Waterford City and County Council, in association with Fáilte Ireland and EveryEvent, has announced a jam-packed four-day programme of St. Patrick's Day events from Friday, March 14th to Monday, March 17th.
The theme for this year’s festival is Saints & Scholars – A Celebration of Waterford’s rich heritage and will be marked by parades, performances, carnivals and music right through the Bank Holiday weekend.
While the festival is a celebration of Waterford’s people and communities, its culture and heritage, its diversity, and its musical and artistic talent, there will be tribute paid to St. Patrick and to Waterford’s very own Scholar, Luke Wadding, a 16th Century academic, author, historian and Franciscan.
Mayor of Waterford City and County, Cllr. Jason Murphy, “You can’t beat St. Patrick’s Day in Waterford and year on year the celebrations keep getting bigger and better.
“The success of the festival, and particularly the Parade, is down to the enthusiasm and dedication of our community, sporting, entertainment, voluntary and business groups, who take part. The pageantry, colour, vibrancy and diversity that they bring to the weekend is always spectacular.”
Johnny Codd, Festival Director, Waterford City and County Council said there will be some great new acts to be announced shortly. “The festival continues to grow each year, and we are really excited about some of the new acts that will form part of the programme in 2025.
“We are particularly proud of FireDance, a phenomenal show that has been created in Waterford especially for St. Patrick’s Festival and will feature the best local and national musicians, singers, dancers, designers and fire performers.
“This is one of the new acts to be added to the programme and locals and visitors to Waterford over St. Patrick’s weekend can expect a real eclectic mix of music, entertainment, arts, culture and history.”
The entertainment programme will take over the city centre with music and dance stages in the Apple Market / John Roberts Square and O’Connell Street and will also include historical talks, tours, wobbly circus and theatre. The city centre fair ground will return to the heart of the city with food markets offering something for everybody.
John Grubb of EveryEvent added, “The events going on throughout the weekend will have something for everyone, including a medieval reenactment, an Irish dance and hip-hop mash-up, a city centre funfair, interactive workshops, and as a new event this year there will be a public lecture in honour of Waterford’s most renowned scholar, Luke Wadding.”
He added, “The highlight, the Parade, is a fantastic opportunity for groups of all genres, ages and sizes to showcase what they do best. So, we’d love to see as many people as possible getting out there and supporting the largest community event of the year.”
With the final touches being put to the four-day programme all will be revealed in the coming weeks.
However, in the meantime, if your group would like to take part in the St. Patrick’s Day parade on Monday, March 17th, you can register at www.stpatricksfestivalwaterford.com
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