Demise of darkness

“Nothing short of spellbinding” — or so The Washington Post describes the award-winning ensemble OCEAN Celtic Quartet. This Saturday at 8 p.m. the quartet appears at the Little Washington Theatre on Gay Street to “mark the end of the cold and dark, and the return of the light and warmth.”

The ancient Irish festival of Beltane (May Day) signaled the end of winter and the coming of summer, and OCEAN’s upcoming performance of traditional and original music celebrates the return of the sun and the greening of the land.

“OCEAN’s soaring vocals, fiery fiddle tunes, and rollicking button accordion will have your heart swelling and your toes tapping, while you sing along with songs that stretch back for centuries — songs of love, lust, and everything in between,” the theatre states.

But wait, there’s more: There will be a special guest appearance by the ancient Green Man, also known as Jack-in-the-Green!