Those of us who think that historical research ought to consist of more than the study of kings, ministers and generals owe a great debt to the pioneers of ‘history from below’ . Foremost amongst them must be E.P. Thompson, who published his epic The Making of the English Working Class exactly half a century ago. The impressive wave of work that followed will be well-known to many of you and, if nothing else, I think most historians would agree that historical scholarship would be poorer if not for the intervention of these spirited men and women.
But what about the next fifty years? Has ‘history from below’, and perhaps social history more generally, outlived its usefulness? What, if anything, can it contribute to contemporary scholarship and the wider world? How should it be adapted or reoriented in the coming years? What new tools or techniques could strengthen…
Twitter came under fire for its lack of credibility as a real-time news source during the bombings in Boston earlier this year, thanks to a variety of hoaxes and erroneous reports that were spread about those who were allegedly responsible for the attacks. But despite these obvious flaws, researchers with the Harvard Medical School who looked at information flow on Twitter during the bombings argue that the network could be a valuable tool for emergency workers and others during such disasters.
The research was published earlier this week by PLOS One Currents, an open-access journal that is part of the Public Library of Science, and was based on the work of several scientists who are affiliated with the Harvard Medical School, as well as one researcher from the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA.
Entitled “Twitter as a Sentinel in Emergency Situations: Lessons from the Boston Marathon Explosions
Since 2002, Grizzly Bear have gained global recognition for their unique sound and incredible musicianship. Their most recent album Shields won huge praise from influential critics like online music bible Pitchfork and their high profile fans include Jay Z, Paul Simon and Radiohead.
Grizzly Bear are famous for their eclectic style, incorporating psychedelic pop, folk rock and the experimental with lush vocal harmonies. This staggering creativity can also be seen in the band’s videos, which have amassed millions of views on Youtube. Their 2009 album Veckatimest was selected as an album of the year by the New York Times, Time magazine and the Wall Street Journal.
This summer Galway audiences can look forward to seeing one of the world’s finest alternative bands perform in the Festival Big Top. Grizzly Bear are a music lover’s dream.
The Strypes.
The Strypes have spent the last 18 months launching their explosive R&B assault on the clubs and festivals of Ireland, UK and Europe, viciously hammering out a no-nonsense blues repertoire drawing from the songbooks of Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Howlin’ Wolf, with the passion and venom of British blues groups such as Dr. Feelgood, The Yardbirds, The Rolling Stones and The Animals. They’ve been tipped by the NME as the No. 1 new band to watch and have topped the iTunes Blues charts with their single Blue Collar Jane.
Fresh from Glastonbury where they ripped up the John Peel stage with a blistering set of raw, garage blues rock we are simply delighted to be adding them to this fantastic Big Top bill with indie rock royalty Grizzly Bear for what will be an incredible evening of music.
Praise for the Cavan band’s performance at the most iconic musical festival of them all is widespread in the media. Irish actor and creator of the much-loved Moone Boy Chris O’Dowd tweeted, ‘The Rolling Stones were a solid 8, but The Strypes turned it up to 11.’ In their Glastonbury 2013 review, theTelegraph wrote,‘Hot Irish quartet The Strypes ripped up the John Peel stage with a blistering set of raw, garage blues rock, closely modelled on the Stones circa ‘64, with a dash of Eric Burdon’s Animals aggression, Yardbirds-style soloing and Dr Feelgood intensity. All this, and they are younger than One Direction, schoolboys ready to take over the world.’ Meanwhile Digital Spyreported,‘Paul Weller’s Favourite New Band The Strypes, though, hold the John Peel Stage down with ease…’
As the momentum around The Strypes continues to swell, we know we’re in for another unforgettable night in the Big Top with the Next Big Things not just in Irish music but in rock n’roll full stop. This is your chance to see them before they go global and Galway Arts Festival is delighted to be bringing such an exciting act to our city. Below, you can check out The Strypes in action at Glastonbury. To secure your tickets to see them and Grizzly Bear, click here.
GALWAY ARTS FESTIVAL AND ROISIN DUBH PRESENT GLEN HANSARD WITH DAMIEN DEMPSEY
Glen Hansard and Damien Dempsey are two of Ireland’s favourite and most gifted musicians.
Ever since The Frames stormed the Irish music scene back in the 90’s, Hansard has been one of the most popular and recognisable performers on the Irish landscape.
His subsequent Oscar-winning international success with the film – and now musical – Once has lifted his star even higher. His first studio solo album Rhythm and Repose was released last year to widespread acclaim. We’re also thrilled that The Frames will now join their leading man on-stage in the Big Top for part of his set to sing some of their classic tunes.
Damien Dempsey released his sixth studio album Almighty Love in October 2012. As anyone fortunate enough to have experienced them will testify, Damien’s live gigs are the stuff of legend. It’s no surprise then that he has been invited to perfom with everyone from Bob Dylan to Sinead O’Connor and Willie Nelson to Morrissey.
Galway audiences can look forward to Glen Hansard and Damien Dempsey lifting the roof off the Festival Big Top this summer.
Josh Ritter has enjoyed a very special relationship with Irish audiences for many years. His latest album The Beast in its Tracks is his most personal to date and continues to establish Josh as one of the finest singer songwriters at work today. The Royal City Band with be joining Josh on the Big Top stage as he performs new songs and old favourites.
A Meteor Award winner for Best Irish Male in 2009, Mick Flannery’s distinctive voice and immense talent have marked him out as one of Ireland’s finest performers. His most recent album, Red to Blue, topped the charts and received huge radio play thanks to great singles like Gone Forever and No Way To Live.
Support on this special Saturday night at the Festival Big Top comes from the much-loved West Cork Ukulele Orchestra.
Imelda May at the Big Top with Special Guest Mundy
The reigning queen of rockabilly Imelda May will light up the Festival Big Top stage this summer. Her critically acclaimed albums Love Tattoo and Mayhem both topped the charts. Imelda has performed at the Grammys, toured the US with Jamie Callum and won high praise from the music industry’s most revered names, including Jools Holland and Bono.
Starting out in Dublin’s The Liberties, Imelda May has always stayed true to her roots while becoming a world-class performer and artist. Her live gigs are legendary. When it comes to rocking the Big Top this summer, Galway audiences can expect a tour de force from the amazing Imelda.
Inspired by Oscar Wilde’s The Happy Prince Julie Feeney has devised a new world around the story set in a land of birds. This concert performance of Bird with score and libretto by Feeney, will go into full production in 2014 with a creative team including Mikel Murfi, Sabine D’Argent and Joanne Hynes.
Composer, singer, orchestrator, songwriter and producer, Julie Feeney is a winner of the Choice Music Prize for Irish Album of the Year. Captivating and original, with an unquestionably unique sound, her work, though rooted in classical music, perfectly straddles both the pop and theatrical worlds.
Bird is the inaugural commission from Festival Firsts, an initiative of IFCN (Irish Festivals’ Co-Production Network – Galway Arts Festival, Dublin Theatre Festival, Cork Midsummer Festival and Kilkenny Arts Festival) and received an Arts Council Opera Project grant for development.
