Kilkenny Arts Festival Programme 2010

kilkennyarts.ie Box Office 056 775 2175

Box Office: 3 Bateman Quay, Kilkenny Monday - Friday 10am-6pm, weekends from 31 July 2010 12 noon-5pm Tel +353 (0)56 775 2175 Email boxoffice@kilkennyarts.ie

kilkennyarts.ie Board of Directors

Emer Foley (Chair), Fergus Cronin, Susan Proud, Maureen Kennelly, Anna O’Sullivan, Conor Langton, Thomas O’Toole, Michael O’Toole, Isabell Smyth, Orla Kelly, Gobnait Kearney, Brian Kiely.

Festival Team Chief Executive Damian Downes Marketing Director Brendan Rice Office Manager Valerie Ryan Production Manager Aidan Wallace Programme Co-ordinator Lindsay Perry Box Office Management Cathy Hogan/Lillian Burke Programme Editor Alistair Daniel Marketing Executive Ray Lonergan Publicity Christine Monk Social Media Maestro Layla O’Mara Festival Blogger Ken McGuire Local PR Co-ordinator Melanie O’Connor Local Fundraising Manager Caitriona Drennan Volunteer Co-ordinator Niamh Duffe Artist Liaison Cornelia McCarthy Graphic Design A&D Web Design Pixel Design Official IT Provider BITS Strategic Development Mark Sobcyzk (Brand Engine) Festival image DesignWorks

Curators Theatre/Dance Tom Creed Classical Music Susan Proud Music Gerry Godley Wired Matthew Nolan Street Damian Downes Literature Colm Tóibín Visual Art Oliver Dowling Craft Angela O’Kelly Children’s Events Joe Brennan

Kilkenny Arts Festival thanks the curators, artists and performers whose passion and commitment inspire us year after year.

Thanks to the hard-working volunteers, especially those who have worked with the festival year after year. It could not take place without you all.

Thanks to the festival partners and friends without whose generosity the festival could not happen.

Thanks to everyone who gets involved in the wonderful happening that is the Kilkenny Arts Festival.

The Kilkenny Arts Festival gives special thanks to: Aideen O’Dwyer, Alan Raggett and Nail2Nail Fine Art Services, all the Staff at Kilkenny Castle (OPW), Amanda Horan, Brian Keyes, Brian Tyrrell, Business2Arts, Caroline Coode, Cathal O’Neill, Catriona Crowe, Ciara Cavanagh, Cormac Kinsella, Debra O’Neill, Eamon & Eddie Langton, Fiona Deegan, Fiona Flood & the Girls, Fr Louis Hughes, Ger Coady & the Watergate Theatre, Heather Maitland, His Honour Judge Peter Smithwick, Jacqueline Dempsey, Jane Russell & the Cat Laughs team, Joe Crockett, John Dash, John Morton, John Purcell, John Ryan & the staff of Eleven Patrick Street, Julia Crampton, Kilkenny Tourist Office, Kitty Colchester, Maeve Butler, Mary Butler & Kilkenny County Council Arts Office, Naoise Coogan, Patrick Lydon, Philip Edmondsun & the Kilkenny School of Music, Philip King, Regina Fitzpatrick, Roisin McQuillan & the staff at Rothe House, Rory McCarthy, Rudolf & Eva Heltzel, Russell Ashby, Sarah Quinlan, Sean McKeown, Sgt Gary Gordon, Sharon O’Gorman, St Canice’s Credit Union, Sue Nunn, Sunniva O’Flynn, Susan Hallam, Tess Felder, The Dean, Chapter & Staff of St Canice’s Cathedral, Theatre Forum, Una McCarthy, Una Parsons & the Crafts Council of Ireland, Willie Meighan, Alan Slattery, Sylvia Corcoran, Darren Poynter.

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01 funders

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theatre and dance

Tom Creed curator This year’s programme is a celebration of liveness, of proximity, of reality. These are seven of the most exciting performances I have come across over the past few years. This work may be unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, but it’s exciting, moving and equally accessible for hardened theatre-goers and adventurous first-timers alike.

Quarantine and Una McKevitt put real lives on stage. There’s no pretending here.

Susan and Darren and Victor and Gord present themselves to the audience, telling hilarious and moving stories that will strike a chord with everyone. So too does Shane from THEATREclub, who invites you to help him solve the problems of being a young man in the world today.

Action Hero and ponydance invite you to watch their shows with a drink in your hand, in well-known Kilkenny pubs. Their work is adventurous, exciting and interactive while, for anyone who craves even more intimacy, Ontroerend Goed and Adrian Howells present work for one audience member at a time. The Smile Off Your Face and Foot Washing for the Sole are truly once-in-a-lifetime experiences. A very limited number of tickets are available for these shows, so book early if you don’t want to miss out!

This year we’ve taken the programme out of conventional spaces, into historic buildings, pubs and bars. We’re presenting shows at all times of day, so whether you’re a local or a visitor you can discover a range of exciting work.

The Left Bank, Patrick Street / Friday 6 - Sunday 8 August 6.30pm (doors 6pm) / Admission €15/€13 PONYDANCE (Ireland)

WHERE DID IT ALL GO RIGHT? Joyous dancing and sharp wit ★★★★★ The Irish Times Hugely funny ★★★★★ The Belfast Telegraph Duration 50 minutes Please note: this performance contains strobe lighting.

Four people in a bar, trying to get out of it. You’ve probably met some of them before. Nearly outrageous, mostly clever, always inventive, the ever-industrious ponydance, champions of comedy dance theatre, serve up a confection of moves and movement to a soundtrack of garish music and nervous tension. Four outstanding performers dance their way into hearts, minds and underwear. You’ll laugh and cringe! ponydance are an Irish company led by independent dance artist Leonie McDonagh. They won the Audience Choice Award at the Pick ‘n’ Mix 3 Festival in Belfast and have been commissioned to make a new show for this year’s Dublin Fringe Festival.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Photo: Brian Farrell

This is new. This is live. This is now. Dive in.

Photo: Fiona Morgan

★★★★★ Irish Theatre Magazine Duration 55 minutes

Cleere’s, Parliament Street / Friday 6 Tuesday 10 August 1pm / Admission €15/€13 UNA McKEVITT (Ireland)

VICTOR AND GORD You know those friends you grew up with? Went to school with? Laughed, cried, partied and pulled with? D’you ever wonder sometimes, if they’d ever just f**k off?

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If you want to be seduced by a ridiculous quotient of charm and a kind of knowing innocence, then Victor and Gord is the answer to a prayer Sunday Independent

Real-life friends Vickey Curtis and Aine McKevitt – aka Victor and Gord – have only one thing in common: each other. Friends since before they can remember, they revisit the everyday experiences that cemented their friendship and wonder where it all went wrong.

A funny and deeply moving celebration of friends and family from Una McKevitt, a Dublin-based theatre practitioner making theatre from everyday life.

Rothe House, Parliament Street / Friday 6 - Tuesday 10 August 2pm-5pm and 7pm-10pm daily / Admission free. Booking essential.

IRISH PREMIERE ONTROEREND GOED (Belgium) in association with Richard Jordan Productions Ltd

THE SMILE OFF YOUR FACE an unforgettable experience ★★★★ The Scotsman

Duration 10 minutes

Welcome to the dark stage of Ontroerend Goed’s The Smile Off Your Face, a performance that offers a totally different experience.

Photo: Virginie Schreyen

You are blindfolded, you are in a wheelchair, tied up. There is no stage.

There is no audience, no fixed spot in the lights where actors perform.

Everything happens only in your head, and yet it doesn’t…

Ontroerend Goed are one of the most exciting companies in the world, and we’re delighted to present the Irish premiere of The Smile Off Your Face.

The Smile Off Your Face is a unique experience for one person at a time.

Please book a time in advance with the box office – you may be required to wait a few minutes to enter the performance. Please note that you will be blindfolded and tied up as part of the performance.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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Kyteler’s Inn, Kieran Street / Wednesday 11 - Thursday 12 August 6.30pm (doors 6pm) / Admission €15/€13 IRISH PREMIERE ACTION HERO (UK)

We want to make a Western. We have a cowboy hat and some ketchup. We want the scene where our hero walks into the bar and everyone stops talking. We want the scene where the whore begs to be loved. We want to cheat at cards. We want blood and guns.

A WESTERN

Everyone has a moustache. All the bad guys laugh.

Dust blows across a deserted street.

sharp, witty and poignant … a truly epic piece of theatre ... a beautiful pipedream of a show – one that places the audience at its heart ★★★★ The Guardian

Action Hero are Gemma Paintin and James Stenhouse. Arnolfini Associate Artists, they have toured A Western internationally to acclaim.

Photo: Sarah Cramer

Duration 50 minutes

Together with their audience, Action Hero reclaim the Western and celebrate the failure of generic heroes, cheap whores and the all-American idol.

Cleere’s, Parliament Street / Wednesday 11 - Sunday 15 August 1pm / Admission €15/€13

THEATREclub (Ireland)

GROUP THERAPY FOR ONE Duration 70 minutes

Photo: Gemma Paintin

Music.

Shane’s a bit f****d up.

He wants you to be the witness at an inquest into his life.

With the softness of his mother, and the bravado of his father, he will tell you things he doesn’t want you to know. Some say he’s comedy gold.

Others think he’s self-indulgent. Why don’t you decide?

THEATREclub are Shane Byrne, Doireann Coady and Grace Dyas. Their shows – about themselves and the people around them – are visually electrifying and created with fun and love. Group Therapy For One was nominated for Spirit of The Fringe at the Dublin Fringe Festival 2009.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

intimate, life-affirming, utterly magical and unmissable ★★★★★ The Irish Times Go out of your way to see it The Times Duration 90 minutes

QUARANTINE & COMPANY FIERCE (UK)

SUSAN & DARREN An event with dancing Darren lives at home with Susan. Darren is a dancer, Susan a cleaner. They dance together to John Holt, Althea and Donna and Diana Ross. You’d spot that they were mother and son instantly.

Quarantine and Company Fierce join forces to invent a kind of performance where real life doesn’t stop when the show starts. A huge international hit, Susan & Darren won the Best Production Award at the Dublin Fringe Festival in 2008.

You’re invited to help Susan and Darren prepare for one of their famous parties.

Along the way there will be devastation, intimate conversation and a lovely buffet.

Friends and neighbours might pop in.

Pre-show Dance Workshop!

Before each performance, Darren Pritchard will lead a dance workshop which will alter the course of that night’s show. All ages and levels of dance experience are welcome. Free to ticket-holders, but booking is essential.

Photo: Hamish Barton

Come and join the party.

Hole in the Wall, 17 High Street / Friday 13 - Sunday 15 August, 11.45am-1.45pm, 3pm-5.45pm, 7pm-9pm (Please book an individual time slot with the box office) / Admission €10/€8 IRISH PREMIERE ADRIAN HOWELLS (UK)

FOOT WASHING FOR THE SOLE

not only beautiful and comforting, but infinitely thought-provoking The Scotsman A little gift The Guardian Duration 30 minutes

Live artist Adrian Howells brings to Kilkenny an award-winning performance which offers to restore a sense of peace to our headlong, frantic lives.

Breaking down the barriers between performer and audience, Adrian tenderly washes, oils and massages the participant’s feet in a one-to-one encounter that is comforting, thought-provoking and humble. Through a gesture that resonates with significance, he helps, quite literally, to reconnect us with the world.

Adrian Howells is a live artist whose work promotes intimacy and genuine exchange with an audience. Foot Washing for the Sole has been performed all over the world and won a Total Theatre Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last year.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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The Watergate Theatre, Parliament Street / Thursday 12 - Saturday 14 August 8pm (pre-show dance workshop at 6.30pm), Sunday 15 August 6pm (pre-show dance workshop at 4.30pm) / Admission €25/€20

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Susan Proud curator Choral singing and song recitals feature prominently at this year’s festival.

For the first time, the festival hosts a Festival Choir with workshops and rehearsals culminating in a performance in the magnificent St Canice’s Cathedral. One of Britain’s most celebrated choirs, The Cardinall’s Musick, performs Tudor masterpieces, while the Choir of St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast participates in a Festival Mass in St Mary’s Cathedral.

Dutch baritone Maarten Koningsberger and pianist Finghin Collins present Schumann’s glorious song cycle Dichterliebe, while Irish-American soprano Aileen Itani and Canadian pianist Rachel Andrist give a recital of music by Fauré, Berg, Debussy and John Greer.

The mellifluous tones of actor Barry McGovern can be heard in Façade – Edith Sitwell’s poems set to William Walton’s music – in the atmospheric Set Theatre, and there’s more music and poetry with Ellen Mandel’s settings of poems by Seamus Heaney, WB Yeats, ee cummings and others, sung by baritone Robert Gildon.

Two young Kilkenny musicians feature this year: guitarist Mark Anthony McGrath (performing a unique blend of celtic and baroque music with organist Christian Wilson), and violinist Maria Ryan, performing music by Schumann, Arvo Pärt and Bach with pianist Ciara Moroney.

Meta4 string quartet from Finland and the Lendvai String Trio bring youthful vigour to a host of great composers while the two solo recitals in the festival – from lutenist Thomas Dunford and pianist Antti Siirala – will be simply unmissable.

Finally, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra presents a delightful ‘pot-pourri’ of popular music from Gounod, Saint-Saëns, Ravel and many others.

St Canice’s Cathedral / Friday 6 August 8pm / Admission €22/€19

Approx. 90 minutes

ANTTI SIIRALA (Finland) piano This pianist I want to hear again… He is a full-blooded musician with a fascinating sense for the quality of the sound… he makes one listen and discover Seen & Heard

Even before he won both the Leeds International Piano Competition and the AXA Dublin International Piano Competition in 2003, Antti Siirala was recognised as one of the outstanding pianists of his generation. Praised by critics for his breathtaking technique, instinctive musicality and sustained intensity, Siirala has performed solo recitals at most of Europe’s finest concert halls.

This carefully-chosen programme highlights the musical relationship between Brahms and Schönberg and climaxes with four Chopin Ballades, some of the most challenging pieces in the standard piano repertoire.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Photo © Volker Beushausen

Programme JOHANNES BRAHMS Six pieces for piano op. 118 ARNOLD SCHÖNBERG Three piano pieces op. 11 FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN Ballade G minor op. 23 Ballade F major op. 38 Ballade A flat major op. 47 Ballade F minor op. 52

RTÉ CONCERT ORCHESTRA (Ireland)

John Wilson conductor Anne Marie Gibbons mezzo-soprano Niall Carroll presenter

Always one of the most popular events at the Kilkenny Arts Festival, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra brings its unrivalled repertoire to St Canice’s Cathedral this year for a lunchtime concert featuring the wonderful Irish mezzo-soprano Anne Marie Gibbons.

The orchestra lets loose with the irresistible ‘Light Cavalry Overture’, with its famous galloping melody, before Anne Marie Gibbons sings two gems of the repertoire: the beautiful ‘Mon cœur s’ouvre à ta voix’ (‘Softly awakes my heart’), and the passionate ‘Letter Scene aria’ from Werther. Ravel described his ‘Pavane for a dead princess’ as an evocation of a pavane that a little princess might, in former times, have danced at the Spanish court, and the dance strand continues with the ‘Skaters’ Waltz’ and the charming Ballet Music from Faust.

From 2004 to 2007 Anne Marie Gibbons was Company Principal with English National Opera. She has an extensive oratorio and concert repertoire and has worked with numerous international companies including Almeida Opera, Welsh National Opera, Opera National de Paris and English Touring Opera.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Saturday 7 August 2pm / Admission €22/€19

Programme FRANZ VON SUPPÉ Light Cavalry Overture MAURICE RAVEL Pavane pour une infante défunte JULES MASSENET ‘Je vous écris de ma petite chambre’ (Letter Scene aria) from Werther ÉMILE WALDTEUFEL Les Patineurs (Skaters’ Waltz) CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS ‘Mon cœur s’ouvre à ta voix’ from Samson and Delilah CHARLES-FRANCOIS GOUNOD Ballet Music from Faust

THE CARDINALL’S MUSICK (UK)

Tallis & Byrd: Friendship in adversity Andrew Carwood director

One of the most important vocal groups in Britain’s early-music armoury The Independent

Friends and colleagues in Tudor England, Thomas Tallis and William Byrd managed to preserve their Catholic faith despite the best attempts of monarchs to change their minds. This programme features their two most monumental pieces of music: the Gaude gloriosa from Tallis and the awe-inspiring Infelix ego from Byrd. Not only are they heartfelt settings of the texts, these are masterpieces of drama.

