Ashley, come home

>> >> Celtic madness in Verdun this weekend

by CHRIS BARRY

Is there anything more fun than a good old-fashioned Celtic festival? I think not. Aw geez, these things are the best. You've got arts and crafts, storytelling, Irish fiddlers, and of course, stepdancing àla Riverdance. Throw in a little haggis and you've got yourself a party!

If you feel even half-way as passionate as I do about having fun, then this Saturday and Sunday are days to mark off on your calendar. Alexander Keith's ale is going to be presenting the first annual Montreal International Celtic Festival on the grounds of everybody's favourite mental institution, the Douglas Hospital in Verdun.

Now for all you jaded hipsters who think that stepdancing is silly or even vaguely ridiculous, I suspect it's because you've never watched it go down on the front lawn of a mental hospital. Not being entirely unfamiliar with the mental ward, I can assure you that something resembling the Riverdance is a very popular step at the high-energy dance socials they sometimes hold in the hospital's cafeteria.

This weekend promises to be something very special. Not only are they bringing in a troupe of professional Celtic dancers, but they'll be holding dance workshops so people can develop some of these crazy moves themselves. Will patients wandering aimlessly along the grounds be encouraged to join in and stepdance away a bit of illness? We can only hope so.

But you can never be too sure. So just in case a few overzealous nurses start refusing to unlock their patients for the weekend and you start feeling cheated out of well-deserved laughs at the expense of the mentally ill, don't despair. The organizers have prepared for this possibility and hired celebrated looney-tune Ashley MacIsaac to tug on his fiddle Saturday night. Joining him will be Mary Jane Lamond, although I can't say for sure whether she is truly boffo or just from the Maritimes. Either way, Ashley never disappoints.

Admission is $7 for adults and free for children and the certifiably insane--dangerous offenders are politely being asked to stay away from the children's tent. Activities will be going down all day, rain or shine, and there will be plenty of opportunities to chow down on wild boar sausages, haggis, Irish stew and many other Celtic fun foods. Needless to say there will be no shortage of alcohol.

There's even going to be a Celtic Farm on the premises--whatever that is. The thrills begin at 11 a.m. and continue until 11 p.m. on both days (June 17 and June 18). :