react is always our biggest concern.

Gary: What I anticipate sharing with the audience the most is always taking people onstage. Sometimes I have to improvise which I love and it challenges me. Generally, the whole show is a big festival of happiness. I don’t have favorites.

David: I am excited about my act just because in the living arts and in the circus there is always a bit of modification. It is never one stable show. It is thousands of versions of the show, even though it’s the same show for the public. For us, it has little changes and our act has new music, so we work on it frequently and make little changes in the choreography. It’s going to be fresh, new and exciting.

Gary: I love the jeweled beetle so I love my colors.

Gary as Jeweled Beetle Master Flipo Photo credit Vlad Lorenzo courtesy of Cirque du Soleil: OVO

David: It’s a very beautiful insect.

Gary: But at the same time, I love the ladybug.

The Foreigner and The Ladybug Photo credit Pat Beaudry and courtesy of Cirque Du Soleil: OVO

David: I really like the laced fly. The lace fly is the hair extension act and I think her costume is just brilliant and so colorful. It’s a beautiful act.

Gary: I like the crickets for the costumes. How they have an engineered costume where I always think, ‘How is it possible to move in that?’

The Crickets Wall Act Photo credit Vlad Lorenzo and courtesy of Cirque Du Soleil: OVO

David: Shout out to the Red Queen.

The Red Queen with cast of ‘Cirque Du Soleil: OVO’ Photo courtesy of Cirque Du Soleil: OVO

Gary: …and the clowns and the musicians.

David: OVO is really about inclusion. It’s about accepting our differences and celebrating the whole of the colony, even the cockroaches. They are all our friends. It’s sort of hard to choose one specific insect because they are all amazing.

David: The show takes years to train, but for this particular show, usually the creation of a Cirque de Soleil show is a few months. Like six months maybe and because the acrobats have been thinking about the show for a year or two, the physical preparation to get to this level takes years and years of training. Then we adapt the skills we have to the specific number and choreography that we need for the show, but it’s not like I train physically for years to be an insect. I train physically to be a circus acrobat and artist and then transfer the skills in a few months.

Gary: It’s the same thing with us…the clowns. We are being cast for that because our profile fits in it. The clown has his own profile for performing and stupidity. So I was cast because I am stupid and smart.

David: (laughs) Maybe that is also why I was cast.

Gary: (laughs) Bingo!

The insects of ‘Cirque du Soleil: OVO’ Photo courtesy of Cirque du Soleil OVO

Cirque de Soleil: OVO continues live and in person at the Agganis Arena in Boston, Massachusetts through Sunday, July 28 before continuing in at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island August 1 through 4 and then at the SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire August 8 through 11. Click here for more information and for tickets.

REVIEW: Greater Boston Stage Company turns on the charm for ‘Guys and Dolls’

Posted on June 27, 2024 by The Sleepless Critic

What a Guy wouldn’t do for some doll.

A sky high bet, a saintly woman, and a group of gamblers are all on the line in a musical comedy custom made in New York City. Guys and Dolls is lighthearted and bustling with some of the most popular songs of Musical’s Golden Age such as Luck Be a Lady, Fugue for Tinhorns, I’ve Never Been in Love Before, Sit Down You’re Rockin’ the Boat and its beloved title track.

Directed and choreographed by Ceit Zweil, Greater Boston Stage Company continues Frank Loesser’s musical comedy classic Guys and Dolls live and in person at Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham, Massachusetts through June 30. This slick production is approximately two hours and 30 minutes with one 15 minute intermission. Click here for more information and for tickets.

Arthur Gomez, Mark Linehan, Stephen Markarian and Greater Boston Stage Company ‘Guys and Dolls’ cast Photo by Gillian Gordon

Set on Broadway between Times Square and Columbus Circle, Greater Boston Stage Company reveals a little cozy but snazzy set by John Savage including vintage 1950s illustrated signs lit by marquis lights and an illuminated moving cityscape back drop. With lively music direction and conducted by Dan Rodriguez, this glitzy version of Guys and Dolls has a bit of a concert vibe with the orchestra performing center stage amidst all the action.

Arthur Gomez and Sara Coombs in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Gillian Gordon

The show is as zippy as these fast talking gamblers ready for the next crap game. In stylish hat and a pinstriped suit, Arthur Gomez as lovable but scheming Nathan Detroit is always cooking up a plan and usually one step ahead, but now he is short on money to hold his next floating crap game. Enter Jared Troilo as smooth talking and high stakes gambler Sky Masterson and suddenly, Nathan has a new and seeming surefire plan to win big and finally marry his long suffering girlfriend, Miss Adelaide. However, Sky discovers he is in for much more than he ever bargained for.

