FRIENDSVILLE — A lively village teeming with Celtic arts and culture will take up residence in the Friendsville Community Park on June 1.
The Garrett County Celtic Festival & Highland Games brings the traditions of Scotland, Ireland, Brittany, Wales, Cornwall and Asturias to life at the all-day festival. Visitors can participate in workshops or simply enjoy the reeling music and dance.
Pipes and drum bands, including local Garrett Highlanders Pipes & Drums, kick off the day’s events with an opening parade. They return at noon for the Gathering, led by the Knights of St. Andrew color guard of Cumberland. They are this year’s festival honoree and will present a history of their organization as well.
Returning center stage are featured performers Seán Heely Celtic Band, Aurora Celtic and Shanty Irish — all musicians with loyal followings. Teelin School of Irish Dance and Thistle & Rose Highland Dancers will have toes tapping on the dance stage.
The Shamrock stage hosts intimate performances from multi-instrumentalist Greg Latta on Uilleann pipes, bouzouki and hammered dulcimer, Lynne Dale on Celtic harp and Tracy Jenkins on Scottish Border pipes.
Celt-tronic performer Melissa Cox will take to the stage for the first time. Hailing from New Zealand, Cox fuses Celtic folk music with electronic instruments.
Also in their festival debut is Clann Redmond of York, Pennsylvania. The internationally awarded band inclueds sisters Alannah and Bridget Redmond and their father, Tim, playing fiddle, concertina, whistle and bodhran tunes supported by guitar and braided vocals with the occasional dance.
Join a workshop in jewelry making or weave Celtic symbols from wheat. Visitors can also participate in waulking, a way of conditioning fabric while keeping time in song. Learn Acadian foot-dancing with Aurora Celtic’s Mike Broderick or Welsh dances with Ruthanne Ankney.
Celtic literature will be explored with Thomas Vose, director of the Ruth Enlow Library, and current novels and poetry are offered by local authors along with many themed craft vendors and a variety of foods and spirited drink.
Kids can enjoy the Rainbow’s End with face painting, crafting fairy gardens and costuming for imaginative play. In the shadow of the athletic field, the children can play their own Highland Games with pint-sized caber toss and haggis hurl. Kids 12 under are free, in part with support from the Civic Club of Oakland and Ruth Enlow Library of Garrett County.
The Highland Games are central to the festival, with athletes competing in the traditional heavy events: sheaf toss, caber toss, stone put and hammer throw. The many competitions begin in the morning with the victors awarded at the end of the day. Learn about the history of the games from John Miles, supported in part by the Mountain Maryland Gateway to the West Heritage Area.
Gates open at 9:30 a.m. with entertainment through 5 p.m. More information and discounted tickets can be found at GCCelticFestival.com.