Genealogy Takes Center Stage At Seattle Center Festál: Irish Festival

Transform your cultural awareness at Seattle Center Festál: Irish Festival, Saturday and Sunday, March 17-18 at Seattle Center Armory. The centerpiece of weeklong festivities in celebration of St. Patrick's Day, Irish Festival honors the region's Irish heritage with jigs, live music and discovery. Festival goers will also find history and art exhibits, authentic foods, ethnic items for sale, workshops and hands-on learning for kids and adults.

This year, the festival offers a daylong Irish Geneology seminar, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Sunday, in the Armory Lofts. Go to irishweek.org for a detailed schedule. Additional workshops include: Irish Women and the Struggle for the Vote, 2 p.m.; Basic Irish Geneology, 3 p.m. and Tips for Visiting Ireland on a 3-5 Star Budget, 4 p.m., all on March 17 in Armory room 301. Afternoon cooking demonstrations both days show festival goers how to prepare an Irish meal consisting of Irish Soda Bread, 12:30 p.m.; Dublin Coddle Irish Stew with bacon, sausages, potatoes and vegetables, 1:30 p.m.; side dishes, 2:30 p.m.; and Irish trifle. 3:30 p.m on the Armory Loft level.

Festival entertainment includes Irish music using the harp, cittern, banjo, guitar, pipes, whistles and more presented by local players steeped in traditional song and dance. Listeners will hear a theatrical combination of Irish standards and originals, and they'll see all kinds of Irish dance enlivened by colorful costumes and the percussive beats of the Irish drum.

Irish Festival offers a variety of hands-on children and family activities. Leprechauns, masked dancers and finger puppets will be on hand in the Children's Play Area, along with a selection of interactive games and storytelling, 12 p.m. - 5 p.m., on the Loft level. On the Main Stage, kids can compete in Most Irish-looking Face and Smilingest Irish Eyes contests.

Seattle Center Festál brings to light the culturally rich communities who shape the character of our region. Although the series began in 1997, its origins stretch back to when ethnic communities were planting their roots here. For many of them, Seattle Center served as a central place, where they could invite the public to join in their unique cultural expression. Some festivals were formed in response to wars or ethnic displacement and others to unite their communities, educate the public and dispel stereotypes. Now at 21 years, Festál producers are seeking to sustain their festivals with compelling programming that appeals to multiple generations.

Seattle Center Festál is a public program presented by Seattle Center in partnership with Irish Festival. Admission is free-of-charge. For more information on this festival, visit www.irishclub.org, and to learn more about this collection of ethnic cultural events and other Seattle Center public programming, visit www.seattlecenter.com or call 206-684-7200.

About Seattle Center Festál

This illuminating series of 23 ethnic cultural festivals on weekends throughout the year seeks to connect people in ways that build understanding, dispel stereotypes and generate pride among the generations who participate in these shared experiences. Seattle Center Festál is produced with the generous support of KUOW 94.9 Public Radio, Coca-Cola, Alaska Airlines, T-Mobile, Wells Fargo, 4Culture, the City of Seattle and Seattle Center Foundation.