Jared Troilo and Sarah Coombs in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Gillian Gordon

Guys and Dolls is a classic for a reason. Not only did the 50s film adaptation star Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra, but it’s an upbeat musical full of charm about love, the Big City vibe, taking risks and saving souls not necessarily in that order. The characters are all likable in spite of their shady ways because most of them can humorously talk their way out of just about anything.

Stephen Markarian and Mark Linehan in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Gillian Gordon

In glasses and a bowler hat, Stephen Markarian captures the cheery and good natured charm of Nicely-Nicely Johnson from the slick and catchy harmonies in Fugue for Tinhorns with Mark Linehan as Benny and Christian David as Rusty Charlie. Their goofy chemistry and antics set the stage well along with the title track and bookended by Stephen Markarian’s exuberant and exciting classic number Sit down You’re Rocking the Boat which is not to be missed.

Allison Russell, Kaedon Gray and the cast of Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Gillian Gordon

Sara Coombs as Miss Adalaide could easily have entered over the top caricature territory, but Coombs sticks with dramatic yet a bit more realistic subtlety for Adelaide’s Lament. Hailing from Rhode Island, Miss Adelaide is not to be underestimated and knows exactly what she wants playing a long game of her own as Nathan’s girlfriend. She shares some endearing chemistry albeit with some understandable bickering with Nathan as they perform a quick paced and intense rendition of Sue Me. Alongside Hot Box dancers Hannah Shihdanian, Allison Russell and Abigail Martin, Coombs delivers some flirtatious and humorous scenarios decked out in Dierdre Gerrard’s timely, sparkling and playful costumes kicking off with a country coy Bushel and a Peck. Russell and Shihdanian both perform triple roles with Russell notably as the infamous big time, tough talking gambler Big Jule.

Sara Coombs, Abigail Martin, Allison Russell, and Hannah Shihdanian in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Gillian Gordon

In a blue pinstripe suit and gleaming white shoes, Troilo depicts Sky Masterson with smooth talking swagger and shares some great scenes with Lisa Kate Joyce’s straight-arrowed and head of the Save-a-Soul Mission band, Sarah Brown. Joyce’s angelic and silvery soprano vocals nail the delightful If I were a Bell and I’ve Never Been in Love Before alongside Troilo in a lovely duet. Joyce also has a brief but memorable scene with Chip Phillips as lovable Arvide for the tenderhearted number, More I Cannot Wish You.

Lisa Kate Joyce and Chip Phillips in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Gillian Gordon

Jared Troilo shines in My Time of Day, but nothing beats Troilo’s determined earnestness teetering toward desperation with the rest of the cast for Luck Be a Lady embellished by Ceit Zweil’s tight choreography and Corey Whittemore’s vivid and flashy lighting which just about brings down the house.

Jared Troilo and the cast of Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ Photo by Photo by Gillian Gordon

REVIEW: The Wonder of ‘Phillis in Boston’ presented by Revolutionary Spaces

Posted on November 20, 2023 by The Sleepless Critic

What does a promising poet who is also a slave do to become a beacon of hope under seemingly impossible circumstances?

Anything she can and beyond.

Revolutionary Spaces presents original play ‘Phillis in Boston’ through December 3.

Based on a true story and in commemoration of the 250^th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, Revolutionary Spaces presents Ade Solanke’s semi-immersive original play Phillis in Boston continuing at the historic Old South Meeting House in Boston, MA live and in person through December 3. With enlightening direction by Regge Life, this historical and educational drama runs 90 minutes with no intermission and without a bad seat in the house. Click here for more information and for tickets.

The world should know more about visionary, promising poet and slave Phillis Wheatley.

Phillis in Boston is simply staged surrounded by Old South Meeting House’s regal setting and embellishes Chloe Moore and Athena Parkman’s detailed and authentic colonial prewar costumes in lace, wool, and cotton. Phillis’s colorful and distinctive gown is a particular highlight.

Old South Meeting House setting of ‘Phillis in Boston’ Photo credit to Revolutionary Spaces

Set in late 1773, this groundbreaking, world premiere production delves into the lives of a group of dynamic individuals who set out to make an extraordinary difference at a pivotal time in history. Very likely taking place at the historic Old South Meeting House which is also celebrating its 300^th anniversary, Adreyanua Jean-Louis as Phillis, Bobby Cius as John Peters, Joshua Olumide as Prince Hall, and Serenity S’rae as Obour Tanner must ban together on a mission to be heard.

