SPH Presents: Celtic Nights with Haley Richardson, Don Penzien and Special Guest Will Bryant
Doors 6pm, Show 7pm
Everyone is in for a treat with this show! If you love Irish trad music, or even if the closest you ever got is that you are aware of Riverdance, you owe it to yourself to be at this show! The two performers are amazing and when you throw one of the principal dancers of the Riverdance Troup into the mix – you’ve got an EVENT! There will be a full bar available and it’s always possible a session will break out afterward – feel free to bring those instruments!
For this show Haley Richardson—one of the world’s top Irish fiddlers who is on a brief hiatus from touring the world with RIVERDANCE—will be joining forces with top-flight accompanist, Don Penzien. Having played countless tunes together over the years on and off stage, Haley and Don first joined forces as a duo in early 2017, and they’re delighted to be performing together again during Haley’s brief hiatus from touring with RIVERDANCE.
Haley Richardson: Now the fiddler for the 25th Anniversary tour of the Grammy Award winning production, RIVERDANCE, Haley has earned her place among the world’s top Irish fiddlers! With her virtuosic playing, she’s received top honors in competitions in the US and internationally including multiple All Ireland championships and the coveted Junior and Senior Fiddler of Dooney. Haley brings a rare dynamism and energy to her music, which is informed by her expertise in the Sligo fiddle style, her mastery of her instrument, and the trailblazing and show-stopping technique and emotion evident in every note she plays. Haley has performed with many of the best-known Irish musicians including The Chieftains, Altan, Dervish, Gailfean, Mick Moloney’s Green Fields of America, Pride of New York, Liz Carroll, Cherish the Ladies, John Whelan, Paddy Keenan, The Máirtín de Cógáin Project.
Don Penzien has long been a top-flight performer of Irish traditional music. He frequently is on the road playing concerts and festivals with Gailfean, Haley Richardson, and The Máirtín de Cógáin Project, and he has served as accompanist for numerous other well-known performers (e.g., Brian Conway, Gerry O’Connor, Seán Gavin, Randal Bays, Tim Britton, John Williams, Pat Broaders, Gabe Donohue, Ben Jaber, Tony DeMarco, Billy McComiskey, Sean Clohessy, Donie Carroll, Bridget Fitzgerald, Kevin Doyle). Widely recognized for his reserved backing style, Don’s dexterous work on DADGAD-tuned guitar provides solid, driving rhythms to traditional tunes as well as perceptive and sensitive accompaniments to songs and airs. Don is a Michigan native with strong roots in Irish culture and an affinity for Celtic music. Don now resides in NC where he works as Professor at the Wake Forest School of Medicine.
William Bryant: Born in Sydney, Australia, Will trained in Irish, ballet, contemporary, and tap from the age of four - all invaluable for being a lead dancer in the highly acclaimed RIVERDANCE. Will performed lead roles in musical productions and made regular appearances on TV. He studied for a Bachelor of Music and is an accomplished guitarist. An ambitious athlete, Will is studying personal training on and off tour. Following an impressive competitive Irish dance career, placing top-three internationally and winning state and national titles, he performed with Celtic Illusion and Heartbeat of Home. In 2014 he joined RIVERDANCE, and continues to tour worldwide with the show.