This performance is supported by Galway Arts Festival’s Directors’ Circle.
Backstage at the Festival: Julie Feeney Composer of Bird, Julie Feeney in pre-concert conversation. 28 July, 7.30PM St. Nicholas’ Church
For the past 37 years, BeauSoleil with Michael Doucet has been making some of the most potent and popular Cajun music on the planet. BeauSoleil’s distinctive sound derives from the distilled spirits of New Orleans jazz, blues-rock, folk, swamp pop, Zydeco, country and blue grass. Their first studio release in four years, their25th album From Bamako to Carencro, has been widely acclaimed.
A NIGHT AT THE PROMS WITH THE RTE CONCERT ORCHESTRA
MUSIC
IRELAND
A much-loved music celebration around the world, Galway Arts Festival presents Galway’s first Night at the Proms in the spectacular setting of the Festival Big Top with a thrilling programme of music from the movies, conducted by David Brophy.
The programme includes John Williams’ soaring Superman March, and ET Adventures on Earth; Ennio Morricone’s haunting Gabriel’s Oboe from The Mission, the iconic Once Upon a Time In America and The Good The Bad & The Ugly; Michael Giacchino Suite from the Disney/Pixar Movie Up; the classics, Chariots of Fire from Vangelis, Bill Conti’s Rocky; That’s Entertainment! in A Tribute to MGM; John Barry’s Out Of Africa, and the unbelievably cool Shaft by Isaac Hayes.
Matthew E. White is an American songwriter, producer, arranger and founder of Space bomb Records. His debut album Big Inner was released in August 2012 to universal critical acclaim. It secured Billboard’s breakthrough album of the year and was called ‘One of the great albums of modern Americana’ by Uncut Magazine. Recreating the laid back grooves of vintage soul pop, Matthew E.White brings his unique voice to the Róisín stage.
Choice Music nominees, Ellie and Louise Macnamara aka Heathers, have enjoyed Irish and international success having firmly proven that they’re a musical force to be reckoned with. Earlier this year, they were invited to perform for Steven Spielberg and JJ Abrams at the Oscar party of the Hollywood director in Santa Monica. They are currently working on writing projects with David Guetta and Disney while penning songs for a number of other recording artists including Ashley Roberts of Pussycat Dolls fame.
Music Ireland Hudson Taylor (brothers Harry and Alfie) take their inspiration from both folk and pop, with aviva city all their own. It is difficult to listen to them, and not come away instantly affected. A busking and YouTube sensation long before they even approached are cord company, they combine keening melodies with a bustling energy that is as infectious as it is memorable.
Music U.S.A There aren’t too many artists in soul music still working today who had a release in 1969. Lee Fields, however, is one such artist – or maybe he is bettered labelled a phenomenon. With a career spanning over forty years, Fields has amassed a prolific catalogue of albums and has performed with such legends as Kool and the Gang, Sammy Gordon and the Hip-Huggers and O.V. Wright. His music ranges from James Brown-style funk to lo-fiblues to contemporary Southern soul to collaborations with French house DJ/producer Martin Solveig. Lee Fields has done it all.
Jeffrey Lewis is both a comic book artist and a musician. With his band The Rain, material ranges from acoustic narratives to head smashing garage rock. Lewis’decade-plus career has included shows with The Vase lines, Stephen Malkmus, The Mountain Goats, Devo, Pulp, and other luminaries.
This innately talented ensemble, ensconced in New Orleans’ musical and sociological heritage, have lyrical depth and dexterity, compositional chops and improvisational flair to spare.
Music Ireland With a career spanning two decades, Jerry Fish is one of Ireland’s most enigmatic songwriters and performers. Former frontman of An Emotional Fish, his swaggering vocal has been described as Tom Waits in a good mood, or Leonard Cohen doing Dean Martin. Jerry Fish’s high-energy shows are legendary.
Described by the Irish Times as ‘one of those life-saving, spirit-lifting, pioneering cultural ventures we keep hearing about’, Kaleidoscope is a night of music curated by the violinist Clíodhna Ryan and the cellist Kate Ellis. With a monthly series in Dublin year-round, these celebrated nights feature innovative and imaginative programming and a diverse range of music from ancient to contemporary and experimental in a relaxed, intimate and beautiful setting. This summer the Kaleidoscope Camino hits the road, with two keenly-awaited performances at Galway Arts Festival. Featuring some of Ireland’s finest musicians, the shows include the Galway-based ConTempo String Quartet and the stellar accordionist Dermot Dunne. A world premiere by the Congolese guitarist and composer forms an exciting additions to the programme.
‘You can be promised a magical Kaleidoscopic cocktail of elegance, excellence and excitement.’ – LeCool
‘It has all the right ingredients: top musicians, a completely mixed, unpredictable programme, and a relaxed atmosphere.’ – The Irish Times
‘There’s always an eclectic and brilliant range of music.’ – Cara Magazine
Described by the Irish Times as ‘one of those life-saving, spirit-lifting, pioneering cultural ventures we keep hearing about’, Kaleidoscope is a night of music curated by the violinist Clíodhna Ryan and the cellist Kate Ellis. With a monthly series in Dublin year-round, these celebrated nights feature innovative and imaginative programming and a diverse range of music from ancient to contemporary and experimental in a relaxed, intimate and beautiful setting. This summer the Kaleidoscope Camino hits the road, with two keenly-awaited performances at Galway Arts Festival. Featuring some of Ireland’s finest musicians, the shows include the Galway-based ConTempo String Quartet and the stellar accordionist Dermot Dunne. A world premiere by the Congolese guitarist and composer forms an exciting additions to the programme.
‘You can be promised a magical Kaleidoscopic cocktail of elegance, excellence and excitement.’ – LeCool
‘It has all the right ingredients: top musicians, a completely mixed, unpredictable programme, and a relaxed atmosphere.’ – The Irish Times
‘There’s always an eclectic and brilliant range of music.’ – Cara Magazine
Music Ireland Critically acclaimed singer/songwriter Brian Kennedy started his musical career as part of Van Morrison’s band. With over 20 years in the music business, multiple hit singles and albums, Brian continues to entertain audiences across Ireland, the UK and beyond.
Renowned for their fine harmonies and musical arrangements The Henry Girls are becoming one of Ireland’s most talked about folk/roots acts and are fast developing an international reputation. They have a unique sound, which blends classic traditional Irish folk music with a hint of Americana, a nod to bluegrass and many more in between.
Music Ireland Frankie Gavin and De Dannan are legends in the traditional Irish music world. Performing for over 33 years, the current line-up includes Barry Brady, Colm O’Caoimh and Paul O’Driscoll with Michelle Lallyon lead vocals. Frankie is a celebrated Irish fiddle player who has performed and recorded with music legends including The Rolling Stones, Stephane Grappelli and Sir Yehudi Menuhin.
Pádraig Rynne, Sylvain Barou and Dónal Lunny are, individually, masters of traditional Irish music. When three such influential and creative musicians work together the result is a wonderful collaboration of exciting musical talent.