Programme THOMAS TALLIS Loquebantur variis linguis Verily, verily, I say unto you Why fum’th in fight O Lord, give thy holy Spirit Absterge Domine Gaude gloriosa WILLIAM BYRD Apparebit in finem Propers for All Saints Infelix ego Approx. 90 minutes

Winners of three Gramophone Awards, The Cardinall’s Musick embrace a wide range of styles and periods, from a Tudor Mass to contemporary commissions, while their passionate live performances could probably, as one reviewer wrote, “start a blaze in the Antarctic!” (The Times)

Photo: Dimitri Gutjahr

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The Black Abbey, Abbey Street / Saturday 7 August 8pm / Admission €28/€24 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Pierce Turner & Jennifer Evans (p.23) for €39

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THOMAS DUNFORD (France) theorbo At the age of nine, Thomas Dunford discovered the theorbo – a large lute with an extra set of bass strings. By the time he was a teenager, his playing was already “that of a master” (Société Française de Luth), and since then he has performed at many prestigious international events with a host of leading ensembles, including Le Concert Spirituel and the Irish Baroque Orchestra (both of whom featured at Kilkenny last year).

For this recital, Thomas Dunford performs three suites by one of the great French composers, Robert de Visée. Also featured are several pieces from de Visée’s colleague, the viola da gamba player Marin Marais (memorably played by Gérard Depardieu in the film Tous les Matins du Monde). Adapting some of Marais’ most magnificent pieces for the lute, Dunford pays tribute to these two exceptional French composers.

Programme ROBERT DE VISÉE Suite in D major Suite in A minor Suite in G major MARIN MARAIS Prélude Muzette La Rêveuse Les Voix Humaines

Set Theatre, John Street / Sunday 8 August 2pm / Admission €20/€17 ENSEMBLE NOUVEAU (Ireland)

FAÇADE

An Entertainment for reciter and six instruments

David Brophy conductor Barry McGovern reciter

Music by SIR WILLIAM WALTON Poems by EDITH SITWELL

Façade, William Walton’s first important composition, was designed to accompany readings of a series of ‘experimental’ poems by Edith Sitwell.

Full of quirky, witty character pieces, highlights of Façade include the ‘Swiss Jodelling Song’ and the ‘Tarantella’, where conflicting rhythms create the atmosphere of a wild fiesta.

As the name suggests, Ensemble Nouveau is the new chamber music ensemble of DIT Conservatory of Music. For this performance the ensemble will be joined by critically-acclaimed Irish actor Barry McGovern and directed by Principal Conductor of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, David Brophy.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Sunday 8 August 11am / Admission €15/€13

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Monday 9 August 1pm / Admission €15/€13

AILEEN ITANI (US/Ireland) soprano RACHEL ANDRIST(Canada) piano Programme GABRIEL FAURÉ Cinq poèmes de Venise ALBAN BERG Excerpts from Sieben frühe Lieder CLAUDE DEBUSSY Chansons de Bilitis JOHN GREER My Fancy Late and Early

This recital explores the rich world of fin de siècle French song with two of its leading exponents: Fauré and Debussy. Debussy influenced Austrian composer Alban Berg, while John Greer, a contemporary composer celebrated for his vocal compositions, is represented by these settings of Canadian folk songs.

Aileen Itani is a soprano of outstanding promise. A regular guest soloist with the Royal Danish Opera, she was awarded the Danish Music Reviewers’ Annual Prize in 2009.

Pianist Rachel Andrist is Head of Musical Projects at the Royal Danish Theatre Opera Academy, and has worked with celebrated conductors including Sir Simon Rattle, Antonio Pappano and Valery Gergiev.

St Canice’s Cathedral / Monday 9 August 8pm / Admission €20/€17

MARK ANTHONY McGRATH (Ireland) guitar CHRISTIAN WILSON (UK) organ Programme includes works by JOHANN SEBASTIAN Bach TURLOUGH O’CAROLAN JUDITH WEIR ANONYMOUS AIDAN O’ROURKE SILVIUS LEOPOLD WEISS CHARLES VILLIERS STANFORD

Photo: Howard Grey

Guitarist Mark McGrath and pianist Christian Wilson first performed together at the Zeltig festival in Luxembourg in 2008 and astonished critics with their “magnificent coalition of 6 strings and 1000 pipes” (La Voix du Luxembourg). Now they bring their unique blend of celtic and baroque-inspired music to St Canice’s for a special evening of familiar and rare songs. Their unusual arrangements combine the sonorities of the magnificently-restored Bevington organ with the subtleties of 6 and 13-string guitars.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

“TO AN ISLE IN THE WATER” Settings to poems by WB Yeats, Seamus Heaney, ee cummings & others

Photo: Malcolm Crowthers

In the mid 1990s, composer Ellen Mandel began setting the lyrical poetry of ee cummings, finding in his humour and warmth an inspiring richness and depth. Sold-out concerts and critical raves followed, and soon she branched out to include well-loved works by WB Yeats, Seamus Heaney and Ogden Nash. Baritone Rob Gildon’s singing captures the spirit of each song, vividly communicating the dramatic and heartfelt experiences of these eloquent texts.

St Canice’s Cathedral / Wednesday 11 August 8.30pm Admission €22/€19 Ticket Deal: Get this event and “When I’m Sixty-Four” (p.40) for €27

MAARTEN KONINGSBERGER (Netherlands) baritone FINGHIN COLLINS (Ireland) piano

Programme ROBERT SCHUMANN Dichterliebe op. 36 JOHANNES BRAHMS Five songs op. 106 HENRI DUPARC Five songs GEORGE BUTTERWORTH Six songs for A Shropshire Lad

Finghin Collins, “the most successful Irish pianist of his generation” (The Irish Times), joins forces with the formidable baritone Maarten Koningsberger for a very special recital featuring Schumann’s glorious song cycle Dichterliebe.

Koningsberger is master of a breathtaking range of styles, while Collins’ flourishing international career next sees him perform at the Proms with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. In September he joins the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra for a three-season spell as Associate Artist.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Photo: Colm Hogan

Photo: Colum Lydon

ROBERT GILDON (UK) baritone ELLEN MANDEL (US) piano

Mandel’s settings of four poems by ee cummings were ardent and spiky… refreshingly organic New York Times

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Set Theatre, John Street / Tuesday 10 August 10pm, Wednesday 11 August 1pm / Admission €15/€13

MARIA RYAN (Ireland) violin CIARA MORONEY(Ireland) piano Award-winning Kilkenny violinist Maria Ryan and pianist Ciara Moroney bring an eclectic programme to St Canice’s. Bach’s sonatas for violin and harpsichord are among the finest treasures that high baroque chamber music has to offer while, at the other end of the spectrum, Pärt’s Fratres is regarded as a pinnacle of the ‘holy minimalist’ movement.

Photo: Maria Dunphy

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Friday 13 August 1pm / Admission €13/€11

Programme JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Sonata for violin and keyboard no. 3 in E major BWV 1016 ARVO PÄRT Fratres ROBERT SCHUMANN Sonata for violin and piano no. 1 in A minor op. 105

St Canice’s Cathedral / Friday 13 August 8.30pm / Admission €22/€19

META4 STRING QUARTET(Finland) Programme HENRI DUTILLEUX Ainsi la nuit JOSEPH HAYDN String quartet op. 76/3 ‘Emperor’ ROBERT SCHUMANN String quartet no. 3 Approx. 80 minutes

In this wonderful performance the music’s epic scale emerged with unforced strength and grandeur The Daily Telegraph

Young Finnish string quartet Meta4 is rapidly establishing itself as one of the rising stars of the international chamber music scene. After winning first prize at both the International Shostakovich Quartet Competition in Moscow and the International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition in Vienna, the quartet was selected as a BBC New Generation Artist. Its repertoire encompasses works from Haydn to the most avant-garde pieces, all played on exceptional instruments including a Stradivarius violin, a Bellosio violin, a Guidantus viola and a Postiglione cello.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Programme LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Choral Fantasy GIOACHINO ROSSINI Stabat Mater

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Saturday 14 August 8pm / Admission €28/€24

Approx. 80 minutes

THE KILKENNY ARTS FESTIVAL CHOIR and ORCHESTRA

Fergus Sheil conductor Finghin Collins pianist Aileen Itani soprano Bridget Knowles mezzo-soprano Christopher Lemmings tenor Raitis Grigalis baritone

For the first time in its 37-year history, the Kilkenny Arts Festival hosts a Festival Choir.

Amateur choral singers from far and wide will participate in workshops and rehearsals that will culminate in a performance in the magnificent cathedral of St Canice, conducted

by Fergus Sheil, who has worked with all the major Irish orchestras as well as Opera Ireland and Scottish Opera. The programme includes Beethoven’s rousing Choral Fantasy and Rossini’s Stabat Mater, featuring celebrated tenor Christopher Lemmings, baritone Raitis Grigalis and mezzo-soprano Bridget Knowles, along with two of the performers featured in this year’s programme, pianist Finghin Collins and soprano Aileen Itani, and promises to be another wonderful occasion in St Canice’s.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Sunday 15 August 11am / Admission €18/€15

LENDVAI STRING TRIO (Netherlands/Sweden/UK)

Full of charm… an abundance of wit… gentle and intense…

Programme the musicians shone JEAN SIBELIUS The Strad String trio in G minor LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN The Lendvai String Trio formed while graduate students at the Guildhall String trio op. 9 no. 2 School of Music and Drama, winning a series of prestigious awards. Since JEAN CRAS then, these “full-blooded, confident musicians” (The Times) have performed String trio at many notable venues in Europe, drawing praise for their “persuasive playing, technically of the highest order” (The Strad). This exciting programme presents Sibelius’s only string trio alongside one of Beethoven’s three op. 9 masterpieces, dedicated to a military figure of Irish descent (Count Johann Georg van Browne-Camus), and Cras’s string trio which employs a wide range of styles, including North African influences.

St Mary’s Cathedral, James’s Street / Sunday 15 August 12.30pm / Admission €20/€17

FESTIVAL MASS Celebrated by the Most Reverend Seamus Freeman Bishop of Ossory With THE CHOIR OF ST PETER’S CATHEDRAL, BELFAST Nigel McClintock director of music Liam Crangle organist The St Peter’s Cathedral Schola is made up of 40 boys aged between 7 and 19.

Since its foundation in 2008, the boys have toured Europe, broadcast with RTÉ Television, sung on BBC Radio Ulster and established a successful concert series.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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GERRY GODLEY curator The great jazz pianist Thelonius Monk was once asked, “What’s happening, Monk?” He answered, “Everything is happening all of the time.” Monk was probably referring to the cosmos, but it could easily apply to this year’s Music strand, which kicks off in the Set with the Ale Möller Band. The term “world music” has never sat well with me but, if there is such a thing, Möller is definitely doing it by bringing many different traditions together into a sum greater – and groovier – than its parts.

Other nights at the Set are resolutely local, whether it’s Konono No.1 with their irresistible, magnetic trance music from Kinshasa, or The Innisfree Céilí Band with their infectious sets (at the Set!) from North Connaught. It doesn’t get any more local than The Kilkenny County Session, an exposition of all that’s great about traditional music in Kilkenny, but the Set is equally evocative of the great jazz clubs of Manhattan, and we’ve responded accordingly, with music that swings hard from Evan Christopher and Michael Buckley.

Andy Irvine, Tarab, Fidil and the Dublin City Jazz Orchestra are all vying for your attention elsewhere but, if one gig is all you have in you, make it St Canice’s for the double bill of Calcutta slide guitarist Debashish Bhattacharya and his brother Subhasis on Indian percussion, followed by cellist Vincent Segal and the exquisite Malian kora player, Ballaké Sissoko. Enchantment awaits.

Set Theatre, John Street / Friday 6 August 10pm / Admission €20/€17 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Joseph O’Connor & Philip King (p.35) for €27

ALE MÖLLER BAND (Sweden)

Ale Möller is Stockholm’s answer to Dónal Lunny. As a member of Frifot, he revolutionised the folk tradition of his native Sweden and he’s been the driving force behind a string of celebrated collaborations with jazz artists and traditional musicians from all over Europe.

A constant musical explorer – and a multi-instrumentalist who can play anything from the bouzouki to the cowhorn – Möller works his way into the very core of the music he encounters. But whatever musical guise he adopts, his aim is always the same: to infect audiences with a wild, uplifting joy. It’s a task that comes naturally to his latest incarnation: the Ale Möller Band. Drawing a cosmopolitan group of musicians from Africa, Greece and Asia into a watertight outfit, Möller brings an infectious mix of songs and rhythms to the Set Theatre for a night of folk infused with a sense of drama and played with passion.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

16 mus∆c Set Theatre, John Street / Saturday 7 August 10pm / Admission €20/€17

INNISFREE CÉILÍ BAND (Ireland)

The Innisfree Céilí Band grew up playing together, and it shows. Led by Oisín Mac Diarmada of Téada, one of Ireland’s leading working groups, this Sligo band blends its instruments into a seamless musical voice, capturing the dramatic energy and drive that remains such a feature of North Connaught music. Gifted with a rare sweetness and clarity of tone, the band has played a key role in the revival of céilí band music and in 2008 became the first band from the region to win the coveted All-Ireland Senior Céilí Band Competition. With reels and jigs played with passion and flair, the Innisfree Céilí Band are guaranteed to get your feet moving. As one reviewer wrote, “if you don’t dance, you’ll wish you did” (Irishphiladelphia.com).

Set Theatre, John Street / Sunday 8 August 9pm / Admission €20/€17 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Erik Friedlander & FLM Ensemble (p.23) for €31

MICHAEL BUCKLEY’S DUBLIN STANDARD TIME (Ireland) Ireland’s finest saxophonist, Michael Buckley, is in good company with Dublin Standard Time, his tight new ensemble featuring some of the outstanding players of the current generation. Aided by Myles Drennan on piano, bassist Michael Coady and drummer Sean Carpio, Buckley brings a full-blooded, old school approach to the great songs of the last century.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

THE K∆LKENNY COUNTY SESS∆ON Celebrating the vibrant traditional & folk music scene of the Marble city and county Hosted by Malcolm Noonan

at last, a fortnightly city centre gathering of great music and musicians The Irish Times

Brainchild of noted traditional flautist Conor Byrne, the County Sessions began last year in the Button Featuring: Friary Street, Anthony Factory, Temple Bar, to rave reviews and has McAuley, Jim Maher, John Touhy, The become a key fixture on the traditional music scene. Dowling Family plus surprise guests Chosen by The Irish Times as one of the ten musical highlights of 2009, Dublin’s most popular traditional music club offers audiences a monthly line-up of artists representing the unique music and singing traditions associated with individual counties.

Now the County Sessions is delighted to bring its approach to Kilkenny. In the intimate surroundings of the Set Theatre, this evening’s session celebrates the strength of Kilkenny music with a line-up of established and up-and-coming singers, storytellers and musicians. Packed with outstanding artists, and with a surprise guest or two thrown in, this is a must for anyone with an interest in Kilkenny and its traditional music.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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Set Theatre, John Street / Monday 9 August 9pm / Admission €20/€17 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and “Ireland’s Athletic Assault and Battery” (p.39) for €26

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Tuesday 10 August 8pm / Admission €20/€17 a glorious tour-de-force of guitar playing London Evening Standard

Debashish Bhattacharya “takes the slide guitar into territory Ry Cooder doesn’t even know about” (The Telegraph). Regarded as “one of the most inventive classically-influenced musicians working in India” (The Guardian), he has developed three forms of guitar, all designed to showcase his breathtaking skill. His supremely graceful style, melding classical Indian music with blues and other western influences, has won him a BBC Planet Award for World Music, a Grammy nomination, and an international following.

Backed by his brother Subhasis Bhattacharya on tabla, Debashish takes us on a journey through Indian music. From reflective, drifting melodies to virtuoso playing of dizzying speed and flamboyant, tabla-driven improvisation, their sets build to an ecstatic, thrilling finale that will sweep you away.

Double Bill

DEBASHISH BHATTACHARYA (India) and SUBHASIS BHATTACHARYA (India) & BALLAKÉ SISSOKO (Mali) and VINCENT SEGAL (France) Ballaké Sissoko … is an adventurous virtuoso, as he proved with this collaboration with the classically-trained French cellist Vincent Segal, mixing African and western themes in exquisite, trance-like improvisations The Guardian

Mali’s Ballaké Sissoko is a master of the kora, the 21-stringed harp whose haunting, crystalline sound has won over audiences worldwide. The son of renowned griot musician Djelimady Sissoko, Ballaké came to fame in his own right performing with musicians such as Toumani Diabaté and Taj Mahal.

Now he has teamed up with classical cellist Vincent Segal in a unique collaboration that blends the voices of these two most regal of instruments.

