Weekend Entertainment | Sunday Fun Day with St. Patrick and Super Mario
Sunday will be special for two reasons: the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and the inaugural Mario Day.
Let’s start with the better-known event.
St. Patrick’s Day week will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday, when the Mahoning Valley St. Patrick’s Day Parade steps off.
The annual event, now in its 46th year, is one of the largest parades in Ohio, drawing 25,000 to 30,000 spectators to the route through the heart of Boardman.
This year, the grand marshal is Bob Hannon, president of the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley. The Lord Mayor of Kilkenny is Jimmy Sutman, founder and president of Iron and String Life Enhancement.
The parade will begin on Market Street at McClurg Road and march northward to Southwoods Drive.
The official after-party will start at 2 p.m. at the Magic Tree in Boardman.
So what exactly is Mario Day? Or – as it’s spelled – MAR10 Day (because it’s on March 10)? It’s a national celebration of the Mario Bros. video game.
In the Mahoning Valley, Birdfish Brewing of Columbiana will be where it’s at.
The brewery and pub, which has a lot of video and pinball games, will open at noon. The first 144 folks to order a glass of Power Up Porter, a collaboration brew with Miller’s Mushrooms, will get a glass with a custom Nintendo and Super Mario inspired full-color Birdfish logo. The logo will also be on T-shirts for sale in the pub’s swag shop.
The main event will be a Super Mario Challenge in the ballroom, presented by Stone Age Gamer of Salem. It’s free to compete, and prizes will go to the top three finishers.
John Anthony, guitarist for The Vindys, has assembled an ad hoc rock band dubbed Plumbers Punishing Penguins that will hit the stage at 2 p.m. The six-piece band will perform songs from the Super Mario Bros. soundtracks.
Guests are encouraged to show up dressed as Super Mario, Luigi, Toad, Peach or any other character from the game.
Finally, country singer Gary Allan will be in Warren tonight for a 7:30 p.m. concert at Packard Music Hall. For tickets, click HERE.
For a complete look at everything going on in the Mahoning Valley, check out The List.
Pictured at top: Ursuline cheerleaders march in a past St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
