PORT ANGELES — The Irish Rovers will fill the high school auditorium with lively music Sunday in a benefit that may help some 20 music students do a little roving of their own in Ireland.
The Irish Rovers will perform at 3 p.m. in the Port Angeles High School auditorium at 304 E. Park Ave., with doors opening at 2 p.m.
“Bringing the much-loved music of Irish pubs to life, this concert is a foot-stomping, hand-clapping, sing-along afternoon designed to put a smile on your face and a glow in your heart,” said Lynnette Crouse, who is organizing the fundraising.
Concert proceeds will go toward paying for the 20 members of the Port Angeles High School chamber orchestra to perform with a Dublin Choral Foundation choir in Ireland on Easter Sunday 2011.
Tickets will be available at the door or can be purchased in advance through Friday.
They are $17 to $37, available online at www.nwperformingarts.com or by check to OPUS, Lynnette Crouse, 925 E. Ninth St., Port Angeles, WA 98362.
The idea for the orchestra to perform in Dublin evolved through Crouse’s friendship — developed over several trips to Ireland — with the director of the Dublin Choral Foundation, Ite O’Donovan.
O’Donovan invited the group to perform with one of her choirs on Easter Sunday.
The chamber orchestra originally had hoped to perform in Dublin this year, but the group was unable to raise the some $30,000 needed for trip — which Crouse attributes to the poor economy.
The change in plans was actually welcomed by the group’s Irish hosts, she said.
“This spring break happened to coincide with theirs, and they had no schools open, so they said, ‘Oh that’s so much better because then they can interact with the students,'” Crouse said.
“Next year, we’re looking at [going during] spring break, and we’re hoping to have three concerts in Ireland.
It would be the first international trip for the chamber orchestra.
The upcoming concert is one of several fundraisers for the trip.
Anthony Kearns, a founding member of the world-renowned The Irish Tenors, performed in Port Angeles in October to benefit the students.
The Port Angeles concert will be the last concert of the current tour of the Irish Rovers, who have been popular for decades.
The band was formed in 1964.
Although it is made up of musicians from Northern Ireland, it was created in Calgary, Alberta.
The band has released nine albums.