When the young man from Ireland’s national dance company Luail joined the trad musicians providing the soundtrack to the launch on Tuesday of the St Patrick’s Day festival, it was hard not to dwell on how far Ireland has come.
He writhed and contorted his body alone before being joined by another dancing man after which they were replaced by Venezuelan and Colombian dancers swaying their hips to a Latin rhythm.
It was all a long way from Éamon de Valera’s comely maidens dancing at the crossroads, but a neat illustration of how the St Patrick’s Festival broadened its vision and extended its roots over recent decades to reflect better what modern Ireland is.
The day’s no longer simply a holy day for some, a boozy break from Lent for others and a time for the young people of Ireland to grasp at a handful of sweets thrown from tractors trundling through the city’s streets.
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While it remains a religious feast day, it’s also a four-day carnival of Irishness that brings millions of euro into Ireland and serves as a sign that the curtain is finally falling on a long, dreary winter.
Even though the day has moved on from its most traditional roots, it is roots that remain central as the main theme of this year’s festival – with the organisers promising “a celebration of where we come from, what grounds us, and how we continue to grow together”.
As the theme was announced in Dublin’s Epic Museum of Emigration, the organisers stressed how Ireland is “deeply connected to story and tradition” and its “roots lie not only in history and folklore, but in the lived experiences of all those who call this island home, shaped by migration, emigration and cultural exchange across generations”.
As ever, the parade in the capital will be the centrepiece. This year it will feature 12 large floats from independent parade companies including Macnas, Bui Bolg, Spraoi and the Outing Queer Arts Collective as well as marching bands from Ireland, Scotland and US states including Ohio, Arizona, Illinois, Mississippi and Texas.
Across the weekend, Dublin will come alive with performances from Mr Wilson’s Second Liners and Acid Granny Compact. There will be moments as Gaeilge and humour with Áine Gallagher’s A Cup of Focals and street comedy favourites including Garda by Colm O’Grady and the mischievous St Patrick’s Seagulls.
Dance will get its moment with Silver Swans, a ballet created for over-55s, alongside the work of dance artist and activist Maryam Madani, whose wheelchair-led practice celebrates disability pride as a joyful and community-building act.
There will be the Abbey Theatre production of Sean O’Casey’s The Plough and the Stars, marking 100 years since its premiere, while there will also be hands-on workshops including lacemaking, tin smithing, willow weaving and felting at the Dublin City Council family village at Wood Quay.
Lord Mayor Ray McAdam said he was looking forward to riding in the mayoral carriage with his young son and said the festival programme captured “the very best of our national spirit”.
He said it would help to spread “the stories of our city, the strength of our neighbourhoods and the new voices that continue to shape our capital”.
Fáilte Ireland chief executive Caroline Bocquel said the festival played “a vital role in showcasing Ireland on the world stage” and noted how it celebrated “Ireland’s roots through a rich blend of tradition and contemporary culture”.
Festival artistic director Aoife Carry said the event reflected “the depth and diversity of the stories that make up Ireland today, drawing on tradition, lived experience and creative exchange, while making space for new voices and new ways of coming together”.
