It was a stormy week, but fans were determined that it was not going to rain (or snow) on their parade. Here are their firsthand accounts of the weekend:

Long Journey


Tony: There were 19 people in our group in total. Two couldn't fly in due to the weather and the airports being closed and flights cancelled.

Beth Brown: The fans who attended the show were Tony, Maureen, Kris, Meesa (Melissa), Karyl, George, Jan, Mary, Kira, Chris, Danielle, Josh, Michelle, Mark, Meredith, Chi, Caite and myself. Michael and Rickie were not able to make it from Seattle due to flight cancellations and returned to California and Alaska respectively.

Maureen: The fans we met up in NYC were Tony, George, Kris, Beth, Karyl, Meesa, Mary, Jan. Those came in on Thursday. Friday morning during a blinding snowstorm we went on the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. It was great but the best time to see Lady Liberty is without a snow storm! Chris was able to get in on Thursday, too. On Friday, Caite and her family were able to fly in, but they were the only ones who made it that day due to the snow storm. Jan, Karyl, Meesa and Mary went to a Broadway show that night. George, Tony, Dani and Josh went to RCMH for the Friday show.

Obstacles along the way


George: Michelle and Kira had flight cancellations on Friday and Michelle ended up driving up to meet with Kira before getting a flight Saturday morning. Some other folks had trouble getting there but made it. Mark drove part way and then took a train. And Beth Brown was very sick with a throat cold.

Jan: Danielle and Josh drove in from Rhode Island in a blizzard and it took six hours - close to triple the usual time. My luggage got lost going from San Jose to LAX on the 14th, but it reappeared later that night. Mary's flights were changed and her flight from Chicago to Newark airport was delayed multiple times, in the end almost 3 hours!

Barnes & Noble signing


Maureen: Some went to the parade Saturday to see the girls kick it off, but most of us went directly to Barnes and Noble for the signing. The girls came directly from the parade to B&N.

Jan: The B&N signing was a surprise. We heard about it on Friday. All the girls were there but Méav. When the girls came out to the stage everyone applauded. We were told that they would only sign; no speaking. But you could see they were ready to jump over the table, especially Orlagh. B&N seated everyone and then released a row at a time to go before the girls. The signing was almost the highlight of the weekend! It lasted about 90 minutes. And as they were signing, of course, there were comments between each of us that they knew.

Beth Brown: The signing at Barnes & Noble was a blast! Everyone waiting to see the girls was very excited and there was lots of chatter going on about seeing them. A private room was reserved for the event which would hold approximately 200 people and the room was a little over half full. It's difficult to say how many people were actually there though because a second wave of people came in after the signing began. Everyone had CD's, DVD's and programs they wanted signed. One fan even brought her violin, no doubt eager for Máiréad to autograph it! Barnes & Noble kindly provided post-it notes to everyone to write their names on so the girls could personalize each item.

There was a round of applause when the girls emerged to take the stage at the front of the room, where a table had been set up for them. Tim, a Barnes & Noble employee, explained how they would move everyone through and thanked us all for coming. He asked for questions and one fan asked if we'd be allowed to take pictures. Scott Porter graciously gave permission for us to use our cameras. Rachel Davis then took over and welcomed us to the event and asked the first group of fans to come up. Each of (the girls) were wonderfully warm and as excited to be there as we were. In addition to signing Celtic Woman merchandise, each of the ladies generously posed for pictures with fans when they were asked. At the end of the signing, Scott announced a final call for photos and all the ladies stood together for a few moments to allow for final pictures and then another round of applause broke out as they thanked us for coming, waved and left the stage.

Tony: The B&N signing was awesome. I was totally shocked that they allowed pictures to be taken. Usually they don't allow that at all.

Celtic Woman Show at Radio City Music Hall

Maureen: Saturday night we all got dressed in our fineries - we all cleaned up real good and had thawed out, too, by then. We had everyone start signing the special banner we made. We were able to have one picture taken in the hotel lobby before we left. I wish we had taken more pictures but there was no time; the two limos were waiting for us already. We filled both limos to capacity. Mark from NY had just come into the city so he had to meet us at RCMH. We got to meet Justine from CT, too.

Dave Kavanaugh came out on stage and introduced Scott Porter and David Downes prior to the show. The concert then began and it was awesome. Some of the people or most of the people there hadn't seen the new concert and they were in awe of RCMH and the show, too. They never disappointed us at all. They were on top of the whole show and having a ball doing it.

Jan: David Downes came out before the concert and talked about St Patrick's Day and RCMH being special and that they loved having the families over. He also said it was a time to remember those not with us.
It's a good show and I like the gowns much, much better than those they had for Slane! George:Hayley is doing an excellent job now from what I saw. But there are some songs that are just not a good match for her. They fit Méav much better. Jan: In the end, Meav's songs are right for her and Hayley's are right for her. Dúlaman would sound better sung by an Irish speaker in my opinion...it's not the same as an Irish speaker who can get their mouth around the Irish sounds.
Chloe sang Last Rose of Summer with Hayley and I enjoyed the two of them doing it.

Beth Brown: Hayley brings her own unique stamp to the established program. I look forward to following her career as she performs with Celtic Woman and beyond.

Special Gift


Jan: We unraveled a banner at the end of You Raise Me Up, and it was quite fun to see the look on the girls faces as they realized what we had got up to do.

Maureen: First encore Tony and Kris held up the banner and they all smiled on stage, Orlagh, Lisa, Hayley, Mairead and Chloe. Then we held it up at the finale. They were smiling ear to ear and clapping at us; they couldn't believe that they were seeing a 4 x 8 foot banner of all the girls pictures on it, and as many signatures we could put on, too. They loved it.

One of the forum members (Caite) was able to see the girls backstage after the show and present the banner to them. Mairead was just blown away by it, as were all the other girls. They told us they are going to hang it in their bus as a reminder of that night. They said it was one of the biggest surprises they had ever had, and they were very touched.

George Major received this very special email from Orlagh: "We were all thrilled with the amazing banner. I couldn't believe it when I looked down and saw it. It was truly amazing. Can you please pass on my sincere thanks to everyone?"

Maureen summed up the feelings of most of the CW fans in attendance: "This was an experience I will never ever forget and I hope to meet up with a everyone for another trip someday. I would do it all over again anytime, any place, even in a blinding snow storm!"