Here’s a St. Patrick’s Day treat: a colorful, funny musical chronicling the history of the Irish in America.
“The Irish...and How They Got That Way,” by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt (“Angela’s Ashes”), at the Annenberg Center March 17, uses song, story and dance to explore the whole panorama of Irish-American history and folklore, including both its charm — songs like “Danny Boy” and “I’ll Take You Home Again, Kathleen” — and its tragedy — the potato famine of the 1840s, the 1863 draft riots.

The musical also offers portraits of Irish Americans both common and celebrated, from humble washerwomen to John F. Kennedy, in a show the New York Post’s Clive Barnes called “full of charm and blarney.”

--S.S.

“The Irish...and How They Got That Way”: 2 and 8 p.m. Friday, March 17, in Irvine Auditorium, 34th and Spruce steets. Matinee tickets $35, $25 and $15; evening tickets $40, $30 and $20; discounts for students, seniors and Penn affiliates available. Tickets/info: visit www.annenbergcenter.org or call 215-898-3900.