This is ‘chamber music’ as you’ve never heard it before.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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Set Theatre, John Street / Wednesday 11 August 8pm / Admission €20/€17 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and “When I’m Sixty-Four” (p.40) for €26

EVAN CHRISTOPHER’S DJANGO À LA CRÉOLE (US) timeless stuff The Sunday Times Enchanting The Sunday Observer

This year marks the centenary of the birth of the great jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, and there’s perhaps no better way to mark it than with a concert from acclaimed quartet Django à la Créole. The brainchild of Evan Christopher, the US clarinetist described as one of “the greatest of all time” (Jazz Classique), Django à la Créole fuses the ‘gypsy swing’ of Paris between the wars with the hot, infectious rhythms of New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz.

Together with guitarists David Blenkhorn and Dave Kelbie, and bassist Sebastien Girardot, Christopher pays tribute to the music of Reinhardt and other jazz pioneers including Louis Armstrong and Sidney Bechet, transforming swingera classics with fresh interpretations and virtuoso improvisation. Earthy and passionate, delicate and urbane, Django à la Créole extends the legacy of two great eras of jazz and proves that the New Orleans sound is still very much alive.

The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Thursday 12 August 8pm / Admission €18/€15

ANDY IRVINE (Ireland) His artistry is quite simply unique and his voice is as liltingly evocative as ever, the songs as pointed and poignant, beautiful and sad. Never tire of the road, Andy!”

The Independent

Singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, raconteur, Andy Irvine has been “one of the towering talents on the international folk scene” (Sydney Morning Herald) for more than forty years.

Whether as a solo artist or as the linchpin of celebrated groups such as Sweeney’s Men, Patrick Street, Planxty and Mozaik, his breathtaking musicianship has cemented his reputation as an unrivalled balladeer.

Since his early tours, Irvine has explored new forms of music, embracing the styles (and instruments) of many countries, and blending them into a unique sound of his own. With a dazzling mix of stories and song, from traditional Irish to dexterous Balkan dance tunes, Andy Irvine never fails to deliver a pulsating, heartfelt performance. This will be a live show to savour.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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Set Theatre, John Street / Friday 13 August 8pm / Admission €22/€19 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Damo Suzuki & Donal Dineen (p.25) for €31

KONONO NO.1 (Congo) Dizzying, danceable and frenetic Newsweek in full flight, Konono were magnificent The Guardian

Congolese band Konono No.1 has been going for 44 years, and some members are in their seventies. But if you think that makes for a sedate musical occasion, think again. Konono are a riot in musical form.

In their native Kikongo tongue, “Konono” means something like “assume crash position”, which gives you an idea what you’re in for. Mixing traditional instruments like the likembe with everything from pots and pans to car parts, Konono take their traditional Congolese folk and feed it to their own scrap metal sound system. The result – a raw, pulsing sound loved by alt rock fans and djs alike – is like nothing else in African music.

Feted in recent years by musicians like Thom Yorke and Beck, they’ve picked up a Grammy nomination and guested on albums by Herbie Hancock and Björk, while their mesmerizing beats and exuberant playing has wowed audiences at festivals from Sonar to the Big Chill. Funky, exuberant, and utterly danceable, Konono No.1 are sure to take the Set Theatre by storm.

St Canice’s Cathedral / Saturday 14 August 1pm / Admission €15/€13 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Ed O’Loughlin & David Vann (p.43) for €22

TARAB (Ireland) Francesco Turrisi held St Canice’s rapt last year with his jazz trio. This year he looks set to do it all over again with his equally-exciting project Tarab, an ever-evolving ensemble that weaves together traditional music from Ireland and the Mediterranean.

Bringing together a jazz saxophonist and classical cellist with a traditional flautist and a percussionist, Tarab blends its disparate musical traditions into its own distinctive One can hope group as good sound.

Theonly result, asthat TheaIrish Times has written, is “some of the most enchanting as thisyou’re gets the wider exposure surely music” likely to hear, and aitgreat chance to bring the family for a lively deserves introduction All About Jazzto a wealth of musical styles and instruments from around the world.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

FIDIL (Ireland) If you think a trio of unaccompanied fiddlers isn’t for you, think again. Ciarán Ó Maonaigh, Aidan O’Donnell and Damien McGeehan’s exhilarating live shows grab their audience by the scruff of the neck and don’t let go.

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Cleere’s, Parliament Street / Saturday 14 August 6pm / Admission €15/€13

Drawing on the rich musical heritage of their native Donegal, Fidil’s bold and inventive playing style, coupled with their intricate and original arrangements, charts new territory for the fiddle. This is traditional music for the 21st century. a milestone in traditional music The Irish Times

Bringing a freshness to tunes both familiar and obscure, this exciting young band promise to deliver a barnstorming night in Cleere’s.

Hotel Kilkenny, College Road / Saturday 14 August 9pm / Admission €22/€19

DUBLIN CITY JAZZ ORCHESTRA (Ireland) with special guest Honor Heffernan The Dublin City Jazz Orchestra was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, but after lighting up the World Stage at the Electric Picnic in 2008, the orchestra knew it was onto something. Led by saxophonist/ clarinetist Ciaran Wilde, the orchestra has established itself with a wildly-popular residency at the Button Factory, playing a mix of classic big band music, along with modern tunes.

In a show specially designed for the festival, the Dublin City Jazz Orchestra brings you an evening of wild sounds from the big band era. The orchestra’s four trumpets, four trombones, five saxophones and rhythm section will whip up a storm while acclaimed jazz singer Honor Heffernan brings her versatile vocals to some wonderful old standards from some of the greatest American composers, arrangers, and band leaders including Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Benny Goodman, as well as Irish arrangers like Brian Byrne and David O’Rourke.

Whether you want to dance or simply enjoy some of the finest jazz musicians in the country playing their favourite tunes, this promises to be a memorable evening.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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Kilkenny County Council Arts Office No. 76 John Street / Sunday 8 August 4 pm / Admission Free

PUBLIC SEMINAR:

MATTHEW NOLAN curator It’s a rare privilege to put together a programme that feels like one of those old mix tapes you’d pass around from friend to friend, and being asked to do it all again is a joy. This year’s WIRED follows the ethos of years one and two, offering the same eclectic blend of genres and style. Adrian Crowley (I’m a massive fan, don’t tell him) returns after his show-stealing set at last year’s festival – we just had to have him back – while Damo Suzuki is going to be one of those special events that people will talk about for years to come. Erik Friedlander is a veteran of the New York experimental scene and his concert will be a multi-dimensional experience featuring music, stories, images and film. And So I Watch You From Afar are the most impressive live act in Ireland right now. Any band which adopts the tongue-in-cheek stage names of ‘Bone Crusher’, ‘Face Eater’, ‘Blood Gargler’ and ‘Gut Slurper’ is ok by me. I’ve been a Tindersticks fan since their first long-player came out in ’93, and their closing show in St Canice’s will be something for all music lovers to savour. The other event at St Canice’s features the peerless Mick Flannery, but perhaps the most important event for me is the New Music Night in the Set Theatre, headlined by Halves, whose debut album is due for release later this year. Other acts on the bill include Kilkenny’s own Geppetto and Teffia Ki. Finally, we’re thrilled to feature a rare performance by Pierce Turner, one of Ireland’s most important and influential musicians of the last twenty years. Enjoy!

THE FUTURE OF MUSIC DISTRIBUTION & PROMOTION Chaired by Matthew Nolan

The unprecedented pace of change in the music industry in recent years has created a host of new challenges and opportunities for musicians, audiences and industry professionals. But how are changes to the way music is sold, shared and enjoyed affecting the music industry, and how should musicians respond? What do music fans really want, and how can they get it? Through an open discussion with a panel of leading industry experts, this session will challenge conventional thinking about the business of music and explore new ways of creating, promoting, and distributing it.

Admission free. Call the Arts Office on 056 779 4138. Come early to avoid disappointment.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

PIERCE TURNER (Ireland)

you won’t be alone in cheering Evans’s soulful, ethereal noir-folk, striking voice and perfectly-pitched, majestic songs The Irish Times

JENNIFER EVANS (Ireland)

When the Rough Guide to Ireland named Pierce Turner as one of “fifty things to love about the country”, many people were not surprised. The man once dubbed “Ireland’s greatest living poet” (Hot Press) has released a string of awardwinning albums, but it is for his anarchic, mercurial live performances that Turner is best loved. Don’t ask us what he’s going to play – come and see why Christy Moore wrote the song, ‘I Love the Way Pierce Turner Sings.’

Photo © Claudio Casanova/AAJItalia

Jennifer Evans’s soulful voice and finely-crafted songs have drawn comparisons with Joanna Newsom and Evie Sands. Her debut ep, Salient Point, hailed as “beautifully spooked noir-folk” (The Irish Times) recently earned her the number six spot in Donal Dineen’s Top Ten Irish Acts.

Photo: Hazel Fitzpatrick

with

Turner is a rare artist, observant, poetic, humorous songwriting, sharply focused on the common details of life, drawing larger themes of love, lust, hate and family life from them New York Post

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The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Saturday 7 August 6pm / Admission €22/€19 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Tallis & Byrd (p.8) for €39

Set Theatre, John Street / Sunday 8 August 5pm / Admission €20/€17 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Michael Buckley (p.16) for €31

ERIK FRIEDLANDER (US) in association with Note with

FLM ENSEMBLE (Ireland)

Erik Friedlander can do things with a cello that should have a reasonable listener fearing for her life PitchforkMedia.com

A composer and improviser, a classical musician and a jazzbo, Erik Friedlander is “one of today’s most ingenious and forward-thinking musical practitioners” (Billboard Magazine). Whether playing solo or with one of his bands, Friedlander explores the boundaries of what the cello can do while maintaining a firm grasp on traditions, both jazz and classical. The result is “unlike anything heard before” (All Music Guide).

FLM Ensemble come from a range of musical backgrounds and the trio have forged a distinctive improvisational approach. Each musician draws from a blend of acoustic and electronic influences to create a richly-textured sound.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Sunday 8 August 7pm / Admission €20/€17

MICK FLANNERY (Ireland)

MORTON VALENCE (UK) CATHERINE DOWLING (Ireland)

with AND

From string-soaked country and western to joyful electro-pop, Morton Valence delight in smuggling a disparate musical contraband into their songs. Their debut album Bob and Veronica Ride Again has been hailed as “simply luscious pop music” (Q Magazine), and “alluring and seductive” (Uncut).

As the front woman with Alphastates, Catherine Dowling won many admirers. Her hushed, raw delivery is “breathy, vulnerable, and disarmingly sexy” (Sunday Tribune).

Set Theatre, John Street /Thursday 12 August 10pm / Admission €12/€10

HALVES (Ireland)

GEPPETTO (Ireland) RYAN TAYLOR DOYLE (Ireland) TEFFIA KI (Ireland) with

a gorgeous, tranquil wash of glazed ambience and dreamy guitar noise Hot Press

One of Ireland’s most intriguing acts, Halves blend a vast range of instruments, both acoustic and electronic, into an evocative, cinematic live experience. Since their debut in 2007, the band has topped the viewers’ choice poll on RTÉ’s Other Voices, played a host of international festivals, and released several acclaimed EPs. Their live show is a captivating mix of synched visuals, strings, brass and electronics, anchored by soaring guitars and live drums.

Geppetto supported Amiina at last year’s festival and we’re delighted to welcome them back to Kilkenny for another rich audio-visual experience.

Ryan Taylor Doyle’s heartbreaking songs draw from a rich well of influences including Tim Buckley and Elliott Smith.

Teffia Ki weave together sparse electronica and lush classical melodies in a tentative dance.

Kilkenny County Council’s Arts Office working in partnership to support the finest in Irish bands.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Photo: Lorna Fitzsimons

Mick Flannery is one of Ireland’s most soughtafter musicians. His platinum-selling album White Lies was nominated for a Choice Album Award, while Flannery himself won ‘Best Male’ at the Meteor Awards and topped a recent Hot Press poll in two categories: ‘Irish Songwriter’ and ‘Irish Folk and Trad’. A refreshingly-unassuming artist, his gigs are an intimate affair, while his heartfelt, confessional songs and distinctive, full-throated voice have invoked comparisons with Bruce Springsteen and Tom Waits.

Photo © CThomasz Bereska

Mick Flannery is a singing and songwriting force to be reckoned with The Irish Times

DAMO SUZUKI (Japan) Followed by a dj set from Donal Dineen (Ireland)

less singer than shaman, less a gig than an out-of-body experience The Guardian

The only rule of a Damo Suzuki concert is… there are no rules.

Damo Suzuki came to prominence as a member of legendary German group Can, playing on the albums that re-invented rock. Two decades later, he embarked on his most ambitious project: the Never Ending Tour.

Photo: Fiona Morgan

The idea is simple. Suzuki gathers musicians, or “Sound Carriers”, selecting only those able to respond to each other in the moment. He calls this process “Instant Composing”. There are no rehearsals, no artifice or style, and no barriers between audience and musicians (all of whom, for this concert, are based in Ireland). This is improvisation in its purest form.

For once, to say that this performance is a unique experience is no exaggeration.

This music will never be heard again.

A musical pioneer since his early days as the presenter of RTÉ’s No Disco in the nineties, through to his current late-night radio show The Small Hours on Today FM, Donal Dineen has used his discerning ear to seek out, listen to and encourage experimental music in all genres.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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Set Theatre, John Street / Friday 13 August 10pm / Admission €18/€15 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Konono No. 1 (p.20) for €31

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Set Theatre, John Street / Saturday 14 August 10pm / Admission €18/€15

AND SO I WATCH YOU FROM AFAR (N. Ireland) it is rare for a body of work to be so dreamy and elegiac yet, conversely, monstrously heavy...sounds like the end of the world Kerrang!

One of Belfast’s hottest properties, ASIWYFA’s songs are epic in scale, marked by frantic rhythms, monstrous chords and thundering percussion. Their debut album of “seriously accomplished tunes” (The Irish Times) was nominated for a Choice Music Award and Xfm’s Album of the Year. Their hometown gigs are already legendary, and their dynamic stage presence and iron-clad riffs are sure to turn the Set Theatre into a cauldron of sound. Expect them to blow the roof off.

Set Theatre, John Street /Sunday 15 August 3pm / Admission €18/€15

ADRIAN CROWLEY (Ireland) with

VALERIE FRANCIS (Ireland)

Crowley has come of age, he has moved up several levels in one bound… from apprentice to grandmaster The Irish Times

Photo: M&E Design

One of Ryan Adams’s favourite “underground” songwriters, Adrian Crowley is finally getting the recognition he deserves. His album, Season of the Sparks, won last year’s Choice Music Prize and was hailed as “timeless” (Uncut) and “unspeakably beautiful” (RTÉ Guide). Last year he showcased his exquisite melodies and lyrical maturity in St Canice’s, and this welcome return sees him grace the Set Theatre, this time in full band guise.

Valerie Francis describes her own sound as “musical hopscotch”, skipping lightly between ambient, folk and pop. Drawing on everything from old synths and harmoniums to horns, drums and strings, her songs “mystify, provoke, disturb and entertain at will” (Hot Press).

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

TINDERSTICKS (UK) with

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Sunday 15 August 8pm / Admission €37/€35 (no concessions)

3EPKANO (Ireland)

a band with restored self-belief, again loving doing what they do better than anyone else Uncut

In 1993 the Tindersticks’ eponymous debut introduced listeners to their dark, genre-blending world and instantly struck a chord with music fans.

After a five-year hiatus, a reinvigorated band returned in 2008 with a flurry of inspiration that has so far spawned three soundtracks, two new studio albums and even music for a Louis Vuitton fashion show. Their latest album, Falling Down a Mountain, finds their sound as distinctive as ever, mixing “bruised glamour and finely-wrought arrangements” (The Guardian) with a new-found playfulness and verve, and their cinematic sense of grandeur is sure to find the perfect venue in St Canice’s Cathedral.

Photo: Cormac Scully

Celebrated for their honest, passionate explorations of romance and masculinity, delivered in Stuart Staples’s rich, tremulous baritone, Tindersticks have scaled some dizzying heights, from duets with Isabella Rossellini to selling out the Royal Albert Hall.

3epkano are a seven-piece band dedicated to producing original soundtracks for silent and avant-garde cinema. They have played headline shows in Ireland and the US to critical acclaim, and curated Wired in 2008. Returning to Kilkenny for the third year in a row, they bring their dynamic, experimental soundscapes to St Canice’s.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

street The Canal Walk / Saturday 7 August 2.30pm and 4pm Sunday 8 August 1pm and 4pm Duration 40 minutes

DAMIAN DOWNES curator There are strange things afoot on the streets of Kilkenny this year. Whether you’ve a thirst for death-defying acrobatics, glam rock rhythms or a pair of clowns sporting some unusual attire, there’s an act heading your way, and they’re all free!

Forget spangly suits and safety nets, Tumble Circus are on a mission to revolutionise acrobatics. With their open-air stunts, these fearless aeronauts will be laughing in the face of danger, and so will you.

Wherever you are in Kilkenny, the rhythm is going to get you.

