Festival History and Purpose

• The history of the Irish 2000 Music & Arts Festival began in 1996, when Irish Americans and festival organizers Matt Nelligan and Jim Shaughnessy discussed creating an event celebrating Irish art, music and culture. The first festival took place in 1997 and boasted 2,500 attendees. By 2007, the event grew to a two-day festival with average attendance of more than 15,000. According to the festival's official website, it constitutes one of the five most well-attended Irish festivals in the United States.
  
  In 2001, Nelligan and Shaughnessy founded The Irish Music and Arts Festival Inc., a nonprofit corporation dedicated to preserving and protecting Irish culture in the 21st century. This company donates proceeds from the festival to charities such as the Albany Irish-American Center. The festival has raised over $300,000 for charity as of 2011.
  
  

Festival Entertainment

• Entertainment at the Irish 2000 Music & Arts Festival ranges from live musical performances to children's games and vendor booths. Musical acts that performed at the 2010 edition of the festival included Flatfoot 56, Enter the Haggis, Gaelic Storm and The Ruffians. All of these bands play traditional Irish music or combine elements of traditional Irish music with modern genres such as folk, rock and punk. A children's play area contains rides such as a Ferris wheel and merry-go-round, and carnival games. Craft vendors sell various Irish arts and crafts.
  
  

Location and Access

• The Irish 2000 Music & Arts Festival takes place annually at the Saratoga County Fairgrounds in Ballston Spa. Ballston Spa is just south of Saratoga Springs, directly north of Albany, and northeast of Schenectady. The festival operates four shuttles that ferry passengers from downtown Ballston Spa, two locations in Albany and the Troy-Schenectady area to the fairgrounds. Organizers of the festival offer a handful of transportation, festival ticket and hotel package options for those traveling to attend the event. Campgrounds are available in the surrounding area.
  
  

Additional Information

• The festival is staffed entirely by volunteers. Areas in which individuals may volunteer include front gate ticket sales, beer ticket sales, bartending, official merchandise vendor, stage assistance and information booth. The festival serves five types of beer: Harp lager, Coors Light, Guinness, Smithwick's and Killian's Irish Red. All children younger than 12 years old gain free admittance to the festival. Festival organizers publish the official schedule of events on the festival website in August of each year.