The Young Irelanders to perform at Hoover Library Theatre March 13-14

Some of the best up-and-coming traditional Irish singers, dancers and instrumentalists from Ireland are headed to the Hoover Library Theatre in March.

An eight-member group called The Young Irelanders, pulled together by the Irish Cultural Academy, will be in Hoover to perform two shows on March 13-14.

The performers, in their 20s and early 30s, may not yet be household names, but they represent the best new raw talent emerging from Irish culture, said Eric Cunningham, the producer for the group. They are all world and Irish national champions in their disciplines.

A different group of young people is selected each year to showcase the country’s best new talent. This year, they will be performing a show called “Wild Atlantic Way,” which describes the musically rich nine counties on the 2,700-mile western coast of Ireland, Cunningham said.

“I think people will be highly entertained and enthralled,” Cunningham said in a phone interview from Ireland.

There are six instrumentalists, one of whom sings, and two dancers in the group. The vocalist is Clodagh Lawlor from County Clare, which is in the “Wild Atlantic Way.”

The group’s tour was to begin toward the end of February and includes about 18 shows in the United States, Cunningham said. The Young Irelanders then will perform a series of shows in Chile, Singapore and Canada, he said.

Both shows at the Hoover Library Theatre have sold out, but people can call the Library Theatre box office at 444-7888 to be placed on a waiting list for any returned tickets, fine arts director Matina Johnson said.

The Irish shows at the Library Theatre always do well in March, she said. “We pretty much knew that would be a success, and we hope everybody enjoys it.”