If it’s a good old-fashioned knees-up you’re after, check out the Baghdaddies. Sounding like an entire festival rolled into one, the Baghdaddies are bringing a blast of Balkan brass to town, and their vibes are so uplifting you’ll forget what you were doing and let your feet take over.

The good vibrations continue in the hands of futuristic rockers, Prince Mint and the Glam Chops. This towering trio look like extras from Flash Gordon, and their riffs are pretty nifty too. If you notice feathers falling from the sky, don’t panic, it’s just The Gombeens: a pair of very likeable eejits. Their tomfoolery will have you in stitches. Just watch out for that giant mallet!

Fancy a little harmless flirtation to brighten up your afternoon? The Baad Mutha Funkas are your man. Or men. This pair of smooth-talkers have all the lines. Some of them you may have heard before.

Whatever takes your fancy, there’ll be dancing in the streets this festival, a little laughter, and plenty of fun.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

THE GOMBEENS (Ireland)

DONKEY FEATHERS Can you imagine a world where mallets can talk? At last, there’s no need to imagine. Featuring slapstick mayhem, stunts, jokes and, yes, a giant talking mallet or two, The Gombeens’ Donkey Feathers is a carnival of irreverent clowning and unpredictable fun. Young or old, it will awake the fool in you.

Streets of Kilkenny/1.30pm, 3pm and 4.30pm daily Duration 30 mins each show

Saturday 7 August

Sunday 8 August

Artemis (UK)

Artemis (UK)

THE BAAD PRINCE MUTHA MINT AND FUNKAS THE GLAM CHOPS Their jokes are as old as their hairstyles!

A vertically-endowed glam rock sensation.

BAGHDADDIES (UK) Traditional and modern dance rhythms, infectious melodies and vocals sung in any number of tongues, meshed together in a seamless cacophony of professionalism and fun. Brilliant The Big Issue Duration 45 mins

29 street

The Parade / Saturday 7 August 3pm and 5pm

One of the most fun bands in this or any other universe, the Baghdaddies have developed a totally unique sound – a wild, infectious mix of Middle Eastern flavours, ska, dance and… you name it! Their overriding influence is Balkan Gypsy folk, as well as traditional tunes passed down through generations of European musicians and, of course, their own compositions. Each member of the quintet is absurdly accomplished, and they all sing too, sometimes all at once. With a hatful of songs laced with funky dance grooves and blistering brass, the Baghdaddies will bring a little joie de vivre to Kilkenny, prompting a healthy leap in your heart rate, and the irresistible urge to get up and dance.

The Canal Walk / Saturday 14 August 5pm / Sunday 15 August 1pm & 4pm

TUMBLE CIRCUS

UP ABOVE (Ireland) Tumble Circus bring a real sense of danger and suspense to the streets of Kilkenny this year with their “literally death-defying” (Belfast Telegraph) show, Up Above.

Seven metres off the ground, Tina Machina and Kenneth Fall invite you to witness a beautiful disaster in mid air.

Featuring slapstick acrobatics, hazardous aerial stunts and flying hula hoops, Up Above combines the thrill of live circus theatre with real peril and breathtaking skill and will touch the hearts of young and old spectators alike.

the sort of act that the insurance industry should have banned by now The Guardian Turning the circus tradition upside down The Irish Times Duration 40 mins

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

30 THE HUB

THE FESTIVAL HUB

The Left Bank Patrick Street Kilkenny 056 775 0016

Catch a play, listen to an artist talk or simply relax with a nice glass of wine. The festival hub is the ideal place to meet and chill out during the festival.

Located at the crossroads of all the festival action, the Left Bank is a recently-renovated Bank Of Ireland branch and features a beautifully-designed main bar with a lively atmosphere and friendly staff.

Check out the great value package deals Sport agus Ceol! The Kilkenny County Session (p.17) and “Ireland’s Athletic Assault and Battery” (p.39) Smorgasbord The Ale Möller Band (p.15) and Joseph O’Connor & Philip King (p.35) Page Turner Tallis & Byrd (p.8) and Pierce Turner & Jennifer Evans (p.23) Set Sessions Michael Buckley’s Dublin Standard Time (p.16) and Erik Friedlander & FLM Ensemble (p.23) A Night at the Cathedral Maarten Koningsberger & Finghin Collins (p.11) and “When I’m Sixty-Four” (p.40) Face the Music and Dance Evan Christopher’s Django á la Créole (p.19) and “When I’m Sixty-Four” (p.40) The Chaos Package Konono No.1 (p.20) and Damo Suzuki & Donal Dineen (p.25) After-Thought Tarab (p.20) and Ed O’Loughlin & David Vann (p.43) Are We There Yet? Forty Years of Feminism and I Can’t… I Can’t (p.42) Gabriel Byrne Package Both the morning and afternoon Gabriel Byrne On Screen events starting at 10am (til 5pm)

€26 €27 €39 €31 €27 €26 €31 €22 €15 €16

end of festival party Join folk rock band Scullion at the Set Theatre to round off the festival with a good old-fashioned party in the company of some of the acts you’ve seen this year. A limited number of tickets are available to the public so be sure to book early!

Some bands are destined to stay together, and Scullion is such a band.

Three decades on from their formative gigs, their signature sound is as strong as ever. The voices of Sonny Condell (also of Tír na NÓg) and Philip King (who appears at the festival in conversation with Joseph Set Theatre O’Connor) have taken on a seamless harmony, pinioned by the bravura John Street guitar playing of Robbie Overson, who has ably filled the role of founding Sunday 15 August member Greg Boland. Folk and traditional songs with contemporary 10pm to late splashes of jazz and blues still drive their shows which feature songs Admission €20/€17 such as ‘Eyelids Into Snow’, ‘Down in The City’ and ‘John The Baptist’.

Every year the Kilkenny Arts Festival brings so many amazing events to the city that it is almost impossible to make sure you find what really appeals to you. So, we’ve put on our thinking caps and come up with this guide to suggest events you may not have considered. Simply find an event that you are interested in and chances are, there will be something else in the same column that you will also enjoy. Or, alternatively, pick the column that is of most interest to you and explore the events listed.

This is my first time at an arts festival. I want to see what this festival is all about. I haven’t heard of a lot of these names before and I’d like suggestions on what might be great to see.

I want to think. I want to get out of my comfort zone and confront the world head on. I don’t want to be spoon fed.

I want to be blown away.

I want to argue.

I want to find those hidden gems - things I may not have heard of but once I’ve experienced I will never forget.

I want to see edgier, grittier more experimental stuff.

I want to dance, have some fun. I want to stay up late.

My First festival

My ∆nspiring festival

My Surprising festival

My Alternative festival

03

Victor & Gord

37 Paul Durcan

15 Ale Möller Band

09 Façade

44

Visual Art 1 & 2

38 Robert Fisk

04 A Western

53

Craft 1 & 2

28

Street acts

09 Thomas Dunford 04 Group Therapy for One

10 Mark Anthony McGrath & Christian Wilson

07

RTÉ Concert Orchestra

16

Innisfree Céilí Band

39

John Boyne & Andrew O’Hagan

11

“To an Isle in the Water”

35

Joseph O’Connor & Philip King

17

The Kilkenny County Session

02

Where Did It All Go Right?

22 The Future of Music Distribution & Promotion (Public Seminar)

06

Antti Siirala

08 Tallis & Byrd

36

Gabriel Byrne on Screen

24

23 Pierce Turner & Jennifer Evans

Mick Flannery with Morton Valence & Catherine Dowling 11 Maarten Koningsberger & Finghin Collins Andy Irvine 40 When I’m Sixty-Four “Ireland’s Athletic Assault (Pension Symposium) and Battery”?

20 Konono No.1 The Kilkenny Festival Choir 42 Forty Years of Feminism & Orchestra 05 Foot Washing for the Sole Festival Mass

19 39 13 14 41

John Banville & Hugo Hamilton

12

Maria Ryan & Ciara Moroney

21

Fidil

40 Ciaran Carson & Michael Coady 18 Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Segal with Debashish & Subhasis Bhattacharya 05 Susan & Darren 14 Lendvai String Trio

12 Meta4 String Quartet 27 Tindersticks & 3epkano

03 The Smile Off Your Face 23 Erik Friedlander & FLM Ensemble 19 Evan Christopher’s Django à la Créole 10 Aileen Itani & Rachel Andrist 42 I Can’t… I Can’t 43 Ed O’Loughlin & David Vann 26 Adrian Crowley & Valerie Francis 21 Dublin City Jazz Orchestra with Honor Heffernan

31 FISA

Help me choose

24 Halves with Geppetto, Ryan Taylor Doyle & Teffia Ki 20 Tarab 26 And So I Watch You From Afar 16 Michael Buckley’s Dublin Standard Time 25 Damo Suzuki (followed

by Donal Dineen)

32 day by day

Friday 6 Street (streets of kilkenny, the canal walk, The Parade)

Saturday 7

Sunday 8

Tuesday 10

28 The Baad Mutha Funkas 28 Donkey Feathers 1.30pm, 3pm & 4.30pm 1pm and 4pm 28 Donkey Feathers 2.30pm & 4pm 29 Baghdaddies 3pm & 5pm

28 Prince Mint & the Glam Chops 1.30pm, 3pm & 4.30pm

Watergate theatre

35 Joseph O’Connor with Philip King 8pm

Rothe House

03 The Smile Off Your Face 03 The Smile Off Your Face 03 The Smile Off Your Face 03 The Smile Off Your Face 03 The Smile Off Your Face 2pm-5pm & 7pm-10pm 2pm-5pm & 7pm-10pm 2pm-5pm & 7pm-10pm 2pm-5pm & 7pm-10pm 2pm-5pm & 7pm-10pm

Cleere’s

03 Victor and Gord 1pm

parade tower

St canice’s cathedral

06 Antti Siirala 8pm

37 Paul Durcan 4pm

set theatre

The Left Bank

other city venues

15 Ale Möller Band 10pm

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB 02 Where Did It All Go Right? 6.30pm

39 John Boyne & Andrew O’Hagan 6pm

03 Victor and Gord 1pm

03 Victor and Gord 1pm

23 Pierce Turner & Jennifer Evans 6pm

09 Thomas Dunford 11am

07 RTÉ Concert Orchestra 2pm

24 Mick Flannery, 10 Aileen Itani & 18 Ballaké Sissoko & Morton Valence & Vincent Segal with Rachel Andrist 1pm Catherine Dowling 7pm Debashish & Subhasis Mark Anthony McGrath & 10 Bhattacharya 8pm Christian Wilson 8pm

38 Robert Fisk 6pm

36 Gabriel Byrne On Screen 09 10am-5pm 23 16 Innisfree Céilí Band 10pm 16

Declan Clarke Michael Coleman Willie Doherty Eithne Jordan

Façade 2pm Erik Friedlander & FLM Ensemble 5pm

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB 02 Where Did It All Go Right? 6.30pm

08 Tallis & Byrd 8pm The Black Abbey

22 Music seminar 4pm KK Co. Co. Arts Office

47 Stephen Loughman 48 Eoghan McTigue 47 Willie McKeown 48 Fergus Martin 47 Dennis McNulty 49 Susan Philipsz 49 Ciaran Walsh

03 Victor and Gord 1pm

03 Victor and Gord 1pm

40 Ciaran Carson & Michael Coady 6pm

39 “Ireland’s Athletic Assault and Battery” 7pm

11 “To an Isle in the Water” 10pm

The Kilkenny County Michael Buckley’s Dublin 17 Session 9pm Standard Time 9pm

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB 02 Where Did It All Go Right? 6.30pm

Visual Art Rothe House / 11 Patrick Street / Kilkenny Castle & Park 45 45 46 46

Monday 9

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

Visual Art Strand 2 50 Butler Gallery 52 Rudolf Helzel gallery 51 Kilkenny County Council 52 KCAT 51 ENDANGERED STUDIOS 52 Hazelhouse Studio

Friday 13

Saturday 14 29 Up Above 5pm

Sunday 15

33

29 Up Above 1pm & 4pm

33 day by day

Thursday 12

Wednesday 11

05 Susan and Darren 8pm, 05 Susan and Darren 8pm, 05 Susan and Darren 8pm, 05 Susan and Darren 6pm, workshop 6.30pm workshop 6.30pm workshop 6.30pm workshop 4.30pm

colour guide 04 Group Therapy For One 1pm

04 Group Therapy For One 1pm

04 Group Therapy For One 1pm

04 Group Therapy For One 1pm

04 Group Therapy For One 1pm

21 Fidil 6pm 19 Andy Irvine 8pm

42 Forty Years of Feminism 6pm

Theatre/Dance 14 Lendvai String Trio 11am Classical Music

42 I Can’t… I Can’t 4pm 40 “When I’m Sixty-Four” 6pm

41 John Banville & Hugo Hamilton 6pm

12 Maria Ryan & Ciara Morony 1pm

20 Tarab 1pm 13 Festival Choir & Orchestra 8pm

27 Tindersticks & 3epkano 8pm

Music

11 Maarten Koningsberger & Finghin Collins 8.30pm

12 Meta4 String Quartet 8.30pm

11 “To an Isle in the Water” 24 Halves with Geppetto, 1pm Ryan Taylor Doyle & Teffia Ki 10pm Evan Christopher’s 19 Django à la Créole 8pm

20 Konono No.1 8pm 25 Damo Suzuki followed

by Donal Dineen 10pm

43 Ed O’Loughlin & David Vann 3pm

26 Adrian Crowley & Valerie Francis 3pm

Street

26 And So I Watch You From Afar 10pm

30 End of Festival Party Scullion 10pm to late

Literature

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

30 THE FESTIVAL HUB

Wired

Visual Art Visual Art Strand 2

04 A Western 6.30pm Kyteler’s Inn

04 A Western 6.30pm Kyteler’s Inn

05 Foot Washing for the Sole 05 Foot Washing for the Sole 05 Foot Washing for the Sole 11.45am, 3pm & 7pm 11.45am, 3pm & 7pm 11.45am, 3pm & 7pm Hole in the Wall Hole in the Wall Hole in the Wall 21 Dublin City Jazz Orchestra 9pm Hotel Kilkenny

14 Festival Mass 12.30pm St Mary’s Cathedral

Craft National Craft Gallery 1 National Craft Gallery 2 53 MAH RANA

54 JO ANGELL 54 KATIE BUNNELL 54 VANESSA CUTLER 54 TAVS JØRGENSEN

Craft Craft Strand 2

Craft Strand 2 55 RACHEL KELLY 55 JENNY LEARY 55 AOIFE LUDLOW 55 RACHEL McKNIGHT

56 JUSTIN MARSHALL 56 LYNNE MURRAY 56 LIZ NILSSON 56 C J O’NEILL

57 JILL PHILLIPS 57 TACTILITY FACTORY

57 GRENNAN MILL CRAFT SCHOOL 57 MADE IN KILKENNY 57 CERAMICS IRELAND INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

34 children’s day by day

Theatre/Puppetry Friday 6

59 Il Cubo Magico/The Magic Cube (Age 3+ yrs ) 5pm The Watergate Theatre

Saturday 7

59 Il Cubo Magico/The Magic Cube (Age 3+ yrs ) 12 noon & 2pm The Watergate Theatre

Sunday 8

Storytelling/Readings/Music

workshops

63

59 Il Cubo Magico/The Magic Cube (Age 3+ yrs ) 12 noon The Watergate Theatre

Pre-festival Workshop Tuesday 6 July - Friday 9 July Skulduggery Pleasant Costume-Making 11am-4pm The Drum

60 The Gingerbread Man (Suitable for families) 1.30pm &3.30pm The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle Monday 9

60 Blenny, The Waterdaughter (Age 7-12 yrs) 12 noon & 2.30pm Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane

63 Puppet-Making with Miriam Lambert (Age 7+ yrs) 10am-11.30am Abbey Business Centre

Tuesday 10

60 The Billy Holiday Show (Age 4-10 yrs) 12 noon & 2.30pm The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle

63 The Big Draw (Age 9-12 yrs) 11am-1.30pm Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel 63 Construct with Nature (Age 5-12 yrs) 11am-1pm Butler Gallery, Kilkenny Castle 63 Children’s Craft Workshop 2pm-4pm National Craft Gallery

Wednesday 11

thursday 12

sunday 15

63 Children’s Craft Workshop 2pm-4pm National Craft Gallery 63 Construct with Nature (Age 5-12 yrs) 11am-1pm Butler Gallery, Kilkenny Castle

61 Parapapel (Age 18 months-5 yrs) 12 noon & 2pm Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane

63 Children’s Craft Workshop 2pm-4pm National Craft Gallery 61 Whispering Waves: Stories of the Sea (Age 8+ yrs and their families) 12 noon & 2.30pm The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle

friday 13

saturday 14

63 Construct with Nature (Age 5-12 yrs) 11am-1pm Butler Gallery, Kilkenny Castle

61 Parapapel (Age 18 months-5 yrs) 12 noon & 2pm Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane

62 On-Off (Age 1-4 yrs and their families) 12 noon & 3pm Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane

62 Derek Landy (Age 10+ yrs) 3pm Hotel Kilkenny, College Road

62 On-Off (Age 1-4 yrs and their families) 12 noon & 2pm Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane

63 Liam Ó Maonlaí (For all the family) 3.30pm Hotel Kilkenny, College Road

63 Puppet-Making with Miriam Lambert (Age 7+ yrs) 10am-11.30am Abbey Business Centre

children under 12 years must be accompanied by an adult at all times to all PERFORMANCE EVENTS

l∆terature

COLM TÓIBÍN curator Past and future intertwine and intersect in this year’s Literature strand.