Music Australia When Mike Oldfield released his 1973 masterpiece, Tubular Bells, it required more than 30 musicians to perform it. This thrilling show recreates the album on stage, in real time in a unique and compelling theatrical experience. Witness Daniel Holdsworth and Aidan Roberts recreate the beauty and playful lunacy of one of the most important albums of the 20th Century with just four hands and four feet.
Music Ireland Since the formation of Arcady in 1988 by Johnny‘ Ringo’ McDonagh, dedication to Irish traditional music combined with virtuosic musicianship have made Arcady one of the most respected traditional bands in Ireland. Special guests include Stephen James & The Deans.
Music Ireland Silent Night is back. For one night only, Galway Arts Festival brings the Festival Club to the Big Top for a massive ‘Headphone Disco’ one of the Festival Club highlights of 2012. In the tradition of the ‘Silent Disco’, two top DJ’s battle for your attention on two-channel headsets. Stirring visuals and lots of surprises make this an unmissable party night of fun! Kicking off the night are Kormac’s Big Band live on stage.
Frankie Lane and Paul Kelly are one of Ireland’s most popular duos. Kelly’s virtuoso mandolin and fiddle playing are the perfect complement to Lane’s wonderful singing, guitar and dobro playing.
Paul O’Shaughnessy has toured and recorded with many artists from Altan to Beginish. Together, Paul and Harry have recorded the highly acclaimed album Born for Sport and have toured extensively.
Two of Ireland’s finest musicians Brendan O’Regan and Dermot Byrne join forces for this special Festival performance. On bouzouki/mandolin and accordion respectively, they play a vast and wide repertoire.
ONVERSATIONS: Marie Mullen IN CONVERSATION WITH GARRY HYNES
Artistic Director and co-founder of Druid Garry Hynes, interviews her longtime collaborator and friend, actor and cofounder of Druid, Marie Mullen. Garry and Marie are two of Ireland’s most celebrated and successful theatre artists, having toured extensively the highways, byways and broadways of the theatre world. The recipients of numerous awards, they both received Tony Awards in 1998 for The Beauty Queen of Leenane, Garry for Direction and Marie for Best Actress. Both received Special Tribute Awards at the Irish Times Theatre Awards for their enormous contribution to Irish theatre, Garry in 2005 and Marie in 2012.
CONVERSATIONS: TERRI HOOLEY IN CONVERSATION WITH TONY CLAYTON-LEA
Terri Hooley was born in Belfast. In 1978 he opened a record shop, and later founded the music label Good Vibrations which quickly estblished an impressive portfolio of bands including The Undertones. In spite of bankruptcy, arson, and run-ins with Bob Dylan and John Lennon, the label, the shop and Terri survived a turbulent and colourful career in the music industry. A biopic, Good Vibrations, was released earlier this year.
Terri is joined in conversation by journalist Tony Clayton-Lea.
This discussion focuses on the role and place of creativity in education. Is creativity in education as important as literacy, and should it be treated with the same status? Are we educating with too much emphasis on “the one right answer” – predicated on academic ability? In order for companies and countries to stay competitive do we need to take a hard look at how we’re teaching children – and adults – to think?
PANELLISTS INCLUDE
Dr. Patrick Collins: Lecturer in Economic Geography, School of Geography and Archaeology, and the Whitaker Institute, NUI Galway
Patrick graduated with a PhD from the Department of Geography at the University of Hull and has published in areas of regional development, the Information Society, and the impact of telecommunications provision. More recently, Patrick has turned his attention to the Creative Economy, carrying out research and publishing works on the impact of the Creative and Cultural industries to Galway and peripheral regions in Europe.
John Lonergan
Former Governor of Mountjoy Prison. John Lonergan was Governor of Mountjoy Prison until his retirement in 2010. A native of Bansha, Co. Tipperary, John joined the Irish Prison Service in 1968. He also served as Governor of the high security prison in Portlaoise from November 1988 until May 1992. He is married with two grown-up daughters. John argues that there is a direct link between crime and social and economic deprivation and believes that the biggest challenge facing us today is not the economy but how we are going to create a just, inclusive and cohesive society based on the core values of justice, equality fairness and compassion. His memoir, The Governor: The Life And Time Of The Man Who Ran Mountjoy, was published in 2010.
Prof. Kevin Whelan
University of Notre Dame Centre, Ireland. Professor Kevin Whelan was named the inaugural Michael Smurfit Director of the Keough-Notre Dame Centre in Ireland in 1998. He has been a visiting professor at New York University, Boston College and Concordia University, Montreal. He has lectured in over a dozen countries and at the Sorbonne, Cambridge, Oxford, Torino, Berkeley, Yale, Dartmouth and Louvain universities. He has written or edited fifteen books and over one hundred articles on Ireland’s history, geography and culture. Since 1999, he has co-directed the annual Irish Seminar, the leading seminar in the field of Irish Studies.
Dorothy Morrissey
Lecturer in Drama Education, Mary Immaculate College, University of Limerick. Dorothy Morrissey is a Lecturer in Drama Education at Mary Immaculate College, University of Limerick. Prior to her current post, she worked for many years as a primary teacher and curriculum trainer and advisor. Her research interests include reflective practice, creativity and arts education.
Gavin Jennings (Chair)
Broadcaster Gavin Jennings combined working in A&E departments as a doctor with covering politics for the Belfast Newsletter before joining BBC Northern Ireland, first as a newsreader on Radio Ulster and later as a reporter and presenter with Radio Foyle’s Sony award-winning
The discussion will focus on the challenges facing traditional media and the shape of things to come. As traditional media outlets reshape, redefine and restructure, we ask how journalism is changing and innovating with an ever growing audience across digital spaces. What role citizen journalism and user generated content will play and can newspaper print editions survive?
PANELLISTS INCLUDE
Maggie O’Kane Journalist and documentary maker.
Maggie O’Kane is an award-winning Irish journalist and documentary film maker. She has been most associated with The Guardian newspaper where she was a foreign correspondent who filed graphic stories from Sarajevo while it was under siege between 1992 and 1996. She also contributed to the BBC from Bosnia. She has been editorial director of GuardianFilms, the paper’s film unit, since 2004.
John Mulholland Editor The Observer. John Mulholland was born in Ranelagh in Dublin and received a degree in Communications in 1983 from Dublin City University. John also studied for an MA in media and communications at California State University, Sacramento. He worked as arts assistant at The Independent from 1987-8, then briefly for London Daily News in the same role. He joined The Guardian as assistant editor of the arts desk in 1990, and became media editor in 1994. In 1998 he left The Guardian to manage the re-launch of Mirror Group Newspapers’Sporting Life, and later rejoined the Guardian Media Group as deputy editor of The Observer in 1998, overseeing the magazines, sport, travel and culture sections. He developed and launched the monthly food, sport and music magazines and led the change of format to Berliner. Mulholland succeeded Roger Alton as editor in January 2008 and re-launched the paper in February 2010.
