Celtic Performing Arts presents The BARRA MACNEILS: an EAST COAST CHRISTMAS

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Wednesday, November 22nd, 2017
7:30 PM to 9:30 PM

THE BARRA MACNEILS return to Nanaimo to kick off the festive season with some Christmas cheer.  It’s been 7 years since this talented musical family has performed in Nanaimo and they’ve chosen to launch their 2017 coast-to-coast tour at Nanaimo’s The Port Theatre, 125 Front Street on November 22.

THE BARRA MACNEILS East Coast Christmas concert is a musical potpourri of traditional MacNeil family favourites gleaned from Christmas ceilidhs, midnight masses, and general down-home festive frolic. Steeped in Cape Breton tradition with strong Celtic roots and musical artistry, the diversely talented siblings sell out shows worldwide. Their captivating vocals, harmonies and extraordinary musicianship are famously featured in their Christmas TV specials, perennially broadcast on CMT and PBS TV stations.

THE BARRA MACNEILS East Coast Christmas injects new life and energy into the sights and sounds of Christmas, prompting the Globe & Mail to call the recording on which it is based, “one of the best five Christmas albums of all time”.

The five MacNeil siblings—Lucy, Boyd, Stewart, Kyle and Sheumas—are masters of a vast array of instruments including accordion, guitar, piano, fiddle, bodhran, mandolin, banjo, Celtic harp, tin whistle, and flute, underpinned by the nimble-fingered Jamie Gatti on bass. The result is unmistakably the Barra MacNeils: one moment a rousing chorus, then a hauntingly beautiful Gaelic ballad; the next a flurry of foot-stomping tunes that turns into step-dancing revelry.

Appearing with the Barras in Nanaimo's Port Theatre will be Nanaimo-based master piper René Cusson, a dynamic dance troupe of Highland and step dancers, and other notable Celtic youth performers --- bringing together multiple generations in the Celtic community as tradition dictates.

CeltFest VIP Sponsors & Volunteers, and Nanaimo Chamber of Commerce members qualify for a discounted rate on individual tickets. Call (250)758-0208 for the discount coupon code.