We celebrate the career of one of Ireland’s finest actors, Gabriel Byrne, with screenings of some of his finest performances, while in “Ireland’s Athletic Assault and Battery”, Dr Seán Crosson looks back on early Hollywood’s take on the GAA.

A wealth of Irish literary talent is coming to Kilkenny, led by two of this island’s most distinguished novelists, John Banville and Hugo Hamilton. John Boyne and Andrew O’Hagan take us on a journey from revolutionary Russia to Marilyn Monroe’s bedroom, while fresh fictional voices arrive in the shape of journalist Ed O’Loughlin and Alaskan writer David Vann. Another great Irish novelist, Joseph O’Connor, teams up with RTÉ’s Philip King to deliver an uproarious evening of conversation and song, while Paul Durcan brings his electrifying stage presence to the Watergate Theatre, and Michael Coady and Ciaran Carson showcase their latest work in the Parade Tower.

Durcan and Carson were just getting started when the Irish Women’s Liberation Movement formed in 1970 in a Dublin restaurant, and a host of speakers including Nell McCafferty gather in the Parade Tower to discuss Forty Years of Feminism. The future is also on the minds of our speakers in When I’m Sixty-Four, in which a distinguished panel explore solutions to the pensions crisis in Ireland and beyond, while award-winning journalist Robert Fisk casts a robust critical eye over international issues in this year’s Hubert Butler Lecture.

Gabriel Bryne on Screen, I Can’t… I Can’t and “Ireland’s Athletic Assault and Battery” are presented in partnership with the IFI Irish Film Archive.

The Watergate Theatre, Parliament Street / Friday 6 August 8pm / Admission €15/€13 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and the Ale Möller Band (p.15) for €27 In this special evening Philip King talks to Joseph O’Connor and explores the influence of Irish-American ballads in his recent fiction. Expect an irresistible evening full of laughter, readings, reflections, rhymings, some songs and an insight or two along the way.

JOSEPH O’CONNOR (Ireland) in conversation with PHILIP KING (Ireland) Philip King has a gift for celebrating what’s about to happen – and capturing what’s about to disappear The Irish Times I can’t imagine many better - or braver - novels than Ghost Light coming out this year

Musician and broadcaster Philip King is series editor of Other Voices, Ireland’s flagship rock music television series, and of traditional music series The Full Set. He has directed five series of Sé mo Laoch for TG4, and his much-loved programme The South Wind Blows broadcasts weekly on RTÉ Radio 1.

Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy

Joseph O’Connor is renowned for his best-selling novels Star Colum McCann of the Sea and Redemption Falls, and his new novel, Ghost Light, explores the relationship between the Irish playwright JM Synge and his lover, actress Molly Allgood.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

ATURE

IVAL OF LITER

FEST RNATIONAL

CÚIRT 25 INTE

Set Theatre, John Street / Saturday 7 August 10am-5pm / Admission half day €12/€10, full day €16

gaBriel Byrne On SCreen Presented with programme support from the IFI Irish Film Archive

Courtesy of HBO

36 l∆TeraTure

PROGRAMME 10am Introduction by Colm Tóibín 10.10am Stories From Home 11.30am Into The West 1.10pm-2.10pm Lunch 2.10pm Miller’s Crossing 4.10pm In Treatment 4.35pm In Treatment

inTrODuCeD By COlm TÓiBÍn In a recent article in The Guardian, Amy Raphael described HBO’s acclaimed drama series In Treatment as “utterly compelling, pleasingly voyeuristic and unbelievably addictive.” “yet its trump card,” Raphael continued, “is, without doubt, Gabriel Byrne.”

Byrne’s performance as Dr Paul Weston has already won him a Golden Globe, but this is only the latest in a long line of awards bestowed on one of the outstanding Irish actors of his generation.

Byrne only turned to acting when he was 29, but from the moment he appeared onscreen, as Pat Barry in the final series of RTÉ’s The Riordans, his career was made.

From the adventure fantasy of Into the West (which he produced), to acclaimed thrillers Miller’s Crossing and The Usual Suspects, Byrne has brought his trademark intensity to a host of roles in film and television. Introduced by Colm Tóibín, this special event celebrates the career of one of Ireland’s biggest stars and features screenings of some of Byrne’s most acclaimed roles.

STORIES FROM HOME (2008) Gabriel Byrne: Stories from Home is an intimate portrait offering a rare insight into Byrne’s private and public worlds.

A collaboration between Byrne and filmmaker Pat Collins, Stories from Home draws on interviews and extracts from Byrne’s journals and diaries to build an evocative portrait of one of Ireland’s greatest actors.

INTO THE WEST (1992) In Mike Newell’s enchanting adventure, written by Jim Sheridan and starring Gabriel Byrne and Ellen Barkin, two kids from Ballymun receive a gift beyond their wildest dreams a magical horse. But when a rich breeder tries to take the horse away from them, their only hope is to steal him back and escape... Into the West.

MILLER’S CROSSING (1990) Set in 1929 in a gangster-ridden American city, Miller’s Crossing tells the story of the friendship between local boss, Leo (Albert Finney), and Tom (Gabriel Byrne), the man behind the man. Their friendship is severed when Leo and Tom fall in love with the same woman, and a bloody gang war erupts.

Directed by the Coen brothers, the movie became an instant cult classic.

IN TREATMENT HBO’s emotional and provocative drama series, In Treatment, examines that staple of modern society – the psychotherapy session. Hailed as “a simple idea beautifully executed” (The Guardian), the show follows psychoanalyst Paul Weston (Gabriel Byrne) through weekly sessions with his patients.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

37 l∆terature

The Watergate Theatre, Parliament Street / Saturday 7 August 4pm / Admission €13/€11

PAUL DURCAN (Ireland) Life is a Dream finally presents the evidence of major artistic achievement in a single, unified text The Irish Times

Kilkenny Arts Festival partners

Senior Partners An Post Bluett O’Donoghue Architects Poe Kiely Hogan Lanigan

Photo: Mark Condren

Famous for his electrifying readings, poet Paul Durcan is a surrealist, a mystic, a comedian and a champion of the oppressed. In his celebrated career he has won the Patrick Kavanagh Award, the Irish American Cultural Institute Poetry Award, and the Whitbread Prize. He held the Ireland Chair of Poetry from 2004 to 2007 and this year was awarded an honorary doctorate in letters from Trinity College Dublin in recognition of his lifelong role as “the inspired minstrel of modern day Ireland.”

Recently he marked four decades of poetry with Life is a Dream, a selection of work spanning the range of his career from Endsville (1967) to The Laughter of Mothers (2007), and showcasing his astonishing range: narratives both funny and subversive, selfmocking poems of underachievement, poems celebrating love and sex and the lives of famous writers and artists, as well as tender, poignant verses commemorating the dead.

Intermediate Partners John’s Green Medical Centre

Market Cross McDonagh Junction

McDonalds Michael Dores Nostalgia Café

Goods Gurman’s Tea and Coffee World Happy Times Kafe Katz Khan’s Books K Bowl Kilkenny Chamber of Commerce Kylemore Clinic La Rivista Leinster Stone Liam Costigan Goldsmith Manning Travel Ming Court Mugshot Café Murphy Jewellers Oliver Young & Son

Pauls Pennyfeather Restaurant Pricewaterhouse Coopers Prochem Rafter Dempseys REL Refridgeration Group Rollercoaster Records Sally Salon Services The Good Earth The Gourmet Store The Ground Floor Café Top Hat Formal Hire Uisce Technology VENDEMIA ORGANIC WINES

Junior Partners Abbey Lodge B&B Actec Security Systems Anna Conda B. MacEneaney Pharmacy Blaa Blaa Blaa Butler Court Guest Accomodation Butterslip Café Mocha Campion Dental Laboratory Chez Pierre Christy’s Conway & Co Accountants Crotty’s Coffee House Dean Street Medical Centre Enviroclad Systems Frank Wall Mans Shop G. L. Ryan Jewellers

Merchants in Fine Organic Wines

White’s Pharmacy

38 l∆terature

St Canice’s Cathedral / Saturday 7 August 6pm / Admission €15/€13

THE HUBERT BUTLER ANNUAL LECTURE

Robert Fisk (UK)

Robert Fisk has amassed a devoted readership over the years with his insightful, witty and outspoken articles on international politics and mankind’s war-torn recent history. As a Middle East correspondent, first for The Times and now for The Independent, he has survived bombs, bullets, beatings and two kidnap His triumph is that he has attempts while collecting a wealth of awards and writing two bestselling and turned a slightly dubious acclaimed books: Pity the Nation, a devastating history of the Lebanese civil war, and over-romanticised and The Great War for Civilisation, a history of the “conquest” of the Middle East. in a world numbed by 24/7 television, he makes news seem gripping and important The Observer

craft into an honourable vocation In this year’s lecture, Fisk reflects on his experiences as a journalist since his The Independent What Fisk writes, in his often brilliant, highly authoritative prose is a wake-up call The Scotsman

early days as Belfast correspondent for The Times. A fearless and coruscating analyst, Fisk believes that journalism should “challenge authority, all authority.”

Yet all too often, he argues, journalists and Western civilians alike “have become prisoners of the language of power.” Why do we unconsciously accept war reports at face value? When does “torture” become “interrogation”? When does “assassination” become “targeted killing”?

Over the course of his extraordinary career, Fisk has received countless awards, including a Jacob’s Award for his coverage of the Gulf War on RTÉ Radio 1, the Orwell Prize for Journalism, and the Martha Gelhorn Prize for Journalism, and has been named the British Press Awards’ International Journalist of the Year no fewer than seven times. He has a PhD from Trinity College Dublin and in 2009 was honoured by the college’s Historical Society for his outstanding contribution to public discourse.

The Hubert Butler Annual Lecture was established in 2007 to honour the Kilkenny writer, historian and broadcaster whose remarkable consistency of vision and clarity of mind made him unique among Irish essayists and whose work evinced an unsurpassed moral, political and literary integrity.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Photo: Jerry Bauer

Photo: Mark Condren

JOHN BOYNE (Ireland) ANDREW O’HAGAN (UK)

39 l∆terature

The Watergate Theatre, Parliament Street / Sunday 8 August 6pm / Admission €13/€11

John Boyne has been described by Colum McCann as “one of the great craftsmen in contemporary literature.” His novel, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, won two Irish Book Awards, topped the New York Times Bestseller List, and spent more than 80 weeks at no.1 in Ireland. His latest work, The House of Special Purpose, set in revolutionary Russia, is “a wonderful, many-layered novel” (The Irish Examiner) and “a work that chimes perfectly with our times” (The Irish Times).

In November 1960, Frank Sinatra gave Marilyn Monroe a dog. His name was Maf. He had an instinct for the twentieth century. For politics. For literature. For interior decoration. In The Life and Opinions of Maf the Dog, Scottish novelist Andrew O’Hagan offers us “a subtle, funny and moving study of America on the eve of one of its periods of greatest crisis” (The Guardian). Named as one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists in 2003, O’Hagan is the author of several acclaimed novels, including Our Fathers, shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and Personality, winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction.

Set Theatre, John Street / Monday 9 August 7pm - 8.15pm / Admission €13/€11 Ticket Deal: Get this event and The Kilkenny County Session (p.17) for €26

The IFI Irish Film Archive presents

“IRELAND’S ATHLETIC ASSAULT AND BATTERY”?: HOLLYWOOD AND HURLING Introduced by Dr Seán Crosson

In the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s, the GAA organized annual tours to the US to promote hurling and gaelic football. The visits, often covered by newsreels, inspired major studios to make short films about both sports, but Hollywood’s depiction of Irish sport and culture was not always welcomed back home.

Dr Seán Crosson of NUI Galway presents a special screening of short films, some recently acquired by the IFI Irish Film Archive and shown for the first time in Ireland since the 1930s. From Hurling, which prompted a deputation from the GAA to demand cuts from the Irish censor, to the Oscar-nominated Three Kisses – featuring the legendary Cork hurling team of the 1950s – Dr Crosson examines how Irish sports were represented in Hollywood, and traces the evolution of Irish identity onscreen.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Programme Ted Husing’s Sport Slants (1931) Episode 4 Ted Husing’s Sport Thrills (1932) Episode 5 Hurling (1936) Three Kisses (1955) Foreign Sports in the US (1959)

Photo: Martina Coady/The Gallery Press

CIARAN CARSON (Ireland) MICHAEL COADY(Ireland)

Photo: Manus Carson/The Gallery Press

40 l∆terature

The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Tuesday 10 August 6pm / Admission €13/€11

Poet, novelist, translator, and director of the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s University, Ciaran Carson is one of Ireland’s most prolific and celebrated writers. His long and varied career has been showered with awards, including The Irish Times Literature Prize for Poetry, the Forward Prize and the Weidenfeld Translation Prize. His latest book of poems, Until Before After, follows last year’s acclaimed collection On the Night Watch. A profound and characteristically brave meditation on time and loss written in the “beautifully halting language that Carson has mastered”, Until Before After has been hailed as “a wonderful achievement … one of Carson’s most brilliant” (The Irish Times).

Winner of the Patrick Kavanagh Award for Poetry, Michael Coady’s ambitious and distinctive work weaves together verse, prose and photography to tell “complicated stories with great economy and emotional directness” (The Irish Times). His new collection, Going by Water, is “an eclectic package of surprises” (Sunday Independent). Ranging from the river traditions of his home town, Carrick-on-Suir, to the newfound locales of Paris and beyond, Coady celebrates the mysterious triumphs of ordinary experience and everyday ritual with humour and compassion.

St Canice’s Cathedral / Wednesday 11 August 6pm / Admission €13/€11 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Maarten Koningsberger & Finghin Collins (p.11) for €27 or this event and Evan Christopher’s Django à la Créole (p.19) for €26

“WHEN I’M SIXTY-FOUR” A Symposium on Pension Reform Teresa Ghilarducci (US) Jim Stewart (Ireland) Gerry Hughes (Ireland)

Introduced by Catriona Crowe Chaired by Fintan O’Toole

When I’m Sixty-Four is a symposium setting out a plan for sustainable pensions for all. With people living longer and financial markets plagued by uncertainty, Ireland faces serious choices about retirement. The National Pensions Framework claims to set out “a fair and equitable approach that encompasses all elements necessary for future pension provision”. But does it?

Teresa Ghilarducci, Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research in New York, outlines her radical plan to fund retirement in the US, while Jim Stewart and Gerry Hughes from the School of Business in Trinity College Dublin expose the flaws in Ireland’s current pension arrangements and put forward a fairer way of funding retirement.

Introduced by Catriona Crowe, Head of Special Projects at the National Archives, and chaired by Fintan O’Toole, Assistant Editor of The Irish Times, this symposium will encourage audience participation.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Photo: D. Banville

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St Canice’s Cathedral / Thursday 12 August 6pm / Admission €13/€11

JOHN BANVILLE (Ireland) HUGO HAMILTON (Ireland)

A Man Booker Prize-winner, and this year’s winner of the Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award, John Banville has long been regarded as one of the great prose stylists of our age. His books – such as Dr Copernicus, which won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and Kepler, awarded the Guardian Fiction Prize – have often considered real historical figures, but now Banville has taken on the gods.

The Infinities, his first novel since The Sea, features a host of mischievous Greek gods who can’t resist meddling in mathematician Adam Godley’s demise. Described by novelist Justin Cartwright as “a work of brilliance”, The Infinities is both a salacious delight and a penetrating exploration of the plight of being human, written in such “beautiful, luminous prose that every page delights, startles and uplifts” (The Times).

“You have a funny way of doing things here,” says Vid Cosic, a Serbian immigrant in Dublin and the hero of Hugo Hamilton’s novel, Hand in the Fire. But Vid’s problems extend far beyond cultural confusion. The acclaimed new novel from “a great international writer” (The Guardian), Hand in the Fire offers “a fresh perspective on Irish society through only partly comprehending immigrant eyes” (The Irish Times). Hamilton is the best-selling author of seven novels and two memoirs, including The Speckled People, a memoir of his German-Irish childhood. Hailed as an “instant classic” by Roy Foster, it won a clutch of European awards and was recently shortlisted for the Irish Book of the Decade.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

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The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Friday 13 August 6pm / Admission: Discussion €13/€11, Film €6/€5 / Ticket Deal: Get both events for €15

FORTY YEARS OF FEMINISM A discussion on where we were, where we are, and where we’re going

In 1970, an Irish woman couldn’t sit on a jury, buy contraceptives, drink a pint in a pub, get a barring order against a violent partner, or be paid the same rate as a man. That these and other discriminatory laws have been transformed in the last 40 years is thanks in no small part to the actions of determined activists like the Irish Women’s Liberation Movement.

