New Musical production ‘The Haunted Celts’ in Canberra

The Embassy of Ireland is delighted to support a new musical production tracing Irish history from the early Celts to modern Ireland through music, song, and dance.

Irish-born musical director and producer of 'The Haunted Celts', Caroline McNicholas, brings her production to Canberra at ANU’s Theatre 3 on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 August.

The show features guest singers - exclusively brought over from Ireland - and a cast of over 30 dancers and musicians from Canberra.

McNicholas explains “The Haunted Celts travels through Druid rituals, the arrival of Christianity, the time of ‘transportation’ and up through the 1916 Easter Rising to modern times in Ireland.
“Music, song and dance is intertwined with important historical moments as well as legendary tales of supernatural events like the descending of the ‘Black Mist’, Fairy tales and stories of Celtic Goddesses.”

McNicholas says the production has been developed using early print resources like Leabhar Gabhala (English translation - The Book of Invasions) and her deep passion for Irish music gained from 20 years as a performing musician in Dublin.

The support of the Embassy of Ireland has enabled McNicholas to bring two soprano soloists from Ireland to star in the production - Carmel Conway, who has toured with ‘The Chieftans’ and Alice Gildea who has performed and recorded as a soloist and with the Irish choral group ‘Anuna’.

Several Canberra singers and dancers including, the 2015 World Irish Dancing Champion, Conor Simpson, feature in The Haunt¬ed Celts cast.

Tickets are $35 and are available on the Canberra Repertory Society website or by phoning 6257 1950.