KC Irish Fest takes hybrid approach this weekend, with live concert as centerpiece
The Kansas City Irish Fest, forced to abandon its annual Labor Day weekend celebration at Crown Center this year because of COVID-19, still will provide plenty of entertainment Sept. 4-5.
It has been reinvented for 2020 as Fest Where You Are, with activities in person and online.
The highlight will be a concert that ventures well beyond the Celtic music that usually dominates the Irish Fest. The two-hour benefit event, which will begin at 7 p.m. Sept. 5 at Crown Center, will have in-person seating (sold out) and will be available free via streaming at 2020.kcirishfest.com.
Calvin Arsenia, Carswell & Hope, Ashley Davis, Eddie Delahunt, Enrique Chi of Making Movies, Ian Byrne of The Elders, Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, Maria the Mexican and Victor and Penny will perform live. There will be virtual performances and interviews with other artists, including Byrne and Kelly, Gaelic Storm and We Banjo 3.
The public can watch the concert and take part in other activities at the Kansas City Irish Center, Kelly’s Westport Inn, Browne’s Irish Market and Conroy’s Public House.
For a complete schedule and more information, see 2020.kcirishfest.com.
Another hybrid event:
▪ Ensemble Iberica will perform “Streets of Istanbul” live from the Warwick Theatre, available both in person ($35-$50) and via streaming online ($20) at 5 p.m. Sept. 6. Tickets at eventbrite.com. More information, ensembleiberica.org.
Here are six online ways you and your family can spend your coronavirus-induced stay-at-home time:
▪ You won’t find the usual kettle corn and funnel cakes, but the SantaCaliGon Virtual Festival does provide access to many of the crafts and other goods that would have been available Sept. 4-7 at SantaCaliGon Days in Independence. Browse products and chat with vendors at santacaligon.com.
▪ Tullamore will play Celtic music during a livestream event (replacing its Light Up the Lawn concert), 8:30 p.m. Sept. 4 at jccc.edu/carlsen-center-presents.
▪ Lenexa will celebrate its heritage as the onetime Spinach Capital of the World online this year with the Virtual Lenexa Spinach Festival, featuring recipes, cooking information, history, trivia, games and vendors, Sept. 5-12 at facebook.com. More information, lenexa.com.
▪ Kansas author Tessa Gratton will join fellow young adult novelist Justina Ireland in conversation to launch Gratton’s “Night Shine,” 7 p.m. Sept. 8 at crowdcast.io.
▪ One day after the release of his “Kingdom: How Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, and the Kansas City Chiefs Returned to Super Bowl Glory,” sportswriter Adam Teicher will join Geoffrey Jennings of Rainy Day Books in a livestream conversation about the book, 7 p.m. Sept. 9 (free; registration required). Register at crowdcast.io. More information, rainydaybooks.com.
We should mention that if you like books celebrating the Chiefs, check out The Star’s “Hail to the Chiefs: How Kansas City Became Super Again, 50 Years After Their First Championship,” which published in March. Another book coming from The Star in November: “Pat Magic,” about the rise of quarterback Patrick Mahomes, including a forward written by the MVP himself.
Here are six more in-person activities to consider for the next week:
▪ The premiere of Adam W. McKinney’s “Unfolding History,” part of the “reflect / project” series featuring video work by artists who identify as queer, trans, Black, indigenous or persons of color, will take place at 8 p.m. Sept. 4 at Mid-America Arts Alliance. The nine-minute film using dance footage in sites associated with the 1921 lynching of Fred Rouse in Fort Worth, Texas, will run on a loop 8-10 p.m. through Oct. 1; it can be watched from outside the Mid-America Arts Alliance building. maaa.org.
▪ Shiner will perform two events at Lemonad(e) Park, a limited-capacity socially distanced outdoor venue, 6 p.m. Sept. 4 with Heels and DJ Stevie Cruz ($100) and 6 p.m. Sept. 6 with The Whiffs and DJ Thundercutz (sold out). lemonadeparkkc.com.
▪ Starting in small groups 15 seconds apart, humans and dogs will run in the Bar K 5K at the Bar K dog park, bar and restaurant in Berkley Riverfront Park. Dion Leonard, best-selling author of “Finding Gobi,” and his dog Gobi will be on hand. 8 a.m. Sept. 5 ($40). bark5k.com.
▪ Local artists of color will paint street murals as part of KC Art on the Block: A Black Lives Matter Project, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sept. 5 at 10th and Baltimore, 18th and Vine, 31st and Troost, 63rd and Troost, 63rd and Brookside and NW Briarcliff Parkway and North Mulberry. facebook.com.
▪ The first KC Monster Truck Summer Nationals will take place at Lakeside Speedway, 2 p.m. Sept. 5 ($12-$25). event.attendstar.com.
▪ The Douglas County Fairgrounds in Lawrence will be the site of a drive-in concert starring Elexa Dawson, CS Luxem and LK Ultra at 7 p.m. Sept. 6 ($20 per car). lawrenceartscenter.org.
