St. Patrick’s Day is nearly upon us. Its approach recalls for me something that happened last year in Dublin involving the patron saint and the poster for a cabaret night.
But first some context. The St. Patrick’s Festival of 2022 lasted four days and was billed as a global celebration of Irish arts, culture, and heritage. A “Festival Quarter” was established in the historic Collins Barracks. The official website for the celebration promised that the grounds would be transformed into “a magical day-to-night urban Festival for all, in the heart of Dublin.” The principal funder was the government of Ireland: The department of tourism and culture alone contributed over €900,000 (i.e., close to a million dollars).rn