From their appearance on the Late Late Show, to the famous ‘contraceptive train’ to Belfast, the IWLM captured public attention with a series of fearless challenges to the status quo, and their influence on the women’s movement, and on Irish society, is immeasurable.

Featuring a panel of speakers including Nell McCafferty, one of the founders of IWLM, Forty Years of Feminism charts the progress of feminism since those early campaigns, and asks what challenges and issues face Irish women today.

Chair Diarmaid Ferriter, Professor of Modern Irish History, UCD, author of Occasions of Sin: Sex and Society in Modern Ireland and writer/ presenter of The Limits of Liberty, shown on RTÉ in June 2010.

Speakers Margaret MacCurtain, historian, pioneer of Irish women’s history, author of Ariadne’s Thread: Writing Women into Irish History.

Catriona Crowe, archivist, former President of the Women’s History Association of Ireland, manager of 1901-1911 Irish Census Online.

Nell McCafferty, journalist, playwright, broadcaster, author of A Woman to Blame: the Kerry Babies Case and Nell, her autobiography.

Bridget Fitzsimons has just completed a degree in English and Film Studies at UCD. She will be editing The University Observer for the next academic year and hopes to research cultural and media portrayals of the female body.

The discussion will be preceded at 4pm by a special screening:

the IFI Irish Film Archive presents

I Can’t… I Can’t (aka Wedding Night) Directed by Piers Haggard IRL/Col/99 mins/1969

I Can’t… I Can’t tells the tale of Mady (Tessa Wyatt), a young Irish Catholic bride who is devastated when her pregnant mother miscarries and dies on her wedding day. She blames her father’s lust for the death and refuses to consummate her own marriage to Joe (Dennis Waterman). Unable to accept her doctor’s suggestion that she should use contraception, she is driven to desperate measures.

The film created controversy before its premiere at the Cork Film Festival in 1969, prompting the Most Rev Dr Lucey to unsuccessfully seek its withdrawal – not least because “with its nude and semi-nude scenes it must lead to immodest thoughts”. It has not been screened in Ireland since.

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eD O’lOughlin (Ireland) DaviD vann (US)

43 l∆TeraTure

Set Theatre, John Street / Saturday 14 August 3pm / Admission €13/€11 / Ticket Deal: Get this event and Tarab (p.20) for €22

Born in Toronto and raised in Ireland, Ed O’Loughlin reported from Africa for The Irish Times, and was Middle East correspondent for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age of Melbourne. His debut novel, not Untrue and not Unkind, tells the gripping story of friendship, rivalry and betrayal among a group of journalists and photographers covering African wars. Lauded by Anne Enright as “the most exciting first novel I have read in many years,” and by Joseph O’Neill as a “darkly-authoritative novel”, not Untrue and not Unkind was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and shortlisted for the Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award.

David Vann sank while on his honeymoon, sailing in the Caribbean, as chronicled in his best-selling memoir A Mile Down. But in Legend of a Suicide, vann turned to fiction to write about an even greater disaster: the death of a father. A tender story of survival and disillusioned love, Legend of a Suicide marks “the fictional debut of a truly great writer” (Sunday Independent). Winner of a California Book Award, the book has appeared on no fewer than 25 ‘Best Books of the year‘ lists worldwide. As Alexander Linklater wrote in The Observer, “nothing quite like this book has been written before.”

v∆sual Art

My paintings are not about what is seen.

They are about what is known forever in the mind Agnes Martin

OLIVER DOWLING curator surface & reality is an exhibition of eleven artists in five locations in Kilkenny running as a pathway through the city. Each of the artists has a very strong practice reflecting his and her own creative reality in individual ways. There is no one theme running through the exhibition.

It is its strength that, although retaining their own voices, each artist is bound by realities that do not necessarily seem obvious on the surface. What is pictorially simple and straightforward might not be and what is abstract might be straightforward. Nothing can be taken for granted; these artists continuously push boundaries. The exhibition includes film, paintings, photographs, installation and sound. The wonder and vision of the artist take time to absorb. And there is a great opportunity to take time with the exhibition in the relaxed atmosphere of Kilkenny Arts Festival.

Kilkenny Arts Festival has always been very strong in its visual arts programme. I am conscious of this legacy and the artists I have chosen to be part of surface & reality reflect and continue this tradition.

The response of the artists to exhibit in surface & reality was immediate and enthusiastic and I am very grateful to them. The team at Kilkenny Arts Festival helped enormously by allowing creative freedom of expression and working hard to make everything happen.

Oliver Dowling is an independent contemporary visual art specialist with comprehensive experience representing Irish artists, galleries and public institutions, offering particular expertise in curating exhibitions, advising on policy and forming collections.

He started his curatorial career with the Arts Council in 1967, touring exhibitions of Irish art within Ireland and presenting international exhibitions in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Belfast; worked on the early ROSC exhibitions 1967 and 1971; was Director of the Oliver Dowling Gallery, Dublin from 1975 to 1994 showing Irish and international artists; curator of visual arts programme of L’Imaginaire Irlandais, France 1996; Visual Arts Specialist to the Arts Council 1997 to 2006. He has contributed to the publications Irish Arts Review and Permaculture and Cecil King: A Legacy of Painting (Irish Museum of Modern Art, 2008). Curator of Discussions in Contemporary Sculpture, the Dock, Carrick-on-Shannon, 2008, and Invisible, an open and invited exhibition in several galleries, Dublin, 2010. Co-founder and curatorial advisor Dublin Contemporary 2011, a major exhibition of international art. Currently a board member of Irish Visual Artists Rights Organisation and on the board of trustees of Dublin City Gallery the Hugh Lane.

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DECLAN CLARKE (Ireland) Cologne Overnight considers the development of 20th century Western ideals through the ruins that have been left in their wake. Threading this together is the legacy of Nobel Laureate Heinrich Böll, the spectre of ruins in his work, his connection to Ireland and the respective fates of Germany and Ireland as they developed through economic boom times. The current recession is considered by contrasting the ghost estates that currently predominate throughout Ireland with the abandoned village on Achill that Böll poetically equated with the postwar ruins of Cologne.

Rothe House, Parliament Street / 10am-7pm

45 V∆sual Art

surface & reality

Declan Clarke was born in 1974 and studied at NCAD and Chelsea College of Art, London. In 2002/03 he represented Ireland on the PS1MoMA International Residency Program in New York. Recent solo exhibitions include Loneliness in West Germany, Goethe-Institut, Dublin; Declan Clarke & Derek Jarman, Serpentine Cinema, Serpentine Gallery at The Gate Cinema, London (2009) and Nothing Human is Alien to Me, Pierogi, Leipzig (2008). Recent group exhibitions include UR Now, The Ruins of the Contemporary, Whitstable Biennale, UK; Auto-Kino! curated by Phil Collins; Temporäre Kunshalle, Berlin (2010); Our Time, Smallpox, Lisbon (2009). In May 2010 his work was included in the Migrating Forms Underground Film Festival, New York.

MICHAEL COLEMAN (Ireland) “In my paintings I explore colour and how it reacts in relation to other colours, creating a colour field built on many surfaces. Around the Park is a series of twelve watercolours based on my time as an artistin-residence in the Phoenix Park, Dublin. Each work is edged with interrupted pathways surrounding a central field.”

Michael Coleman is a self-taught painter living and working in Dublin.

Described by critic Aidan Dunne as “an exceptionally rigorous painter of usually monochromatic abstracts”, Coleman’s work has drawn widespread praise. Referring to his “great red colourfield” at the Belfield Campus of UCD, the late Dorothy Walker wrote that she was in the presence of “the finest abstract painting” and poet Dennis O’Driscoll talks of Coleman’s “dedication and integrity”.

11 Patrick Street / 10am-7pm

In 1977 he held his first one-man exhibition at the Oliver Dowling Gallery, Dublin. In the 1980s he lived in Vienna, where he established a studio.

He shows regularly in Ireland and abroad and has been included in many group exhibitions. He has received a number of awards including the Carroll Award and the Patrons Award for Painting, EV+A, Limerick, and from 2005 to 2008 was artist-in-residence in the Phoenix Park, Dublin.

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46 V∆sual Art

Rothe House, Parliament Street / 10am-7pm

WILLIE DOHERTY (Ireland) Since 1985, Willie Doherty has produced a substantial body of photography and video in and about his native city of Derry.

His work is deeply engaged with location and expands out of its immediate context to explore themes of individual and collective subjectivity, memory and responsibility.

Willie Doherty has had numerous one-person exhibitions, including shows at the Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus und Kunstbau, Munich, the Hamburger Kunstverein, the Dallas Museum of Art and the Prefix Institute of Contemporary Art, Toronto. In 2006 he was the subject of a seven video survey organized by Laboratorio Arte Alameda in Mexico City and, in 2007, he represented Northern Ireland at the Venice Biennale.

He was shortlisted for the Turner Prize in 1994 and 2003. He lives and works in Donegal and Derry.

Willie Doherty will give a talk on his work at 12pm on Sunday 8 August @ the Festival Hub at the Left Bank.

11 Patrick Street / 10am-7pm

EITHNE JORDAN (Ireland) A hauntingly atmospheric picture of night-time Vienna emerges from Eithne Jordan’s most recent paintings, as she continues her exploration of some of the hidden and forgotten spaces in Europe’s great cities.

Eithne Jordan was born in Dublin in 1954. She studied at Dun Laoghaire School of Art from 1972-76 and at Hochschule der Kunste, Berlin, 1984-85. A member of Aosdána and of the RHA, she is one of Ireland’s leading figurative painters. She has exhibited widely in Europe, and her work is in major public and private collections in Ireland, Europe and the US. Recent solo exhibitions include Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris (2007); West Cork Arts Centre (2007); The Dock, Carrick-on-Shannon (2007); Kilkenny Arts Festival (2007); Fenderesky Gallery, Belfast (2007) and Rubicon Gallery, Dublin (2007 and 2010). She lives and works in France and Dublin.

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STEPHEN LOUGHMAN (Ireland)

11 Patrick Street / 10am-7pm

Stephen Loughman’s new series The Fisherman’s Widow takes its name from a print found on the wall of the room of one of Jack the Ripper’s victims. Loughman is interested in the notion of an artwork as witness to a crime and the associations this would provoke in the viewer. Each painting takes as its source a ‘grab’ from a film and comes preloaded with associations. In this case, the common narrative thread is the prelude to a violent act. For Loughman, the act of painting these images functions as a distilling method which slows down and fetishises what is only a few seconds of film time.

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surface & reality

Stephen Loughman lives and works in Dublin. He graduated from NCAD in 1987 and has mounted numerous solo shows at the Kevin Kavanagh Gallery. He has participated in group shows at IMMA, Galway Arts Centre, the European Central Bank, Frankfurt, and the 26th Sao Paulo Bienal in Brazil, and received several Arts Council of Ireland bursaries. His work is held in public and private collections in Ireland, the UK and Spain.

DENNIS McNULTY (Ireland)

11 Patrick Street / 10am-7pm

WILLIAM McKEOWN (Ireland) “The paintings that I will be showing at Kilkenny have developed out of the theme of immersion that has preoccupied me for many years. The subject matter of the paintings is that in each human being there is a deep biological affinity with a state of non-separation.

This surfaces constantly throughout our lives in many different situations from sitting in the bath to diving into a swimming pool to drinking a glass of water to standing on the beach being mesmerised by the beauty of the ocean. This empathy with fluidity dissolves the learned boundaries that exist between what is external to us and what is internal and is a fundamental element in the potential healing of our relationship with the natural world.”

Dennis McNulty’s practice is concerned with the construction of space, both in the sense of the processes that bring spaces into being and the relationship between our experience and our understanding of the built environment. He works to create ‘situations’, space-specific sound-performances or site-related installations, which he characterises as points of intersection between flows of various kinds – time, site, sound, narrative, audience. The work suggests potential narratives through an overlapping of fragments in various media.

McNulty’s recent shows include Mixtapes at the Lewis Glucksman Gallery, Cork (until October); Nothing is impossible at the Mattress Factory, Pittsburgh, USA and HaVE A LoOk! HAve a Look! at FormContent, London. He lives and works in Dublin and is represented by Green On Red. To view Dennis’s work, enter the Ormonde car park through the door in the lane behind the AIB on the high street. Take the lift to level 6 and walk up the stairs to level 7. Go through the door and walk to the other end of the car park.

Ormonde Car Park (top floor) / 10am-7pm For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

48 V∆sual Art

FERGUS MARTIN (Ireland) In his painting and sculpture, Fergus Martin tries to find a shape that gives a feeling of ‘holding’ as much as possible. He often thinks of tanks filling up with water, of rivers rising to the brim.

Kitchen Corridor, Kilkenny Castle / 10am-5.30pm

EOGHAN McTIGUE (Ireland) There are five large photographic prints in the series Aerial Plane. The photographs depict reflective panels that have been used as information display boards, they are all uniformly dark with a heavily-marked surface. The boards have been stripped bare by the artist and worked on in an attempt to erase all traces of their previous function. The more intensely the boards are worked on, the more disturbed the surface appears.

Scratches reflect light, and bits of transparent Sellotape and residual glue combine to give the panels a fractured and distressed appearance. The boards have been photographed on either 4x5 or 8x10 colour negatives, according to the standard principles used by industrial photographers to provide colour reproductions of paintings. This process intensifies the surface detail and obscures the reflective depth of the metal sheets. It also locates the work within the field of fine art and lends the images a strange and otherworldly feel, like dark, monochromatic paintings.

Eoghan McTigue completed an MA in Art and Architecture in 1995. In 1999 he was awarded a Bursary in Contemporary Criticism, and his work was published in instalments by Circa art magazine. In 2001 he undertook a residency at Kunst-Werke in Berlin and has been living there ever since. Previous exhibitions include group and solo exhibitions at the Douglas Hyde Gallery, the Irish Museum of Modern Art, the Royal Hibernian Academy and Project Arts Centre.

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Martin was born in Cork in 1955. He studied at Dun Laoghaire School of Art (1972-76) and The New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture (1991). He lived in Italy from 1979 to 1988, where he lectured in English language at the University of Milan. In 1988 he returned to painting and since then has exhibited widely in Ireland and internationally.

While primarily known as a painter, Martin’s practice has widened over the years to include sculpture and photography and digital imaging. He lives and works in Dublin and is a member of Aosdána.

Recent solo exhibitions have included Butler Gallery, Kilkenny (2003); Green on Red Gallery, Dublin (2006 and 2009); Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane (2008/2009). In 2008 Martin’s sculpture, Steel, commissioned by the OPW, was installed at the entrance gates of The Irish Museum of Modern Art. Group exhibitions in 2009/2010 include with words like smoke, Chelsea Space, London; The Way Things Are, Sydney Non-Objective, Sydney; The nature of things, Petit Port 44, Leiden, Holland and Terror and the Sublime, Crawford Art Gallery, Cork. In 2010 he won the Curtin O’Donoghue Photography Prize at the RHA annual exhibition.

11 Patrick Street / 10am-7pm

Kilkenny Castle Park / 10am-8pm

SUSAN PHILIPSZ (UK) Interested in the ways that sound and space can define and mediate each other, Susan Philipsz creates subtle yet immersive installations in which the artist’s voice is the central medium.

Engaged with the notion of sound as a physical or sculptural experience, Philipsz is best known for recording herself singing unaccompanied versions of popular or folk songs which she replays in public spaces or in a gallery. Responding to the character or architecture of a space or place and drawing from musical, literary and historical sources, her works often stimulate a heightened sense of spatial awareness, emotion and memory.

49 V∆sual Art

surface & reality

A Turner Prize nominee this year, Susan Philipsz was born in Glasgow in 1965 and studied at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee (1989-93) and the University of Ulster (1993-94). Since then she has exhibited widely, both in the UK and internationally, in group and solo shows. Her solo exhibitions include When Day Closes, IHME Project, Pro Arte Foundation, Helsinki (2010); Lowlands, Glasgow International, Glasgow (2010); I See a Darkness, Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York (2010); You Are Not Alone, Radcliffe Observatory, Modern Art Oxford (2009) and Out of Bounds: Susan Philipsz, Institute of Contemporary Arts, London (2008). Her many group exhibitions include Haunted, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (2010); Mirrors, MARCO Museo de Arte Contemporanea, Spain (2010); The Quick and the Dead, Walker Arts Center, Minneapolis (2009) and Days Like These, Tate Britain Triennial, London (2003). She lives in Berlin.

