CCA and 3 Barons Present Celtic Spring Festival 2026
Contributed by Jocelyn Paine
Alaska does beautiful almost all year round—except springtime. That’s when we need a boost of energy to get us through weeks of endless mud, no flowers yet, and piles of old snow. We need a Fling to get us closer to Spring! On March 28th, from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM at Wendler Middle School, the Celtic Community of Alaska’s Spring Festival is your portal for frivolity, distraction, and fun.
Celtic Community of Alaska (CCA) is again partnering with Three Barons Renaissance Fair for double the magic. Three Barons (3 Barons) meets in spring to begin preparing and rehearsing for June’s Renaissance Fair, and you are invited to join some of their training classes. Watch out —you might get recruited! Combining these organizations creates a portal to the world of Celtic culture through a day of Craft Fair offerings, make-and-take craft and cooking classes, Celtic music and dance classes and performances, plus some great history and how-to classes. If you are very lucky, you might even find yourself taking a class sitting right next to a wizard or a fairy!
Want to learn how to write in Ogham script—which might have been a secret writing developed by druids? You could take home a personally scribed scroll loaded with history. Sing a Celtic song of friendship in the song circle, join an Irish Session, learn a new dance, or laugh with other students as you try your hand at juggling. Tandy Leather will present a make-and-take class, providing all the materials and instruction needed to leave with a set of bracers for all your cosplay needs. Hungry for recipes? Make and munch on Irish farl, an easy-to-make type of soda bread. Yum! This Festival has several wool felting and needle-punching classes: you can create a Fairie House, a personalized bookmark, or a gnome. Three Barons classes include peasant dancing, how to survive the fair, how to “Ren” speak, costuming guidance, and other Ren Fair tips-and-tricks.
At the Spring Festival Craft Fair you will find all sorts of wares from quilts to flower crowns, handmade jewelry to works by local artists, even Chad Carpenter with his popular Tundra Comics. You can munch on food truck fare while you peruse the booths and enjoy the dance and music performances. Barbara Bethke’s booth, Barbara Unlimited, will have handwoven tartans (in Gaelic a breacan). The Scottish Club will be on hand with tartan books, so you can find your family tartan. Want to learn Gaelic? There’s a class for that!
Language is only one aspect of a country’s definition. Music is a huge part of Irish and Scottish life. The Red Cap’s Ben Richardson will once again present his popular “Introduction to Irish Music” class. Think you are without musical talent yet are moved by Celtic tunes? Believe me, Ben can help you find an instrument that will pluck at your heart strings. You might even end up on stage in the group’s “graduation” performance. One student from last year, Maya MacDonald, says, “My grandmum was from Ireland, County Cork, and I feel connected to her when I play Irish music. She died two years ago, and it was wonderful to find Irish music so soon after she passed.” Maya was enthralled by Ben’s class, and this year she’ll be teaching with him. Her favorite instrument may be the fiddle: “It reaches down into my bones. It is so hard to play! You have the stick in one hand and it’s like a mandolin on top. The coordination is tough.” Ben himself has no Celtic blood and didn’t pick up the fiddle until he was 27 years old. He describes what makes music Irish: “Gigs and reels and polkas are Irish music. The violin sings, with a little roll at the end squeezing three to five notes into a very small space. Double bowing is Irish, to accent little bursts of sounds.” A professional musician along with his three brothers, The Red Cap often has guest performers and is truly a “band of brothers and others!” In his class you can bring your own instrument or try a penny whistle or a bodhran drum Ben’s brought along. All levels are welcome, from a beginner with no experience to a musician who wants to sound more Irish.
If Celtic heritage and history is your interest, then Phillip Price’s class on Celtic battles and their heroes is for you. Described through songs and legends, supported by Price’s knowledge and Dublin, Ireland, background, this class brings the past alive!
Going to Celtic Spring Festival is like having a ticket-for-a-day to another country! Admission to the Craft Fair and performances is free. Classes have variable fees based on materials costs. See the complete schedule, class descriptions, and a registration link at akcelts.org.