By Stephen Cooke – Entertainment Reporter
Summer festival season continues with what is surely the longest-running tradition of the season, the Antigonish Highland Games, already in full swing by the time you read this.
Now in its 159th year, the tartan-tinted extravaganza runs through Monday, July 15 with a plethora of sporting events, cultural activities and, of course, music, that will keep your caber aloft for the next six days.
When this column is first hitting the streets, duffers will be hitting the greens of the Antigonish Golf Club on Wednesday, July 10 for the Kilted Golf Tournament and yes, as it says in all-caps at antigonishhighlandgames.ca, KILTS ARE MANDATORY.
Sports are an unusual inclusion in this column, but the afternoon at the golf club will feature live music from Lee Boy at 2 p.m., Ann Marie Pelley at 5 p.m., and folk group Jug in Hand at 8 p.m., so the event suits our purposes to a tee.
Although artists hadn’t been announced yet as of this writing, there will also be live music at Wednesday’s Antigonish Main Street Fair from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. — along with vendors, food trucks and more — and at the Ceilidh in St. Andrews, at the community centre, from 8 to 10 p.m.
At least fiddler Anna Ludlow has been announced for the Thursday, July 11 Ceilidh at the Museum, where the musician well-known globally for her tour with the Nova Scotian cultural showcase Drum! will be joined by a group of talented friends. The Antigonish Heritage Museum event starts at 7 p.m.
The Antigonish Highland Games get properly underway on Friday, July 12 on Columbus Field, when the gates open at 8 a.m. for the morning events and noon family picnic.
The free evening Concert Under the Stars at 7:30 p.m. will feature a lineup that includes local favourite and Canadian Folk Music Award-winner Mary Beth Carty, while some of my favourite local comedians — Clare Belford, Dan Hendricken and Darryl Purvis — are on the Coldstream and Oak Manor Ceilidh Stage for Celtic Comedy Night from 9 to 11 p.m.
Saturday, July 13 is a full day of sports, Nova Scotia Pipe Band and Highland Dance championships, cultural workshops, and annual favourites like the St. James Church pancake breakfast and Grand Street Parade at 9 a.m.
Meanwhile, Saturday’s Ceilidh Pub Stage runs from noon to 2 a.m., with evening performances by Beech Hill and the Mudmen.
Sunday, July 14 sees the air at Columbus Field filled with flying stones, hammers and cabers, and the final Highland dance and piping championships, plus a closing concert on the Coldstream and Oak Manor Ceilidh Stage at 4 p.m.
Again, for a full lineup of Antigonish Highland Games events, visit www.antigonishhighlandgames.ca for a complete rundown of what’s happening on and off the field.
And if you want to get away from the hustle and bustle in town on Saturday, you could do worse than to truck on out to Steinhart Distillery in Arisaig for an evening seaside concert with folk artist Aaron Mclean at 6 p.m.
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On the north side of the Canso Causeway, the free family concerts on Port Hawkesbury’s Granville Green continue on Sunday, July 14 with an entertaining double bill of veteran Halifax musician and songwriter Jon Mullane and beloved Irish-Canadian duo Evans & Doherty for an evening of variety and polished performances.
You’ve likely heard Mullane’s music and not even realized it, on TV or in films, and most recently he was nominated for three Josie Music Awards, the independent music industry honours which will be handed out in Nashville on Oct. 26.
The sunshiney pop sound of Mullane’s recent EP California landed him a Josie Award nomination for EP of the Year – Pop/Contemporary, along with a Pop/Contemporary/Dance Artist of the Year nod, and a Music Video of the Year – Performance Focused/Male nomination for the single The Sun in the Summertime, all inspired by an extended period spent writing and recording in the Golden State.
Show time is 7 p.m., and everyone’s welcome. For full details on the 30th anniversary of the Granville Green concerts, including a special anniversary throwback contest, visit granvillegreen.ca.