Our festival could not operate without the dedication and long hours provided by more than 2,100 volunteers.

For your effort you get an opportunity to be part of an amazing and exciting event. You will experience the creative energy of 400 performers and know that you have been right in the heart of action. Our audience knows the excitement very well and, like so many of our volunteers, comes back year after year. You will also have the satisfaction of contributing to an event that brings millions of dollars into the local economy every year.

We have three categories of volunteers:

Community Volunteers
Work in their own community with a hosting organization either for a concert venue or a community cultural event. If your community is hosting an event, they may need your help. Please contact them directly.

Celtic Colours Volunteers
Work throughout the festival in a wide variety of roles as drivers or at concert venues as site and stage management under the direction of the festival staff or experienced volunteers.

Festival Club Volunteers
The Festival Club occurs each night of the Festival from 11PM – 3AM at the Gaelic College in St Ann’s. The volunteer roles there include selling tickets at the door, selling bar tickets and working in the bar. The Festival Club volunteers are generally people who live in the immediate vicinity of the Gaelic College and they are scheduled and supervised by the staff at the Gaelic College.

Types of Positions Available:

If you are interested and available to be a festival volunteer, the following information should help you decide what you would like to do

All of our concert venues require Site Managers and Stage Managers. These are highly skilled positions, but have always been carried out by volunteers. In general, Site Managers are responsible for all aspects of the audience and the venue and work directly with the community hosting committee. Stage Managers are responsible for everything to do with the show and the Stage. The Stage Manager works directly with the artists and technicians. Site and Stage Managers must work together on some aspects of the event. Strong and positive communication skills are essential for both positions. Both Site and Stage positions require the volunteer to have experience in either customer service or working with the general public. Stage positions also benefit from previous experience with music events and/or musicians. Both require volunteers to have participated in training or professional development workshops provided by Celtic Colours. Volunteering as either a Site or Stage Manager is a commitment of at least an 8 hour day, sometimes more depending on the venue and distances for driving.

Site and Stage Managers must be on site one hour before sound checks begin and stay until their work is completed after the show. We also have apprenticeship roles for Assistant Stage and Assistant Site positions for people who are new to our system. If you would like to volunteer in a Site or Stage Management position and you have no experience, you must attend a training session in September and understand that either first year Site or Stage Management volunteers can only serve as Assistants. If you have attended a Site or Stage Manager training session in the past and have served as a Site or Stage Manager or Assistant we request that you upgrade your knowledge by attending the advanced Professional Development Workshops in September. These workshops are on very specific topics in areas that may help you develop new skills. To learn more about the Site and Stage Management volunteering opportunities, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator Alison Campbell at either volunteers@celticcolours.ca or at 902-562-6700

Celtic Colours International Festival has a Transportation unit consisting of a group of volunteer Drivers who are responsible to transport artists to and from the Halifax or Sydney airport, accompany artists to Celtic Colours shows and community venues around the island, and to sell CD’s at the concert venues. In order to apply, you must have a valid driver’s license, be at least 25 years old, and be extremely familiar with roads and the routes throughout Cape Breton Island. Applications are reviewed and those selected will be contacted for an interview. There is a training session prior to the festival where you get first-hand accounts from experienced drivers. During the festival, the Driver’s reporting station is at the Transportation’s Home Base located at The Gaelic College in St. Anns. Drivers may be required to pick-up artists on a day-to-day basis, deliver and pick-up requested items by the festival staff and/or artists. All Drivers are required to drive the vehicles provided by Celtic Colours. The driver’s day is particularly long starting at noon and ending after midnight. Being a Driver is a very rich and rewarding experience, and is an essential component to the success of Celtic Colours International Festival.
Casual positions require no specific training. The majority of our shows do not require casual volunteers because the community hosting organizations provide all of the volunteers at the venue. However there are a few of our larger shows such as those in Sydney and Port Hawkesbury that do require help with ushering, handing out programs and taking ballots. Casual opportunities also exist at other Festival events including the late night Festival Club and the Volunteer Reception. Help is also appreciated in the office leading up to and during Festival time with tasks like assembling Site and Stage kits and getting volunteers ready for shows.

Volunteering for Celtic Colours

Celtic Colours is looking for volunteers to help with Site and Stage needs on the South and West side of Cape Breton.

Volunteer Application

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