Second Belgrade Irish Festival on March 13-18

BELGRADE - The Belgrade Irish Festival (BIF) returns on March 13 to 18 for its second edition, in the rhythm of the Irish step dance.

The highlight of the event will be the festival-closing performance of the legendary Irish dance troupe Lord of the Dance on March 18 at Belgrade's Kombank Arena.

The festival dedicated to Irish culture, showcasing its music, films, poetry, along with traditional meals and drinks, will also feature the oldest Irish dance troupe from Serbia, Celtic Rhythm, founded more than a decade ago.

The troupe founder is Marko Micic, the only professional Irish dancer in the region, who worked with some of the best known Irish dance companies. Last year he joined the famous Riverdance in setting the new Guinness World Record, with a total of 1693 people from 44 countries performing the same sequence of steps for the longest ever Riverdance line.

The global dance sensation Lord of the Dance, dubbed The Flying Irish, are set to arrive in Belgrade on March 17 and celebrate the St. Patrick's Day together with their fans at an Irish party at the Black Turtle Bar in downtown Belgrade, announced festival director Jas Kaminski.

Besides the Irish step dance as BIF's central theme, the Belgrade public will also have an opportunity to learn more about the Irish essayist and historian Hubert Butler, who had lived in Yugoslavia and written over 60 essays on the Balkans, on March 14 at the Belgrade Faculty of Philology.

During the week dedicated to Irish culture, the latest feature, documentary and animated films from Ireland will be screened every evening at the Museum of the Yugoslav Film Archive, and the director of "Black Ice” Johnny Gogan will attend the screening of his film on Saturday...