Mark Little CEO & Founder of Storyful. Mark Little is the founder of Storyful – a social media news agency. He leads a team of journalists and technologists working with the biggest news organisations and social networks in the world, including YouTube, ABC News and the New York Times. Mark has more than two decades of experience in journalism. He was an award-winning foreign correspondent at RTÉ. He also presented the current affairs programme, Prime Time, and was the broadcaster’s first Washington Correspondent. Mark has covered some of the biggest stories of our age, including the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and the election of Barack Obama. He has written three books about world affairs, including the number one bestseller ‘Turn Left at Greenland’.
Dave O’Connell (Chair) Editor & Broadcaster. Dave O’Connell is Group Editor of the Connacht Tribune, a role he has held for the past six years. A graduate of journalism at the College of Commerce in Rathmines in 1983, he started as a reporter with the Connacht Tribune tha
“Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” Jane Jacobs Death and Life of Great American Cities. It is envisaged that public spaces be the inspired centres of civic life; vibrant, active, sustainable places: reflecting the best of who we are. But, do our urban environments shape up to match? This discussion will focus on creativity and the use of public spaces.
PANELLISTS INCLUDE
Elizabeth Francis Irish Commissioner, Venice Biennale 2012. Elizabeth Francis was born in Ireland and studied architecture at University College Dublin, graduating in 1993. Based in Bologna, Italy she has studied and worked in France, Ireland and the UK. In 2010, she founded atelier Francis – curating architectural events and exhibitions – to pursue her interests in architecture, art and research. Prior to this, she was partner in Mario Cucinella Architects (MCA) in Paris and subsequently in Bologna. In 2012, she was appointed as Commissioner for Ireland’s Representation at the Venice Architecture Biennale.
Róisín Heneghan Architect, Heneghan Peng Architects, Ireland’s entry at the Venice Biennale of Architecture 2012. Róisín Heneghan is co-founder of heneghan peng architects with Shih-Fu Peng; a design partnership practicing architecture, landscape and urban design. The practice was founded in 1999 and in 2001 was relocated to Dublin. They have designed a range of projects which include large scale urban masterplans, bridges, landscapes and buildings. ‘Shifting Ground’ from heneghan peng was Ireland’s official entry at the Venice Bienalle International Architecture Exhibition in 2012, the most important architectural exhibition in the world.
Rich Gilligan Photographer who has documented skateboarding activity in public spaces. Rich Gilligan holds an MFA in photography from the University of Ulster, Belfast and a BA honours degree in documentary photography from the University of Wales, Newport. His work has been exhibited worldwide with recent exhibitions in in Dublin, London, Berlin, Dusseldorf and Los Angeles. He has been documenting homemade skate-parks in public spaces worldwide since 2008. This work titled “DIY” was published as a book in 2012.
Professor Kevin M. Leyden Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change, NUI Galway.
Kevin M. Leyden is a Professor of Political Science at the National University of Ireland, Galway. He also serves as Co-Director of the Creative, Liveable and Sustainable Communities Cluster of the Whitaker Institute. His current research focuses primarily on the relationship between the urban design, social capital, health, and well-being.
His research has been published in the American Journal of Public Health, Environmental Health Perspectives, Environment International, Urban Affairs Review, Health & Place, the American Journal of Health Promotion, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Proceedings of the Institute of Civil Engineers: Urban Design and Planning, and Policy Studies Journal, among others.
He is currently leading the research workgroup associated with a recently awarded EU/ESF funded COST Transit & Urban Development grant titled “People Friendly Cities in a Data Rich World”. The purpose of the COST action is to promote research and practitioner networks focused upon improving the liveability of cities.
Ali Grehan (Chair) Dublin City Architect. Ali Grehan is the Dublin City Architect and, since her appointment in January 2008, has actively promoted the idea of ‘excellence in the ordinary” in the context of the design and delivery of projects in Dublin city. Prior to her appointment as City Architect, Ali worked on housing projects as part of the urban regeneration of Ballymun, and became its chief architect in 2006. In her earlier career she was a Senior Architect with Fingal County Council and, before that, a member of the Light Rail Project Team that designed and delivered Dublin’s first LUAS lines. Ali initiated and led Dublin’s bid for designation as a World Design Capital 2014. You can find her on twitter at @AliGrehan
In this year of The Gathering, this discussion will focus on creativity and the Diaspora. The power of the Diaspora is irrefutable. With creativity lauded as being at the core of the Irish psyche, can networks based on ideas, and bound by family and heritage, transcend geography to help shape Ireland’s future? Can a collaboration of creative talents build a new narrative for Ireland?
PANELLISTS INCLUDE
Tim O Connor Chairman of the Gathering and former Irish Consul General NY. Tim O’Connor runs his own advisory business providing strategic advice and support to companies and organisations. He worked in the Irish Public Service from 1972 to early 2010, most recently as Secretary General to the President. His career also included almost 30 years in the Irish Diplomatic Service, in the Department of Foreign Affairs. A large portion of his career was spent working on the Northern Ireland Peace Process, including the Good Friday Agreement. He has also served terms as Director of the Africa Unit and of the Human Rights Unit in the Department of Foreign Affairs. His foreign postings included the Embassies of Ireland in Bonn and Washington DC and most recently, from 2005-2007, he was Consul General of Ireland in New York, USA. Tim is the holder of Honorary Doctorates from NUI Maynooth, the University of Ulster and Quinnipiac University (Connecticut, USA).
Aidan Connolly Director of the new Irish Arts Centre, New York. Aidan Connolly is the Executive Director of the new Irish Arts Centre in New York. The centre is dedicated to projecting a dynamic image of Ireland and Irish America for the 21st century. Its multi-disciplinary programming focuses on performance, exhibition and education. The centre serves as a dynamic platform for top emerging and established artists and cultural creators to reach a New York, US, and global audience, and as a gateway for other institutions to access first-rate Irish and Irish American culture.
Prof. Kevin Whelan (Chair) University of Notre Dame. Professor Kevin Whelan was named the inaugural Michael Smurfit Director of the Keough-Notre Dame Centre in Ireland in 1998. He has been a visiting professor at New York University, Boston College and Concordia University, Montreal. He has lectured in over a dozen countries and at the Sorbonne, Cambridge, Oxford, Torino, Berkeley, Yale, Dartmouth and Louvain universities. He has written or edited fifteen books and over one hundred articles on Ireland’s history, geography and culture. Since 1999, he has co-directed the annual Irish Seminar, the leading seminar in the field of Irish Studies.
Prof. Mícheál Ó Súilleabháín Chair of Music and Founding Director of the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick, Mícheál Ó Súilleabháín is noted for his development of a uniquely Irish traditional piano style. He has recorded extensively with the Irish Chamber Orchestra and has released some 15 recordings overall. His most recent recordings includeELVER GLEAMS: New and SelectedRecordings (EMI 2010), and the DVD Irish Destiny: music for the historic 1925 silent movie of the same name (Irish Film Institute 2006).
In 2004 he was appointed inaugural Chair of Culture Ireland (the statutory body for promoting Irish arts – including Northern Ireland – worldwide), was reappointed in 2008, and again in 2012. In 2005 he was awarded an Honorary D.Mus. by the National University of Ireland at University College Cork for his contribution to music in Ireland. Other awards include Ollamh na hÉigse (Professor of Arts) in 2005 by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, Boston College Honorary Alumnus Award for contributions to Irish music in the USA (2006), and Gradam Cheoil (Irish language television award for contribution to Irish music) in 2011.
