The Commercial Appeal - Go Memphis
St. Patrick’s
Cooper-young St. Patrick’s Day Parade
Coordinated by the Memphis Irish Society, this annual event doesn’t attract thousands (unlike the CooperYoung Festival in September), but it’s growing in popularity. Running from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, the parade — complete with bands, dancers, floats and so on — begins at York and ends at Walker, near the First Congregational Church. The Cooper-young Garden Club will participate and will pass out seeds to bystanders from decorated red wagons. For more information on the Memphis Irish Society, visit memphisirish.com.
Celtic Crossing concerts
After the parade, why not loiter in the Cooper-young neighborhood Friday for the annual St. Patrick’s celebration at the Celtic Crossing Irish Pub? Billing itself as “a place for great pints and soccer matches” that offers “the most authentic Irish experience in the Mid-south,” the bar/restaurant at 903 Cooper will host live music from 11 a.m. until after midnight on indoor and outdoor stages; the lineup includes Crossing Chunes (11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.); the Bluff City Backsliders (2-4:30 p.m.); Shakermaker (5-7:30 p.m.); Twin Soul (7:30-11 p.m.); and DJ Tree (until 2 a.m.). The Memphis Pipe Band, a bagpipe-and-drum group, will perform throughout the day, and an Irish dance troupe also will be on site. Visit celticcrossingirishpub.com.
Overton Square celebration
Several blocks north of CooperYoung, at the entertainment district that represented the apex of the riotous St. Patrick’s Day “pub crawls” of the early 1980s, the Overton Square St. Patrick’s Day celebration will be in full swing (or full jig-and-reel) on Friday. In addition to the Irish-themed specials that will be featured at various bars and restaurants, a free concert by
the expert bagpipers of the Memphis Pipe Band will take place from 5-7 p.m. in Chimes Square (the outdoor plaza just north of the parking garage). And at 9 p.m., Lafayette’s Music Room will present live music by the party ensemble Thumpdaddy. Visit overtonsquare.com.
The Blackwater Trio at the Brass Door
Another of the city’s significant Irish pubs, the Brass Door at 152 Madison, has organized a St. Patrick’s Day celebration to complement what the establishment describes as its “welcoming hospitality” and “first rate Irish fare.” A “Blessing of the Kegs” will take place at 4 p.m. Friday, followed by music by violinist Alice Hasen and the Blackwater Trio, who will perform folk, roots and rock music with an Irish inflection. Visit thebrassdoor.com and alicehasen.com for more information.
Soul & Spirits Brewery’s St. Patrick’s Day party
A relative newcomer on the thriving Memphis beer scene, this brewery at 845 N. Main hosts its second annual St. Patrick’s Day party from 4-10 p.m. Friday. Green beer will be available; the Albee’s food truck will provide Irish fare; and the ubiquitous and apparently allbut-overbooked (for one day a year, at least) Memphis Pipe Band will perform. Visit soulandspiritsbrew.com.
Beer & Hymns at Evergreen Presbyterian Church
The historic congregation at 1567 Overton Park is hosting what its website describes as a “family-friendly evening of hymn singing, suds, and Irish pub fare.” The “traditional Irish dinner” is free, but attendees are required to bring their own beer (or other other potable), and organizers ask those planning to attend to RSVP. Visit evergreenmemphis.org to sign up or get more information.
‘Leprechaun’ Double Feature
Warwick Davis, the 3-foot-6 British actor, has played an Ewok, a Hogwarts professor and a heroic sorcerer (in the “Willow” franchise); but within a subset of camp/cult movie aficionados, he may be most appreciated for his role as a gold-glomming homicidal Irish imp in the decade-long “Leprechaun” series, which launched in 1993 (with a pre”Friends” Jennifer Aniston as one of the leprechaun’s victims). In recognition of St. Patrick’s Day, Black Lodge, the movie-rental-and-more space at 405 N. Cleveland, will host a double feature of what it calls “two of the best/worst” of the “iconic” horror series, both with selfexplanatory titles.
The futuristic “Leprechaun 4: In Space” (1997), in which the lethal Lilliputian battles an armada of space marines, screens at 6 p.m.; “Leprechaun in the Hood” (2000), in which the Leprechaun raps as well as slays (the cast includes Ice-t), follows at 8 p.m. Admission is free, but limited to those 18 and older. “This is no silent screening, peo
ple,” advises the Black Lodge Facebook page. “Razzing, riffing, mocking, and drunken yelling at the screen is highly encouraged! So grab that drink, make a toast, and join us in a bad movie beatdown!” Visit blacklodgememphis.com.
Bonus event: Meet a snake
According to legend, St. Patrick drove the serpents out of Ireland; but today, biologists and nature lovers know that snakes, in general, should be protected rather than exterminated. Those who are curious to know why that is true and those (kids especially, perhaps) who are interested in getting up-close-and-personal with a few benign examples of reptiles are invited to come to the Museum of Science & History’s Lichterman Nature Center at 5992 Quince Road from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, March 18, for a post-st. Patrick’s Day event dubbed “Meet a Snake.” To quote the Lichterman website: “Did St. Patrick really drive all the snakes out of Ireland? How do you identify venomous snakes? Why are snake beneficial? Learn the answers to these questions and more while meeting some of the Nature Center’s ambassador snakes.” Visit moshmemphis.com.