Casey to bring Irish sound to Findlay

Mar. 5—FINDLAY — One of the great singers of Irish music will take the stage for a special show at the Marathon Center for the Performing Arts, 200 W. Main Cross St. in Findlay.

Karan Casey will celebrate St. Patrick's Day and International Women's Day with a performance at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 7.

"Ireland has really changed over the last decade in particular and International Women's Day is a big part of it," Casey said. "We're really shifting to be more progressive around women's issues so we'll be thinking about that and also St. Patrick was very open and helpful to people who were poor and immigrants, as he was an immigrant himself. I actually used to live in America so I know what it's like to be an immigrant here and those topics will be at the front of the show."

And that should complement Casey's slate of traditional Irish songs and storytelling.

"We're all coming from a traditional music background so it's myself singing old songs from the older repertoire," she said. "And I'll sing some new ones from last year. And we'll have Niamh Dunne who is a great singer joining me on harmonies and Sean Og Graham on guitar and he'll be singing as well."

Casey said that when she came through immigration into the country, she was asked what she does.

"The guy asked me what do you do and I said I am an Irish singer," she said. "He said, 'Uh-huh, sad songs.'"

But the most important thing Casey hopes the audience takes away from her performance is connection.

"I think that's the biggest thing, to make a connection with people," she said. "That's really what music is for, to leave people feeling uplifted. We don't want them to notice the time passing because we've connected on some level through music and songs."

And at the very least, Casey hopes the audience shows up ready to have a good time and be open to singing along.

Casey's tour will take her across the U.S., but after that she will be returning to Ireland to lead a song tour from Oct. 15 to 25.

"I'm inviting people to come over on a bus tour as we go around the country singing songs," she said. "We'll visit different places, have concerts and see some of the archaeological sites. Guest historians and archaeological guides or singers and poets every day along the way."

Casey has also written a play called "The Women We Will Rise" which she hopes to bring to America.

Her latest solo album "Nine Apples of Gold" is out now.

For more information on Casey, visit her website.

-Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.