In May 2011, he performed with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland for The Queen’s Concert in the National Convention Centre, Dublin, marking the visit of Queen Elizabeth to Ireland. In December of the same year he performed at the Grand Canal Theatre, at the request of the newly appointed President of Ireland, Dr. Michael D. Higgins. He was in residence for the year 2012 at the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies and the DeBartolo Center for Performing Arts at Notre Dame University where he is writing a new symphonic work for performance in 2014.
CONVERSATIONS: Enda Walsh IN CONVERSATION WITH PAUL FAHY
Enda Walsh is one of Ireland’s most celebrated playwrights. Recent work includes the book for the Broadway and West End musical Once, for which he won the Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical in 2012, and the award winning play Misterman which toured to New York and following its Galway performances at GAF 2011. Other recent plays include Penelope, The New Electric Ballroom and The Walworth Farce, have toured all over the world.
Colum McCann is the author of six novels and two collections of stories. He has won numerous international literary awards including the Dublin IMPAC Literary Award and the National Book Award in the USA for his last novel Let The Great World Spin.
In his new novel TransAtlantic, from which he reads, McCann weaves together personal stories to explore the fine line between what is real and what is imagined, and the tangled skein of connections that make up our lives.
Listen from the Archive: First Thought 2012: Caroline Casey on disability and creativity.
“Labels are for jam-jars, not for people”. Entrepreneur & Disability Campaigner, Caroline Casey speaking about disability and the importance of creativity as part of First Thought Talks at last year’s Festival.
Listen from the Archive: First Thought 2012: Chic’s Nile Rodgers In Conversation.
Chic’s Nile Rodgers talks partying, drugs & Madonna. Recorded after Chic’s Big Top performance as part of last year’s series of First Thought Backstage Talks at the Festival.
The discussion will profile four young Irish creatives. Galvea Kelly, James Whelton, Jonathan Cloonan & Jason Sullivan have embraced the digital world and have mapped out their own careers. In their twenties and internationally acclaimed, these sparkling creatives will speak about their work, their ideas and inspirations. How do they do it? And, is digi entrepreneurship the way forward?
PANELLISTS INCLUDE
Galvea Kelly
Global Director of Digital and Social Media for Revlon & recently awarded Top 40 under 40 Brand Innovators in the US. Aged 28, Galvea spearheads Global Social Media and Digital for Revlon Products. From Galway Galvea made the move to New York last year and is responsible for leading and executing US social media strategies and developing global social media measurement and standards for the brand. Prior to working in Revlon, Galvea setup her own social media consulting business – Brand Nua – and has worked throughout Europe, Middle East and the US. Her clients included Unilever, BMW, Nescafe and Saatchi and Saatchi. A frequent speaker at digital conferences, her work has been published globally and she has won 9 Digital awards in the US in the past 12 months. She has most recently been awarded Top 40 under 40 Brand Innovators in the US.
James Whelton
Co-founder of Coderdojo computer coding clubs and named by Forbes magazine in their 30 under 30 list. A self-confessed “horrible academic”, James Whelton is one of Forbes’ ‘30 under 30: Social Entrepreneurs’. In 2011, the 20 year old from Cork co-founded CoderDojo, free clubs where children learn computer coding skills. Now there are 130 dojos across 22 countries, with 10,000 children learning to code for free each week. Whelton’s ideal is to take young hackers out of their parents’ basements and provide them with a social environment in which to explore and hone their skills.
Jason Sullivan
Creator of the Sminky Shorts animation series. A relatively newcomer to the animation scene, Jason began working under the pseudonym, Andrew James last year and released his first animated short “Sminky Shorts: Awful Sad” in May 2012. In a short space of time, his animations clocked up over 18 million views on YouTube and he was signed to United Agents, the London-based office that represents Rickey Gervais and Richard Attenborough. Jason is currently concentrating on a new series for television while also studying for a BA degree in Multimedia at Cork Institute of Technology.
Jonathan Cloonan (Chair)
Global WPP Fellow, Digital Strategist Ogilvy & Mather WW and named by Forbes magazine in their 30 under 30 list. Jonathan Cloonan is a 27-year old Irish advertising executive currently working in Ogilvy & Mather, NYC. He was recently named in Forbes magazine’s 30 Under 30 list. He is a GlobGlobal WPP Fellow and prior to his move to New York, he was working in London and Singapore scouting out TV formats , such as Masterchef, The Voice and Next Top Model, for major brands and then working on exporting them in China, India and Vietnam. Cloonan is from Dublin; he was educated at Belvedere College, Trinity College and has completed a work-based Masters Degree in Smurfit Graduate Business School. – See more at: http://www.galwayartsfestival.com/firstthought/discussions/youngguns_1/#sthash.SkYcUHiQ.dpuf
Be prepared to be dazzled as one of Europe’s most exciting outdoor theatre companies, the world famous Sarruga from Barcelona, invade the city streets. Fire-breathing dragons, accompanied by pulsating electronic music, travel from Eyre Square through the heart of the city to the Spanish Arch. Boldly inventive and hugely thrilling, Sarruga bring excitement and terror in equal measure!
Spectacle
France
Les Pepones is a breathtaking comic tale with astonishing acrobatics, swings, catches, hangs and somersaults – all choreographed to a fantastic musical score inspired by the silent movies of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. With jaw-dropping skill, this cast of nine performing on a huge circus rig thirty-five feet above the audience has become one of the most talked about trapeze shows in Europe.
Spectacle
England
Creating the illusion of flying, an enormous, light-filled, helium balloon rises, falls and glides through the sky, suspending a stunning balletic aerialist below who tumbles and turns from ground level to twenty metres above the audience.
An enchanting and beautiful spectacle, which has wowed audiences all over the world.
Spectacle
Spain
Using clowning and acrobatics Any Day is a beautiful circus show that leaves audiences dazzled.
A traveller arrives in Galway, looking for a place to plant his nomadic home. But this traveller’s home is a little different; it’s a trampoline. Catalan trampoline master Max Calaf Seve, mixes extreme physical theatre and touching humour as he flies high into the sky.
Spectacle
England
Mesmerizing audiences with their simple and beautiful imagery, The Wrong Size use technology and circus skills to create stunning, visual spectacle. Highly visual and utterly unique Lightwalkers is a multi-colour swirl of movement, costume and light.
ARDAL O’HANLON
Comedy
Ireland
the legend who play father dougal mcguire, Father Ted star, Ardal O’Hanlon is delighted to present his latest stand-up show for 2013. The style is observational, the subject matter is life itself, and the default expression is one of utter disbelief!
Lurking beneath Ardal’s mild-mannered demeanour resides a sharp and probing comic brain. Here, he explores the world within and around him demonstrating why the peddling of jokes was not only his fate, but probably the only sensible way to live life.
