St. Patrick’s Day guide: KC area starts the celebration early with parades this weekend
With Kansas City’s major St. Patrick’s Day Parade taking place on the holiday itself, March 17, other locales on both sides of the state line will fill the preceding weekend with parades of their own.
What is usually the city’s biggest parade of the year (the Chiefs’ Super Bowl celebration will take 2023 honors) will begin at 11 a.m. March 17 at Linwood Boulevard and Broadway. It will proceed south on Broadway, ending at 43rd Street.
The midtown parade returned last year after a two-year hiatus because of the pandemic, and the streets were lined by thousands just as in the previous 46 years.
Kathy Nelson, president and CEO of the Kansas City Sports Commission, will be the grand marshal.
Parades will take place this weekend in at least seven area communities, headed by the 39th annual Snake Saturday parade and festival in North Kansas City and the 41st annual St. Patrick’s Warm-Up Parade in Brookside.
Another popular way to celebrate the holiday will be listening to Irish music. Among the bands performing locally will be Gaelic Storm and The High Kings at the Kauffman Center, Danú at Yardley Hall, Flogging Molly at VooDoo and local favorites The Elders at Knuckleheads. Gaelic Storm and The High Kings are sold out, as are The Elders.
St. Patrick’s Day parades
▪ Downtown Overland Park, 10 a.m. March 11. downtownop.org.
▪ Downtown North Kansas City, Snake Saturday, 11 a.m. March 11. snakesaturday.com.
▪ Downtown Lee’s Summit, Emerald Isle Parade, noon March 11. downtownls.org.
▪ Brookside, St. Patrick’s Warm-Up Parade, 2 p.m. March 11. brooksidekc.org.
▪ Downtown Belton, 5 p.m. March 11. belton.org.
▪ Shawnee, 1 p.m. March 12. shawnee-ks.com.
▪ Martin City, 2 p.m. March 12. martincity.org.
▪ Downtown Blue Springs, Shortest and Smallest St. Patrick’s Day Parade, 9 a.m. March 17. downtownbluesprings.com.
▪ Midtown, Kansas City St. Patrick’s Day Parade, 11 a.m. March 17. kcirishparade.com.
▪ Downtown Leavenworth, noon March 17. lvirish.com.
▪ Downtown Lawrence, 1 p.m. March 17. lawrencestpatricksdayparade.com.
More events
▪ Gaelic Storm and The High Kings, 7 p.m. March 9, Kauffman Center (sold out). kauffmancenter.org.
▪ Danú, 8 p.m. March 10, Yardley Hall ($14-$42). jccc.edu/midwest-trust-center/events.
▪ Flogging Molly with Skinny Lister and Anti-Flag, 8 p.m. March 10, VooDoo ($44.50-$133). voodookc.com.
▪ Westport St. Patrick’s Day Run, 10 a.m. March 11, Westport district ($15-$42). stpatricksday4milerun.com.
▪ Zombie Leprechaun Bar Crawl, 2-5 p.m. March 11, Independence Square ($20-$30). indepsquare.com.
▪ St. Paddy’s Pub Crawl, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. March 17, Prairiefire (earn Paddy’s Passport stamps by making purchases at participating locations). visitprairiefire.com.
▪ St. Patrick’s Day with Cheat Codes, 5 p.m. March 17, KC Live! (free-$50). powerandlightdistrict.com.
▪ Störling Dance Theater, “Book of Kells,” 7 p.m. March 17-18, Folly ($15-$32). storlingdance.org.
▪ The Elders, 8 p.m. March 17, Knuckleheads (sold out). knuckleheadskc.com.
▪ St Patrick’s 5K, 8 a.m. March 18, Park Place, Leawood ($12-$35). kcstpatricks5k.com.