Adreyanua Jean-Louis as Phillis and Serenity S’rae in ‘Phillis in Boston’ Photo credit to Revolutionary Spaces

Named after a slave ship and at the center of this production is Phillis herself portrayed with optimistic integrity by Adreyanua Jean-Louis, Phillis in Boston offers a unique and heartfelt perspective of this courageous woman. In spite of her struggles, Jean-Louis as Phillis remains humble yet forward thinking with a constant vision of breaking through boundaries. Instantly likable and through powerful faith, Phillis sees that narrow path to success and ardently reaches for it. Not so sure is Phillis’s caring and genuinely loyal Rhode Island confidante Obour Tanner, delivered with an impressive mix of dry humor and solemn reason by Serenity S’rae. S’rae conveys some chilling and hard truths as she carefully counsels Phillis about pursuing this seemingly impossible dream. Intense and focused Prince Hall depicted charismatically by Joshua Olumide, and Bobby Cius as charming yet mysterious John Peters gradually reveal their own part in Phillis’s uncertain future.

Joshua Olumide as Prince Hall, Adreyanua Jean-Louis as Phillis and Serenity S’rae as Obour Tanner in ‘Phillis in Boston’ Photo credit to Revolutionary Spaces

While a show like Revolution’s Edge delivered immediate intensity, Phillis in Boston relies on a gradual and reassuring build, culminating in a powerful confrontation between Jean-Louis and Priscilla Manning as needy, grieving, stubborn and conflicted Susanna Wheatley. Jean-Louis’s nurturing nature towards Manning is multi-faceted but also enforced. The history of Jean-Louis and Manning’s complex connection comes to light in an enthralling, intense, and pivotal scene where both actresses are at their brightest. With Brendan F. Doyle’s versatile array of immersive sound effects and a notable version of Amazing Grace, it is difficult to imagine that Phillis of Boston could not have a significant effect on us all.

Bobby Cius, Serenity S’rae, Adreyanua Jean-Louis, and Joshua Olumide in ‘Phillis in Boston’ Photo credit to Revolutionary Spaces

Based on a true story and in commemoration of the 250^th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, Revolutionary Spaces presents Ade Solanke’s semi-immersive original play Phillis in Boston continuing at the historic Old South Meeting House in Boston, MA live and in person through December 3. With enlightening direction by Regge Life, this historical drama runs 90 minutes with no intermission and without a bad seat in the house. Click here for more information and for tickets.

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Brian O’Donovan and WBGH’s ‘A St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn’

Posted on March 11, 2017 by The Sleepless Critic

Revel in rich, Celtic traditions and captivating live performances with WGBH’s 12^th annual St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn from Wednesday, March 15 through Saturday, March 18. Hosted by Brian O’Donovan and touring through Worcester, Beverly, New Bedford, and Cambridge, A St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn offers the excitement of Ireland’s history, Celtic traditions, storytelling, and annual concert with a dynamic array of musical guests from all over the map.

A St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn kicks off its Massachusetts tour on Wednesday, March 15 at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, for the first time at The Cabot Theatre in Beverly on Thursday, March 16, take the stage at the Zeiterion Theatre in New Bedford on Friday, March 17, and then concluding the tour at the Sanders Theatre, Harvard University in Cambridge for two performances on Saturday, March 18. WGBH members get a discount on tickets. Click here for further details and for tickets!

Once again musically-directed by Keith Murphy, this highly-anticipated concert features musicians such as world-renowned fiddler Liz Carroll and popular harp and fiddle duo Jenna Moynihan and Mairi Chaimbeul. Karan Casey, Irish folk singer and founding member of Solas, will also appear with the Kara Casey Band. A St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn will showcases local performers such as the Miller Family, featuring guitarist Ruby May, fiddler Evelyn, and multi-instrumentalist Samuel. Hailing from Smithfield, Rhode Island, The Miller Family are traditional Irish dancers who have toured and competed in dance competitions from Montreal to Rhode Island. Winners at the World Irish dancing championships, the Miller Family are happy to share their upbeat rhythms.

Celebrate ‘A St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn’ from March 15-18 Photo courtesy of WGBH

Click here for the complete list of performers to ring in this thrilling holiday. From Beverly to Cambridge, A St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Sojourn is quickly approaching. Click here for tickets and further details. For a taste of Irish and Celtic traditions each Saturday afternoon, click here to tune in to A Celtic Sojourn hosted by Brian O’Donovan on 89.7 FM WGBH from 3 – 6 p.m. Follow A Celtic Sojourn on Facebook for updates and much more.