Anndrew maxwell
Comedy
Ireland
One of Ireland’s best know comics, Andrew Maxwell continues to dominate the live and festival comedy circuits with sold-out shows around the world including the Edinburgh Festival and Montreal’s Just for Laughs. His TV appearances include One Night Stand, Wall of Fame, 8 Out of 10 Cats, Have I Got News for You?, Argumental, Celebrity Juice, Mock the Week, Sky Atlantic’s new comedy series Don’t Sit in the Front Row and Morgan Spurlock’s New Britannia.
David O’Doherty
Comedy
Ireland
A truly original and unique voice in Irish comedy, David O’Doherty’s shows are a gentle rollercoaster ride through the general absurdities of life, love and erm…. pandas. Quite simply, one of the best stand-ups in the world, with a slew of awards, sold out tours and TV appearances; David is an unmissable, late night Festival treat.
– See more at: http://www.galwayartsfestival.com/programme/comedy/david-o-rsquo-doherty/#sthash.h5PngXbX.dpuf
Five brave performers arrive with no script and not the faintest idea of what will happen. Willed on by a supportive crowd, they improvise whole sketches and comic dramas that are amazingly inventive, blossoming into flights of surreal brilliance. This show features the improvisational talents of Stephen Frost, Andy Smart, Steve Steen, Ian Coppinger and Greg Proop – See more at: http://www.galwayartsfestival.com/programme/comedy/whose-line-is-it-anyway_1/#sthash.mrKjacYr.dpuf
Laughter Loft: a GAf insituation at this stage! 🙂
Venue every day:The Ruby Room, The King’s Head 1pm
Comedy
Ireland
Early afternoon mayhem with a big side helping of mirth and madness as local lad made good Gerry Mallon, hosts and introduces some of the biggest names on the comedy circuit. With a different line up every day, the best and brightest new talent will be joined by stalwarts like Kevin Gildea, Fred Cooke, Eleanor Tiernan, Eric Lalor, Foil Arms and Hog and Jarlath Regan.
Before I kick of the theate and dance highlights I have to acknowledge Enda walsh getting an honorary degree in NUI Galway as well as Tom Murphy, Conor McPherson, Patrick Mason, Sineád Cusack and Bob Crowley at UCD which i have blogged about on July 1st and tody
Enda Walsh will be conferred with a Degree of Doctor of Literature (honoris causa). Enda Walsh is a multi-award winning Irish playwright. His work has been translated into over 20 languages and has been performed internationally since 1998.
His recent plays include Misterman, performed in Ireland, America and Britain, 2010 – 2011; The New Electric Ballroom, which toured Ireland, Australia, Edinburgh, London, New York and LA 2008-2009; and The Walworth Farce, which played Ireland, Edinburgh, London and New York, as well as an American and Australian tour 2007-2010. All of these plays were produced by Druid Theatre. His other plays include Delirium; Chatroom, The Small Thing, Bedbound and Disco Pigs.
He has written the Tony Award-winning book for the musical Once, which is currently playing on Broadway. His film work includes Disco Pigs (Temple Films/Renaissance) and Hunger (Blast/FILM4) and the forthcoming, Weightless (Smuggler Films, New York).
others conferred on that day were :
Dr Rita Colwell will be conferred with a Degree of Doctor of Science (honoris causa). She is Distinguished University Professor at the University of Maryland at College Park and at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and Chairperson of Canon US Life Sciences, Inc.
Dr Colwell has served as Director of the US National Science Foundation (NSF) from 1998-2004. During her term she oversaw a budget increase and a consolidation of the support levels provided to scientists and engineers with NSF grants. In addition she broadened the NSF range of programmes with special interaction in K-12 science and mathematics education, graduate science and engineering education and the increased participation of women and minorities in science and engineering.
Born in Beverly, Massachusetts, Dr Colwell holds a B.S. in Bacteriology and an M.S. in Genetics from Purdue University, and a Ph.D. in Oceanography from the University of Washington. She is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and serves on science advisory boards worldwide. She received the National Medal of Science from the US President in 2006.
Mr Leonard Moran will be conferred with a Degree of Doctor of Science (honoris causa). Leonard Moran is a biomedical industry entrepreneur based in Ballina, Co. Mayo. He is the founder and CEO of Ovagen, the world’s first economically sustainable producers of germ-free eggs and antibodies.
Prior to establishing Ovagen, Leonard founded Biological Laboratories Europe Limited (Biolabs) which was acquired in 2002 by Charles River Laboratories. Previously he spent 8 years with the British Medical Research Council (MRC) from 1968-76 where he focused on clinical research. In addition he has a wealth of practical operational and construction experience associated with biological facilities.
These three graduands join the ranks of previous honorary alumni which include, among many others, Nelson Mandela, Hilary Clinton, Christy O’Connor Snr and Jnr, Enya, Anjelica Huston, Fionnuala Flanagan and Margaret Atwood.
in terms of theate and dance, GAF has added many backstage events across sphere of the festival but especially theate and dance
MIES JULIE
THEATRE · Irish PREMIERE
SOUTH AFRICA
THE BAXTER THEATRE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE SOUTH AFRICAN STATE THEATRE PRESENT
MIES JULIE
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY YAEL FARBER
BASED ON AUGUST STRINDBERG’S MISS JULIE
MUSIC BY DANIEL AND MATTHEW PENCER
Following sensational reviews in Edinburgh, New York and London the multi-award winning, international hit Mies Julie comes to Galway for just eight performances.
In the smouldering kitchen of a remote South African farmhouse 18 years after the end of apartheid, a single night of tenderness and brutality unfolds between a black farm labourer, his white master’s daughter and the woman who raised them both. The visceral struggles of contemporary South Africa are laid bare as John and Julie battle over power, sexuality, memory, mothers and land.
This explosive new adaptation of Strindberg’s classic Miss Julie from the internationally acclaimed director Yael Farber and Cape Town’s Baxter Theatre gets straight to the drama’s dark and steamy heart.
Contains Strong Adult Themes and Nudity. Suitable for age 16+
BACKSTAGE AT THE FESTIVAL
Post-show talk with director Yael Farber and the cast, 23 July
jULY 22 20.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 23 20.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 24 20.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 25 20.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 26 20.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 27 14.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 27 20.00 Town Hall Theatre JULY 28 20.00 Town Hall Theatre
PRICE : €20-€29
***
LANDMARK PRODUCTIONS presents
HOWIE THE ROOKIE
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY MARK O’ROWE
STARRING TOM VAUGHAN-LAWLOR
Three hearts poundin’ loud, three lungs, pairs of lungs, suckin’ louder, suckin’ hard.
Then softer, then calmer, then quieter.
Then quiet.
Howie tells a story. Then Rookie takes it up. Mark O’Rowe’s electrifying epic tale is a wild, urban odyssey through a nightmare landscape – hilarious and grotesque by turns.
Meet the enormous Avalanche, monstrous on the bar stool in her white ski pants. Meet Ladyboy, a dangerous gangland thug with Siamese fighting fish and (it is rumoured) three sets of teeth. Meet Mouse, Howie’s younger brother. Meet the Howie. Meet the Rookie.