Susan Philipsz will give a talk on her work at 12pm on Saturday 7 August @ the Festival Hub at the Left Bank.

CIARÁN WALSH (Ireland) Ciarán Walsh’s work investigates the interaction between the physical and non-physical, informed by actual practitioners of pseudo-science, and intellectual areas he calls “marginal” knowledge. Most recently, he has been working on the legacy of maligned psychotherapist and scientist Wilhelm Reich, in particular his theorised ‘orgone’ energy.

In his sculptures, installations, video and paper-based works, Walsh deliberately takes an ambivalent position on the truth of these sciences, unlocking their potentials and creating a perceptual space for his artworks between aesthetical objects and theoretical drafts.

Walsh was born in Carlow and received an MA in Art in the Contemporary World from NCAD. Since 2003 he has exhibited at various art spaces in Ireland, including solo shows at VISUAL (Carlow) and Four (Dublin), and major group shows in, amongst others, Project Arts Centre, Mother’s Tankstation, The City Arts Centre (all Dublin) and The Dock (Leitrim).

In addition to his studio practice, Walsh has curated the temporary public art commissions Hedgeschool and Sweet Futures, participated in an invited research project at the Bauhaus (Dessau, Germany), and contributed to several art and cultural publications.

He self-publishes the art-zine Travelogue and lives and works in Berlin.

Rothe House, Parliament Street / 10am-7pm

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50 V∆sual Art strand 2

Butler Gallery

TONY O’MALLEY(Ireland) Constructions

This is the first exhibition dedicated entirely to the ‘Constructions’ of the renowned Irish artist, Tony O’Malley (1913-2003). Curated by the Butler Gallery’s Director, Anna O’Sullivan, the exhibition features a treasure trove of these incredible sculptural constructions or ‘assemblages’, which will fill the gallery from ceiling to floor, delighting all ages and fans of the artist. O’Malley’s ‘Constructions’ were made from the 1960s onwards and underline his extraordinary ingenuity. These threedimensional works of various shapes and sizes incorporate many components – primarily wood collage, oil, nails, string and other found materials. The beauty and diversity of this body of work will surprise and dazzle, encouraging the viewer to look anew at one of Ireland’s most acclaimed artists.

7 August - 31 October 10am-5.30pm / Opening Saturday 7 August 3pm-5pm

Butler Gallery Events, Kilkenny Arts Festival Construct with Nature

Outdoor Solas workshops during the Kilkenny Arts Festival Tuesday 10, Wednesday 11 & Thursday 12 August 11am-1pm Butler Gallery, Kilkenny Castle Free. Booking essential. Call 056 776 1106 Come along to our Solas family workshops (for children aged 5-12) where, after looking at the Tony O’Malley exhibition, we head outdoors and find inspiration in the Castle Park to build our very own colourful ‘Constructions’.

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Constructive Criticism

Butler Gallery Young Critics’ Group This year, the Butler Gallery are working with a team of young critics aged 16-19 to constructively critique the different strands of the festival. Young people will talk about, illustrate and record their perceptions of the festival after interviewing and discussing content with artists, curators and other visitors to the city. Look out for us during the festival!

GUERRILLA GIRLS (US)

I’m not a feminist, but if I was…

New Work Revealed

Gallery no.76 John Street / 30 July – 24 September Mon-Sat- 10am-5pm, Sun- 11am-5pm Opening Night Celebration Friday 30 July Look out Kilkenny and Ireland! The Guerrilla Girls are back and this time they are taking on no. 76 in their own unique way! What have they discovered about Ireland’s treatment of its women artists? All will be revealed at the opening on Friday 30th July.

Kilkenny County Council Arts Office is thrilled to present new works by the internationally-renowned feminist arts group the Guerrilla Girls. Formed in 1985, the Guerrilla Girls explore such taboo subjects as feminism, attempting to achieve equality of the sexes and ‘races’ in art, politics, film, and popular culture, hence calling themselves the “Conscience of the Art World”.

51 V∆sual Art strand 2

KILKENNY COUNTY COUNCIL ARTS OFFICE GALLERY

This exhibition creates a lens through which power and powerlessness are identified, gender is examined and issues about women in contemporary Irish society discussed. To experience the Guerrilla Girls exhibition is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see art history in the making.

Assisted by Portadown 2000, Craigavon Borough Council, NCAD, University of Ulster, University College Dublin, Glucksman Gallery Cork, OPW, Iris Colour.

ENDANGERED STUDIOS

Shutterbug, Provincial House, Patrick Street 7 - 15 August, Sun 12 noon-6pm, Mon-Sat 10am-6pm Exhibition opens Saturday 7 August, 5pm-8pm Endangered Studios is a Kilkenny-based studio with artists working in a wide range of disciplines.

The studios began in 2003 with six artists in a disused factory. It was the first artists’ studios in Kilkenny to be supported by the county council. Since 2007, the group has been resident at the Workhouse in Callan. Though there has been a consistent founding core, the group continues to fluctuate in size, welcoming new artists to utilise the space and opportunities, whilst other members of the group have left to continue study and career paths.

Endangered Studios have participated in several festivals in recent years. This year, thanks to Blanaid and Eoin Hennessy, the group will be exhibiting new works, sculpture, painting and drawings by Caroline Schofield, Julie Cusack, Patrick O’Connor and Andrew Ryan at Shutterbug on Patrick Street.

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52 V∆sual Art strand 2

RUDOLF HELTZEL GALLERY

MARIA VAN KESTEREN (Netherlands)

10 Patrick Street / 6-15 August Mon-Fri 10am-1pm, 2pm-5.30pm, Sun 12 noon-5pm In the 1960s, Maria van Kesteren introduced woodturning as an art into Ireland. She loves clean, logical forms and experiments with round, mathematical shapes: cylinders and flattened cones, using the circle as a binding factor.

Friday 6 - Sunday 29 August / Part 1: Kilkenny Design Centre (Café), Castle Yard / Mon-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 10am-5.30pm, Sun 10.30am-5pm / Opening Friday 6 August 11.30am / Part 2: Esquire Coffee, 20 High Street / Mon-Sat 8.45am-6pm, Sun 10.30am-3.30pm / Opening/viewing Friday 6 August 10.30am

KCAT

Thirteen KCAT Studio artists’ vibrant exhibition of work ranges from landscape to portraits to strong narrative imagery. This eclectic mix of works, in a variety of media, is striking in its use of colour and subject matter, the hallmark of a KCAT Studio exhibition. KCAT Studio supports fourteen artists with special needs in all aspects of their professional progression and development. The artists have exhibited widely in Ireland and abroad, collaborated on projects with other artists and arts organisations and completed various commissions.

Artists are encouraged to fully participate in decisionmaking and the development of the studio.

Artists participating: Declan Byrne, Francis Casey, Mary Cody, Sinead Fahey, Lorna Corrigan, Karl Fitzgerald, Jack Foskin, George McCutcheon, Andrew Pike, Thomas Barron, Eileen Mulrooney, Jason Turner and Margaret Walker.

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Danesfort Hill, Bennettsbridge / 6 - 15 August, 10am-6pm and by appointment (call 087 6799625)

HazelHouse Studio Gerard Casey Kilkenny-born artist Gerard Casey’s work is primarily concerned with objects and locations shaped by man. His “quiet” paintings give authority and presence to everyday objects and places, and aim to inspire silence, contemplation and a sense of wonder. Casey has participated in all the major exhibitions in Ireland over the years. In 1994 he was awarded the Arts Council Gold Medal at the Oireachtas Exhibition, and his work is held in many private and public collections in Ireland and elsewhere.

Eamon Colman Eamon Colman is one of Ireland’s foremost abstract painters. He has held thirty solo exhibitions in Ireland and internationally, including a midterm retrospective at the RHA. In an ongoing project, he responds to the writings of Immanuel Kant, applying Kant’s ideas to the questions that surround the depiction of landscape. Does the mood of the artist affect the way in which landscape is addressed? Does landscape have a mood? For Colman, the introduction of colour as an indicator of mood allows the viewer to interpret this for themselves.

Patrick Pye One of Ireland’s greatest living artists, Patrick Pye is showing a number of previously-unseen graphic works that mark, at the age of 81, a significant new departure for his work. Described as an “ultra sophisticated primitive”, Pye imbues his work with a psychological edginess and a yearning for truth that link him both to Old Masters and contemporary artists.

A member of the RHA and Aosdána, he has exhibited both in Ireland and abroad and his work is held in private and public collections.

craft ANGELA O’KELLY curator This year’s craft strand looks to new directions and dialogues in craft.

Craft artists working with cutting-edge technology and materials, conceptual craft and an inclusive, interactive exhibition are some of the highlights.

Gallery One in the National Craft Galleries is dedicated to London-based jeweller Mah Rana’s exhibition Jewellery is Life. One section presents her conceptual jewellery, which explores the notion that jewellery is intrinsic to our lives, the other will house Meanings and Attachments, an interactive exhibit of written and photographic images of individuals with their jewellery. This very social event, which thrives on public engagement, will see viewers sharing stories and experiences with each other and confirm the idea that jewellery is essential to us all. See below for details of how to participate.

National Craft Gallery, Castle Yard / 7 August - 20 October Tues-Sat 10am-5pm Open Mondays during the festival

Gallery Two showcases the work of 14 makers who are Embracing Technology. These makers push the boundaries of their craft through the inventive use of materials and technology. Combining hand crafting with new technologies like laser-cutting, water jet cutting, rapid prototyping, motion capturing, textiles set in concrete, interactive magnetic wall coverings and site-specific textiles for walls and windows, these makers expand the potential of craft and challenge our perceptions with new ways of making dynamic forms.

National Craft Gallery 1

Jewellery is Life and Meanings and Attachments MAH RANA Jewellery is Life highlights the ways we use jewellery to mark occasions and events, significant or everyday. Through jewellery, issues of value, communication, and personal and collective histories are explored. The work reflects the importance of owning, giving and wearing jewellery throughout our lives.

Meanings and Attachments is an ongoing event held in different countries creating a written and photographic record of people’s personal connections to the jewellery that they wear. Individuals are photographed wearing their jewellery and a wall of photographs is constructed along with a written record of the wearer’s attachments to the jewellery. London-based jeweller Mah Rana will be on site for Meanings and Attachments and public engagement with Mah will take place on Saturday 7 August, 10am-5.30pm; Sunday 8 August, 11am-5.30pm; and Monday 9 August, 10am-5.30pm.

All are welcome to participate.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

54 craft

National Craft Gallery 2

Embracing Technology

JO ANGELL Jo Angell’s work is inspired by nature, combining hand-crafting with new technologies.

For her canopies she observed nature on a microscopic scale. Diatoms - single-celled structures encased in two-sided silica which are highly ornate - provided the perfect inspiration both for the structure and for laser-cutting patterns. Laser-cutting enables Jo to experiment with the different light-diffusing effects achieved by everything from the tiniest holes to larger, bolder shapes. Her canopies offer protection from the sun, yet retain an aura of a changeable, magical light. She is based in London.

KATIE BUNNELL As a practitioner-researcher and leader of the 3D digital production research cluster at University College Falmouth, Katie Bunnell has a fundamental urge to interrogate digital technologies using an open and experimental approach. She aims to develop new production methods that integrate digital technologies with other making processes in ways that will enable craft practice to enter new territory, developing new aesthetic qualities, new forms and surfaces and new ways of making things that exploit the communication and networking capabilities of digital data. She is based in Cornwall.

VANESSA CUTLER

TAVS JØRGENSEN

Vanessa Cutler employs the machine-like qualities of abrasive waterjet to produce work at once solid and fragile. The forms in her work are derived from geometry, architecture and the sensitivity of the material itself, while the ribbon-like qualities of glass engage the viewer.

Cutler enjoys building structures that combine material and process to test the strength and fragility of glass and explore the boundaries of the material. She is based in Swansea.

In recent years, Tavs Jørgensen’s practice has focused on the creative use of digital development tools. He believes that, in order for the creative practitioner to remain a current and relevant part of contemporary culture, it is vital to explore and utilize these new methods. However, it also takes intimate knowledge of materials and making processes to realise the full creative potential of IT tools. Accordingly, many of his projects explore the potential of merging traditional making skills with new technologies such as rapid prototyping, digitizing, motion capture and CNC milling. He is based in Devon.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

55 craft

RACHEL KELLY

JENNY LEARY

Rachel Kelly’s Interactive Wallpaper Studio has an international reputation for innovative and interactive wallpaper designs. Rachel produces wall coverings ranging from laser and CAD-cut decorative wall and glass stickers to hand screenprinted wallpaper. She specialises in both traditional and innovative print processes, often combining hand silkscreen with CAD and digital printing with laser technology. She has many high-profile clients including the BBC, the Arts Council and the NHS, and this year was nominated for a Grand Designs Award for her print designs for Habitat UK Ltd. She is based in Cumbria.

Jenny Leary is a textile designer whose work investigates the use of magnetic materials including steel fibres, ferrite rubber, magnetic films, neodymium magnets and ultrafine iron powder.

She blends these technical ingredients with traditional textile materials, and draws on processes such as embroidery and laser-cutting to invent new recipes for surface design. Her work, which sits comfortably both in artistic and scientific contexts, questions the boundaries between engineering and craft. Whether creating magnetic materials for wall coverings, hand-bound books, or apparel, Jenny seeks out uncanny surface qualities that are bound to challenge our senses. She is based in London.

AOIFE LUDLOW

RACHEL McKNIGHT

Aoife Ludlow’s work explores the concept of the journey and the ways in which we navigate through space, from maps and motorway lights to the near-meditative state of a long-distance runner. While grounded in a love of materials and tactility, her recent work combines technology and tradition, art and craft, using laser-cutting, digital print, animation and film alongside traditional textile techniques.

A designer for Tactility Factory and co-director of design consultancy We Like Soup, she is based in Belfast.

Rachel McKnight produces necklaces, bangles, earrings and rings to form quirky creations in plastics and rubber. The excitement of sourcing and experimenting with new materials inspires her to produce original and innovative jewellery.

Working with plastics enables her to pursue her interest in transparency and opaque colour. In the last two years she has embraced new technology and with the help of laser-cutting is developing work with

more intricate designs, such as the lace

pattern used in some of her pieces.

The idea of combining a man made, industrial product with

a delicate and traditional

pattern inspires her new

work. She is based

in Belfast.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

56 craft

JUSTIN MARSHALL Justin Marshall is a practising maker and researcher based at University College Falmouth.

His work on ceramic bowls was developed at Bath Spa University Ceramics Department, with support from an AHRC research grant. The project involved investigating a particular piece of 3D CAD software for its creative potential in producing ceramic forms with new surface texture. The textures of the bowls were developed through a process of ‘voxelation’, in which a 3D form is simplified into a series of blocks which make up an approximation of the original form. This process creates unexpected complexity and interference patterns within the complex, curved surface of the bowls. He is based in Cornwall.

LYNNE MURRAY Lynne Murray’s work operates at the fractured junction where the directness of the hand drawn and the dominance of computerized design collide.

Exploring new technologies, she celebrates these tensions by translating impulsive, drawn designs into refined, digital jewellery. Her research into the manipulation of computer-generated design, in partnership with hand-made interventions, creates visually engaging and technically challenging forms of jewellery. By exploiting the glitches between these opposing processes, the work starts to function and the journey can begin. She is based in London.

C J O’NEILL

LIZ NILSSON Liz Nilsson is an interdisciplinary textile artist. Her work Constructed Remembrance investigates memory and our ability to memorise experiences. Weaving together used and new fabrics, the multi-layered nature of her work represents repetition, recall and habit and refers to the way in which memories are formed. Shadows add a transient layer and symbolise memory, enabling the viewer to experience the actual work and its memory, the concrete and the shadow, simultaneously. She is based in Dublin.

Inspired by memories and everyday ceramics, CJ O’Neill creates a visual language of silhouettes. Re-interpreting existing objects, adding a new layer of pattern over the old, she aims to embed a new story, to provoke conversation and inspire new ways of seeing objects. Though she uses industrial production processes, she aligns herself more closely to the individual craftsman and is interested in the balance between the handmade and the industrially produced. Punching old, manufactured, everyday objects with a ‘newness’ that refers to current mass production, O’Neill places these old objects in the spotlight and asks how their value has changed with the imposition of a new narrative. She is based in Manchester.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

Embracing Technology

57 craft

National Craft Gallery 2

TACTILITY FACTORY JILL PHILLIPS Jill Phillips is an award-winning, multi-disciplinary designer of bespoke furniture, textiles and interiors.

Her work combines old and new, antique and modern, in unique and exciting ways. Her elegantlydeviant pieces encourage the observer to construct their own visual experience. Nothing is as it seems.