Mark O’Rowe’s ‘thrilling new play’ (The New York Times) has been re-imagined for a single actor.
Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, star of RTÉ’s Love/Hate, will play both Howie and Rookie. Brace yourself for an adrenaline-filled theatrical odyssey.
Containing strong language and sexual references. Suitable for age 16+
BACKSTAGE AT THE FESTIVAL POST-SHOW TALK WITH TOM VAUGHAN-LAWLOR AND MARK O’ROWE 23 JULY
After thephenomenal sucessful The Outgoing Tide Northlight Theatre return to Galway with Stella and Lou.
THEATRE · European PREMIERE
U.S.A
NORTHLIGHT THEATRE PRESENT
STELLA AND LOU
BY BRUCE GRAHAM
DIRECTED BY BJ JONES
FEATURING PENNY SLUSHER, FRANCIS GUINAN AND ED FLYNN
On a quiet night at a Philadelphia bar, three kindred spirits find themselves on the cusp of change. Loneliness haunts Lou, a kind bartender set in his ways. He finds company with Stella, a feisty nurse with two grown kids and a failed marriage, and Donnie, a young barfly teetering between excitement and uncertainty about his upcoming wedding.
All three must face up to changing times and relationships past as they struggle to embrace the future in this funny and compassionate new play. From the author of The Outgoing Tide, a huge hit at Galway Arts Festival 2012, Stella & Lou is an intimate exploration of friendship, forgiveness, and the longing for companionship.
BACKSTAGE AT THE FESTIVAL POST -SHOW TALK WITH PLAYWRIGHT BRUCE GRAHAM, DIRECTOR BJ JONES AND THE CAST 17 JULY
Theatre · NEW WORK FROM GALWA Y
Ireland
BLUE TEAPOT THEATRE COMPANY PRESENT
SANCTUARY
BY CHRISTIAN O’REILLY
DIRECTED BY PETAL PILLEY
An ordinary trip to the cinema and a welcome break from their training centre provides an opportunity for Larry and Sophie to steal away and be together at last. But now that they’re alone, what will they do?
Beautifully bittersweet, this warm comedy keeps you laughing and crying. Sex and disability are explored in this captivating story that shows what happens in those rare moments alone.
Not suitable for Children.
JULY 17 19:00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 18 19.00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 19 19.00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 20 19:00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 24 19:00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 25 19:00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 26 19:00 Blue Teapot Theatre JULY 27 19:00 Blue Teapot Theatre
PRICE : €12 – €15
– See more at: http://www.galwayartsfestival.com/programme/theatre-amp-dance/sanctuary/#sthash.5cho2gCv.dpuf
****
E EMERGENCY ROOM AND GALWAY ARTS FESTIVAL PRESENT
RIVERRUN
ADAPTED, PERFORMED AND DIRECTED BY OLWEN FOUÉRÉ
SOUND DESIGN/COMPOSTION BY ALMA KELLEHER
SCENEOGRAPHY BY MONICA FRAWLEY
LIGHTING DESIGN BY STEPHEN DODD
CO DIRECTED BY KELLIE HUGHES
…Soft morning, city! Lsp! I am leafy speafing. Lpf!
Folty and folty all the nights have being falling on to long my hair…
Fouéré’s work in creating this world premiere began by listening for the voice of ALP (Anna Livia Plurabelle) in her guise as the river ‘Life’, whose never-ending course through Finnegans Wake emits a powerful transformative energy as she dissolves into the great ocean of time.
Fouéré, one of Ireland leading theatre makers, in collaboration with an exciting creative team, takes a unique approach to Joyce’s extraordinary ‘sound-dance’. A performance not to be missed.
Riverrun is made possible with the support of the Arts Council. Production support provided by Rough Magic.
Previews 18,19,20
BACKSTAGE AT THE FESTIVAL POST -SHOW TALK WITH OLWEN FOUÉRÉ AND THE CREATIVE TEAM 24 JULY
JULY 18 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 19 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 20 20.00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 22 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 23 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 24 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 25 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 26 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 27 14:00 Druid Lane Theatre JULY 27 20:00 Druid Lane Theatre
PRICE : €20-€25
– See more at: http://www.galwayartsfestival.com/programme/theatre-amp-dance/riverrun_1/#sthash.BjTFUpSU.dpuf
WITH JOE HANLEY AND CLARE BARRETT
The story of an Irish marriage.
Maisie and Dermot are the perfect picture of incompatibility. Married in 1950, they tell us about their life together from early disillusion to late acceptance.
By turns poignant and hilarious, A Galway Girl shows us the ups and downs of a shared life that was a touching mixture of humour and tragedy, held together by a love that endured.
First produced in 1979, A Galway Girl was a hit in England, Ireland and South Africa and remains a beautifully observed play and a fascinating social document.
Geraldine Aron was born in Galway but spent most of her adult life in Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Her other writing credits include My Brilliant Divorce, Same Old Moon, The Donahue Sisters and The Stanley Parkers. She is also the author of numerous plays produced for television and radio, and Toscanini, a screenplay directed by Franco Zeffirelli.
ULY 16 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 17 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 18 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 19 14.00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 19 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 20 14:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 20 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 22 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 23 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 24 18.00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 25 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 26 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 27 14.00 Bank of Ireland Theatre JULY 27 18:00 Bank of Ireland Theatre
PRICE : €12 – €15
*****
Tom Murphy’s THE LAST DAYS OF A RELUCTANT TYRANT in Irish
A powerful epic depicting ARINA, a mother consumed by greed who triumphs during the boom, but the bust comes and Arina’s fortunes fail. She is thrown onto the charity of her favourite son, then left destitute by his amoral greed and hypocrisy. This satire is a savage look at boom and bust with keen resonances for our time. – See more at: http://www.galwayartsfestival.com/programme/theatre-amp-dance/an-tioranach-drogallach/#sthash.IoPdhXML.dpuf
JULY 16 to 20th 20:00An Taibhdhearc
***
Dance shows
The Rite of Spring and Petrushka
Dance Theatre · Irish Premiere
Ireland
A FABULOUS BEAST DANCE THEATRE PRODUCTION IN COLLABORATION WITH SADLER’S WELLS, CO-PRODUCED WITH GALWAY ARTS FESTIVAL , MOVIMENTOS FESTWOCHEN DER AUTOSADT IN WOLFSBURG, BRISBANE FESTIVAL AND MELBOURNE FESTIVAL PRESENT
THE RITE OF SPRING & PETRUSHKA
CHOREOGRAPHER & DIRECTOR MICHAEL KEEGAN-DOLAN
With music by Igor Stravinsky.
Michael Keegan-Dolan re-imagines his Olivier-nominated version of The Rite of Spring, which premiered at the London Coliseum in 2009 to great critical acclaim. Described both as ‘inspired’ and ‘exhilarating’ by The Times of London, The Rite of Spring draws on the same ancient, savage forces that inspired the Russian composer 100 years ago.
The evening is completed by Keegan-Dolan’s new interpretation of Petrushka. Performed by the exquisite dancers of Fabulous Beast, both pieces together create an intoxicating double bill of dance theatre that honours the searing modernity of Stravinsky’s music. The celebrated concert pianists Lidija and Sanja Bizjak will accompany both pieces.
Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre is supported by the Arts Council.
Contains Nudity and Scenes of a Sexual Nature, suitable for age 16+
013 PROGRAMME –
Knee Deep
PHYSICAL THEATRE · Circus
Australia
CASUS PRESENTS
KNEE DEEP
CONCEIVED AND DIRECTED BY CASUS
Australia’s hottest new circus company takes the art form to a whole new level.
Using traditional and contemporary circus techniques, Knee Deep is a spectacular display of choreography, acrobatics, trapeze and aerial stunts, full of incredible physical skill, brute strength and exquisite beauty.
Galway Arts Festival has a tradition of introducing young Australian companies to the European stage including the world-renowned Circa. Casus, with their breathtaking and fragile display of skills and performers who test the very limits of the human body, are the next generation about to take the world by storm.
BACKSTAGE AT THE FESTIVAL
POST -SHOW TALK WITH THE CAST 23 JULY
JOHN SCOTT/IRISH MODERN DANCE THEATRE PRESENT
HYPERACTIVE
CHOREOGRAPHY BY JOHN SCOTT
MUSIC BY MEREDITH MONK
DANCERS: MARCUS BELLAMY, ASHLEY CHEN, PHILLIP CONNAUGHTON, KEVIN COQUILLARD, WINSTON DYNAMITE BROWN
Hot on the heels of John Scott’s internationally successful Actions and Body Duet, comes Hyperactive, an explosive and thrilling new work for five virtuoso male dancers. Hyperactive is wonderfully enjoyable, using frenetic falls, athletic jumps and physical extensions.
A development from Scott’s hit Actions – Hyperactive, a live human architecture installation has the finest cast of male dance talent from Merce Cunningham, Alvin Ailey, the Broadway musical Spiderman and the TV musical series, Smash.
Text of the inroductory address delivered by Profesor Tony Roche on 15 June 2013, on the occasion of the presentation of the Ulysses Medal on Sinead Cusack
Deputy-President, Honoured Guests, Ladies and Gentleman.
Sinead Cusack is the eldest daughter of two renowned Irish theatre actors, Cyril and Maureen. After acting at the Abbey Theatre in the 1960s as one of the brightest of a rising generation of Irish actors, she went to England in the 1970s and debuted with the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford-on-Avon. Sinead Cusack says that initially she was intimidated by the greatness of Shakespeare, thinking she should just stand stock still and deliver the lines. But she persevered and learned to make the lines her own by concentrating on Shakespeare’s profound understanding of human nature rather than on his intimidating greatness. Since then, she has played a great many of the dominant, independent but embattled heroines of those wise Shakespearean comedies, receiving a Tony Award nomination in New York for her performance as Beatrice in Much AdoAbout Nothing. But she has gone further in her characteristically intrepid Shakespearean journey, tackling the most substantial of the female roles in the tragedies, Lady Macbeth, and Cleopatra in Antony and Cleopatra, one of her greatest achievements. Most recently, she has played Paulina in that great late Shakespearean romance, The Winter’s Tale, directed by Sam Mendes in the Bridge Project that was shared between the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York and the Old Vic in London.
Sinead Cusack has not neglected the Irish side of her theatrical lineage and instead has kept a consistent and core strand of Irish work running through her career. In the 1970s, she was the best Pegeen Mike I have ever seen, in a TV production of Synge’s The Playboy of the Western World with John Hurt as Christy Mahon. Fiery, spirited, beautiful, independent, she brought a fine contemporary edge to the part. Two years ago, in an important first production between the two National Theatres of these islands, she played one of the most iconic roles in the Irish theatrical canon, Juno in Sean O’Casey’s Juno and thePaycock. Again, she made sure that the play was not just discussed for the male double act of Captain Boyle and Joxer Daley but for the interplay between her character and her husband, played by Ciaran Hinds. We were more aware than usual that this was a woman who was slaving in manual labour to put sausages in the pan for a disabled son, a striking daughter and a shiftless, chronically work-shy and alcoholic husband. Before our eyes, this ordinary woman grew in tragic depth until she commanded the increasingly bare stage with her courage and fortitude.
Sinead Cusack has made a no less major and garlanded contribution to the work of contemporary writers. In 2006, she pulled off an utterly convincing double role of a younger and older woman in Tom Stoppard’s Rock and Roll for which she received a Tony nomination for Featured Actress and a Drama Desk Award nomination for Best Actress. But it is her electrifying performances in plays by Brian Friel, Frank McGuinness, Sebastian Barry and Conor McPherson that we should particularly celebrate today. The most difficult role of her career, she says, was Mai O’Hara in Sebastian Barry’s Our Lady of Sligo in 1998. The play is primarily centred on an old Irish woman, lying in bed, dying of cancer; there are occasionally other characters and flashbacks but in the main it is a series of long, demanding monologues. The degree of her success in bringing this neglected old woman to unforgettable life can be measured not only by the audiences worldwide who flocked to see the play but by the prestigious theatre awards it garnered: an Olivier nomination and the Evening Standard award and the Critics Circle Theatre Award for Best Actress. Sinead Cusack has reminded us forcefully that Brian Friel was writing major roles for women before Dancing at Lughnasa in her performances as Alice in Aristocrats and Grace in Faith Healer. I cannot imagine a better Grace: beautiful, bearing the loss of her child by a husband who describes her as ‘barren’, exercising all the forensic skill of her legal training the better to understand but not cure her passionate attachment to the faith healer. Her recent performance in Conor McPherson’s stage version of The Birds at the Gate brought a strong female role to the fore as the playwright moved into new and exciting territory. And there is Frank McGuinness, with whom she has collaborated memorably over the years. He wrote the version of Chekhov’s Three Sisters in which she starred with her father and her own two sisters, Sorcha and Niamh, at the Gate in 1990. McGuinness has also written screen roles for her, most recently a savage, tender, searing two-hander for Sky Arts, Crocodile. In it, Sinead Cusack plays a white lawyer approaching an imprisoned black woman she has been hired to defend. The white woman says she has gone to London to study law, from another country (it is implied from Ireland). In the imperial centre she has listened and she has learned, but she has retained her own personality, her own independence and her own imagination.
Frank McGuinness scripted these lines and the part with Sinead Cusack in mind, and they describe what she herself has achieved. She has gone from Ireland to an extraordinary career worldwide on stage and screen – rising in particular to the challenges of the poetic theatre of Shakespeare and Chekhov – but she has brought all of this home not only with frequent appearances on the Irish stage and in Irish film but with her award-winning and definitive work in the very greatest of our native playwrights.
Praehonorabilis Pro-Praeses, totaque Universitas,
Praesento vobis hanc meam filiam, quam scio tam moribus quam doctrina habilem et idoneam esse quae admittatur, honoris causa, ad gradum Doctoratus in Litteris; idque tibi fide mea testor ac spondeo, totique Academiae.
The View from The DJ booth 