Subtlety is key. Drawing on aspects of cognitive science, these pieces persuade the brain and eye to connect, and re-connect, stimulating a progression of engagements that allow new forms to emerge.

She is based in Belfast.

In the true spirit of invention, Tactility Factory unites expertise from architecture and textiles to bring tactility into the built environment.

Architect Ruth Morrow and textile designer Trish Belford combine the hard properties of concrete with the softness of textiles by designing innovative processes, using patented technology, to deliver beautiful and sensually-engaging surfaces. Though created using leading-edge technologies, each surface finish has a unique, hand-crafted, antique feel; a testament to the fact that ornament isn’t crime. Tactility Factory is based in Belfast.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Tours Tours of the exhibitions will take place at 11am daily in the National Craft Galleries.

Curator Talk On Sunday 8 August, at 2pm, Craft curator Angela O’Kelly and artists will give a talk on the exhibitions.

Admission free.

GRENNAN MILL CRAFT SCHOOL Thomastown / 6-15 August 10am-6pm/ Opening Saturday 7 August 5.30pm Grennan Mill Craft School presents an exciting range of work from six artists: Danny Browne, Mark Campden, Shem Caulfield, Maeve Coulter, Lorna Donlon and Lucinda Robertson.

Grennan Mill Craft School

Butler House, 16 Upper Patrick St / 7-14 August 10am - 6pm MADE in Kilkenny is a network of 26 of the finest craftspeople in Kilkenny City and County. This year’s exhibition features new works inspired by “Kilkenny: a sense of place”. All pieces are handcrafted and feature a refreshing and innovative use of materials, resulting in crafted pieces of striking individuality.

CERAMICS IRELAND INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

Gallery 2, Kilkenny Design, Castle Yard / 7-16 August, Mon-Sat 10am-5.30pm, Sun 11am-5.30pm

craft strand 2

MADE IN KILKENNY

Children’s Craft Workshops Tuesday 10 - Thursday 12 August National Craft Gallery, Castle Yard 2pm-4pm See page 63 for details.

Featuring the work of seven international makers: Richard Notkin (USA), Walter Keeler (UK), Etain Hickey (Ireland), Brendan Hesmondhalgh (UK), Sara Flynn (Ireland), Jackson Li (China) and Sinead Glynn (Ireland). The exhibition is part of The Ceramics Ireland International Festival which takes place from 3-5 September.

There There are are very very few few problems problems nature hasn’t already nature hasn’t already solved. solved.

Biomimicry: Emulating Nature’s Genius.

Biomimicry: Emulating Nature’s Genius.

Dr. Dayna Baumeister, leading biomimicry expert and co-founder of Dr. Dayna Baumeister, leading biomimicry expert andfield co-founder of the Biomimicry Guild, will describe what’s new in the of bio-inspired the Biomimicry Guild, will describe what’s new in the field of bio-inspired design and the promise of biomimicry to solve grand design and while the promise of biomimicry to solve grand challenges conserving life’s genius. challenges while conserving life’s genius.

Introduction by Paul Cunningham, RTE Environment Correspondent.

Introduction by Paul Cunningham, RTE Environment Correspondent.

September 7th. 6:45pm.

September 7th. 6:45pm.

The Royal Irish Academy, Dawson St. Dublin 2.

The Royal Irish Academy, Dawson St. Dublin 2.

Biomimicry is a design discipline that seeks sustainable and life-friendly solutions by emulating Biomimicry is a design discipline that seeks and life-friendly solutions by emulating nature’s time-tested ideas.

Observing how asustainable 45 ton humpback whale jumps has revolutionised nature’s time-tested ideas.

Observing how a 45 ton humpback whale jumps has revolutionised turbines and propellors. Understanding how insects gather moisture in the desert is helping turbines drought. and propellors.

Understanding gather moisture in thedurable desert fabrics. is helping combat Analysing spiders' has how led toinsects stronger, lighter and more combat drought. Analysing spiders' has led to stronger, lighter and more durable fabrics.

Biomimics around the world are learning to adhere like a gecko, streamline car bodies like a Biomimics around the world learning adhere likelike a gecko, streamline carrun bodies like a boxfish, cool buildings like a are termite, maketofiber optics a sea sponge, and a business boxfish, cool buildings like a redwood forest. like a termite, make fiber optics like a sea sponge, and run a business like a redwood forest.

Seating limited. Booking required SeatingWednesday limited. Booking required before September 1st at before Wednesday September 1st at mail@heritagecouncil.ie mail@heritagecouncil.ie Seating is on a first come first served basis.

Seating is on a first come first served basis.

Presented by The Heritage Council celebration of Council Presentedinby The Heritage International Year of Biodiversity. in celebration of International Year of Biodiversity.

ch∆ldren JOE BRENNAN curator This year’s children’s programme is a kaleidoscope of colour, sound and song.

There’s a wonderful mix of events for all age groups, so why not try something new?

The programme kicks off with The Magic Cube - a wonderful clowning show full of fun, creativity and colour. It’s a real family event that is beautifully crafted and executed. This is one to bring your dad to! Look out for On-Off, a beautiful piece of theatre that begins with the actor trying to figure out how to connect up some lights and develops into a love story. Don’t miss this, whatever age you are!

Photo: G.F.Rota-Studio UV

A new feature this year is the ‘Children’s Book of the Festival’ in association with Kilkenny County Library Services. Dark Days is the latest instalment in the Skulduggery Pleasant series by Derek Landy. Come along to hear Derek talk about his plans to rule the world and look out for related events at local libraries.

The sea comes to Kilkenny this year in the form of Blenny, the Waterdaughter, an enchanting tale about a strange fish revealing secrets in a small seaside town, and Whispering Waves, which features a boat, a mysterious fisherman and tales of the ocean waves. There are two wonderful puppet shows: Miriam Lambert’s retelling of The Gingerbread Man and a very jazzy piece, The Billy Holiday Show, featuring a diva goat. Parapapel is a gorgeous piece of dance theatre that shows just what you can do with a simple piece of paper, and closing this year’s programme is Liam Ó Maonlaí, who shares

his unique musical talent in a special family show. Don’t miss it!

The Watergate Theatre, Parliament Street / Friday 6 August 5pm, Saturday 7 August 12 noon & 2pm, Sunday 8 August 12 noon / Admission €10 PANDEMONIUM TEATRO (Italy)

Il Cubo Magico/ The Magic Cube Written and directed

by Tiziano Manzini With Walter Maconi and Yuri Plebani

Two clowns, One and The Other, discover a strange world made only of cubes: big cubes and small cubes, red cubes and blue cubes. To One, these cubes are only cubes. But The Other knows how to use them to build a whole world, and, little by little, he draws One into the game…

Two very different views of the world collide to create a wonderful clowning performance with horses, motorbikes, trains, castles, battles, love, laughs and even some tears.

Italian company Pandemonium Theater takes you on a madcap adventure celebrating imagination and creativity.

A perfect family show – everyone will love it!

Duration 50 minutes Age 3 years and upwards For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

60 ch∆ldren

The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Sunday 8 August 1.30pm & 3.30pm / Admission €8 MIRIAM LAMBERT (Ireland)

THE GINGERBREAD MAN

Duration 45 minutes Suitable for families

Peek and Boo Two tousle-haired characters, Peek and Boo, get themselves into (and out of) some sticky situations! Miriam’s much-loved signature characters appear before the main production.

The Gingerbread man In this delightful rendition of the age-old tale, Miriam bakes the gingerbread, using herself as a ‘humanette’. But the freshly-baked biscuit runs, eluding everyone’s hungry grasp, until he meets a very clever fox…

Kilkenny puppeteer Miriam Lambert has worked extensively as a puppeteer and puppet-maker for Irish television and numerous Irish theatre companies. Her productions have toured nationally and internationally.

Miriam will be running puppet-making workshops for children on 9 & 13 August. See workshop information on page 63.

Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane / Monday 9 August 12 noon & 2.30pm / Admission €8

Mack the lighthouse-keeper watches over a small fishing town and the ocean, but doesn’t feel part of either, not until the day a Blenny Fish follows him home!

CUPS AND CROWNS (Ireland)

Using only herself and the imaginary characters around her, Gillian Kelly brings you into Mack’s world as he begins to shed light on the secrets of his community; a place where stories grow legs, fins and fish lips!

Photo: Kamil Krawczak

BLENNY, THE WATERDAUGHTER Directed by Fiona McDonagh

Performed by Gillian Kelly Duration 45 minutes Age 7-12 years

Cups and Crowns tour all over the country, bringing their innovative mix of events and workshops to help young people explore their imaginations.

DOG AND STRING (Ireland) The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Tuesday 10 August 12 noon and 2.30pm / Admission €8

THE BILLY HOLIDAY SHOW

Duration 50 minutes Age 4-10 years

Dog and String is a touring company using storytelling, original live music, puppets, masks and mime to create plays which fire children’s imaginations.

Billy Holiday is the world’s most famous singing goat. Now she’s trying to help a few would-be stars from the pool of talent that quietly grazes our hillsides.

But can sheep really make it big in showbiz? The audience must decide…

Please note: this show is not for the very small there are scary bits. Some of our biggest fans are adults!

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

A storytelling performance with JOE BRENNAN (Ireland)

61 ch∆ldren

The Parade Tower, Kilkenny Castle / Friday 13 August 12 noon & 2.30pm / Admission €8

WHISPERING WAVES: STORIES OF THE SEA Duration 50 minutes Age Children 8 years and over and their families

DE MOLÉCULA (Spain)

PARAPAPEL

by Maral Kekejian, David Picazo and Patricia Ruz

Duration 50 minutes Age 18 months up to 5 years A daring generation has combined to create a small masterpiece Teatro Pradillo

Onstage, there are just two friends and a roll of paper, but together they create a whole world. Dancing and playing, folding and stretching, the performers transform the simplest of props into a magic carpet, a balloon, or a place to hide. Graceful, funny and endlessly inventive, Parapapel is a mesmerising show that will keep young children enthralled.

“Listen! Can you hear it?” asks the old fisherman, “the sound of the waves whispering.”

But what are they whispering?

A chance encounter with an old fisherman reveals a treasure trove of stories carried by the waves. Stories of adventure, mystery and love. Stories of silky seals, a drowning wave and strange creatures.

In this enthralling storytelling performance, Joe Brennan reveals the secrets of the waves.

Joe Brennan has being delighting audiences of all ages, here in Ireland and around the world, with his stories for the last ten years. Joe tells traditional folk tales, legends and original stories inspired by real life experiences. He has also written a number of plays for children.

Photo: Niall Cranny

Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane / Wednesday 11 & Thursday 12 August 12 noon & 2pm / Admission €8

De Molécula has toured Parapapel to acclaim all over the world. At the end of the show, children are welcome on stage to explore the possibilities of paper for themselves.

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

62 ch∆ldren

Barnstorm Theatre, Church Lane / Saturday 14 August 12 noon & 3pm, Sunday 15 August 12 noon & 2pm / Admission €8

Duration 45 minutes Age Children 1-4 years and their families

LA BARACCA (Italy)

ON-OFF

By Andrea Buzzetti, Carlotta Zini and Valeria Frabetti Directed by Valeria Frabetti

On stage there is an actor, but the main character is light. Music and movement create a dance to the rhythms of the light switches. Lamps, bulbs and cables become flowers, a spoon, a candle, a carousel...

At once a game, a dance, and an enchanting spectacle, On-Off helps young children overcome their fear of the dark and discover the language of light.

On-Off is a delightful tribute to children’s amazement at the behaviour of light (and to their interest in controlling it!).

Since 1976, Bologna-based theatre company La Baracca has produced over 140 shows for children and put on more than 9,000 performances.

Derek Landy is a blackbelt in kenpo karate. But never mind about that – he’s also the author of Skulduggery Pleasant, recently voted the Irish Book of the Decade, and he’s coming to Kilkenny to talk about his life, his work, and his plans to build his own private munchkin army, just in case...

For those of you who’ve been living underground, Skulduggery Pleasant is a wise-cracking detective, a powerful magician and a master of dirty tricks (all for the greater good, of course). He’s also the ally, protector and mentor of Stephanie Edgley, a very unusual twelveyear-old. Oh yeah, and he’s dead. But you knew that, right?

Hotel Kilkenny, College Road / Saturday 14 August 3pm / Admission €8

DEREK LANDY(Ireland) Duration 1 hour Age 10+

If you’re nice to Derek he might give you the low-down on the latest Skulduggery instalment, Mortal Coil, guaranteed to contain at least 40% humour, 50% action, and 100% thrills.

It’s a good idea to be nice to him. Did we mention he’s a blackbelt in kenpo karate?

In association with Kilkenny County Library Service, we’re delighted to announce that Skulduggery Pleasant: Dark Days is the Children’s Book of the Festival. Copies of all the books in the series will be available at your local library - watch out for special events taking place there! And if you really want to impress Derek, why not dress up as your favourite character and come along to see him?

(Check out details of the costume-making workshop on the next page)

For more info, reviews, video clips and podcasts visit kilkennyarts.ie

LIAM Ó MAONLAÍ (Ireland) Duration 90 minutes

63 ch∆ldren

Hotel Kilkenny, College Road / Sunday 15 August 3.30pm / Admission €10

One of Ireland’s best-loved musicians and singers, multi-instrumentalist Liam Ó Maonlaí brings us a world of sean nós singing, dazzling rhythm, piano and soul in this intimate concert designed for all the family, young and old. Come along and enjoy a masterclass from one of our great musical talents.

WORKSHOPS

Puppet-Making Workshop with Miriam Lambert

Skulduggery Pleasant Costume-Making

Monday 9 & Friday 13 August 10am-11.30am Abbey Business Centre €8 per day

Tuesday 6 - Friday 9 July 11am-4pm daily €15 For booking contact the Drum on 056 778 8134

An exciting opportunity to create your own puppet with puppeteer Miriam Lambert. For ages 7 and upwards.

In association with The Drum Youth Project & Health Café MacDonagh Junction Shopping Centre Goods Shed Square

Construct with Nature

A chance to immerse yourself in the crazy world of the skeleton detective and create costumes based on the characters in this four-day workshop with artist Jean Conroy.

The Big Draw Tuesday 10 August 11am-1.30pm Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel €6. Ages 9-12 Design a character, make your own animation flip book and create a storyboard with the help of Fabian Erlinghauser and Roxanne Burchartz from the Cartoon Saloon (Oscar-nominated for The Secret Of Kells).

Each participant needs to bring: 1. 2 post-it blocks 2. 20 pages of A3 paper 3. pencils

Tuesday 10, Wednesday 11 & Thursday 12 August 11am-1pm Butler Gallery, Kilkenny Castle Free. Booking essential. Call: 056 776 1106 Come along to the Butler Gallery’s Solas family workshops (for children aged 5-12) where, after looking at the Tony O’Malley exhibition, we head outdoors and find inspiration in the Castle Park to build our very own colourful ‘Constructions’.

Children’s Craft Workshops Tuesday 10, Wednesday 11 & Thursday 12 August 2pm-4pm National Craft Gallery Free. Booking essential. Contact: 056 779 6151 These workshops will introduce children to the materials and techniques used in the exhibitions and explore jewellery, textiles and new technologies.

greaT PlaCeS TO STay 1

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Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel 056 772 3900

Hotel Kilkenny 056 776 2000

Mount Juliet Hotel 056 777 3000

The Stephouse Hotel 059 977 3209

Kilkenny Hibernian Hotel 056 777 1888

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7

8

9

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The Pembroke 056 778 3500

The Clubhouse Hotel 056 772 1994

Lyrath Estate Hotel 056 776 0088

(Located in Borris, Co. Carlow)

Kilkenny Rivercourt Hotel Langton House Hotel 056 772 3388 056 776 5133

MAKE SURE yOU ASK yOUR HOTEL TO QUOTE yOU FOR THEIR SPECIAL FESTIvAL PACKAGE

For best rates book your accommodation at kilkennyarts.ie

greaT PlaCeS TO eaT

CHECK yOUR TICKET FOR SPECIAL RESTAURANT OFFERS

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Zuni 056 772 3999

Café Sol 056 776 4987

Lautrecs 056 776 2720

Ripleys Steakhouse 056 777 0699

Campagne 056 777 2858

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The Grapevine 056 771 2956

Ruben’s Restaurant 059 977 3209

Langton House Hotel 056 776 5133

Magnums 056 772 0970

Ristorante Rinnuccini 056 776 1575

(Located in Borris, Co. Carlow)

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The FeSTival huB

The Left Bank 056 7750 016

CHECK yOUR TICKET FOR SPECIAL BAR OFFERS

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Tynans Bridge House Bar 056 772 1291

Magnums 056 772 0970

Langton House Hotel 056 776 5133

The Blue Bar 056 775 0016

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Kytler’s Inn 056 772 1064

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The Field Bar 056 770 2763

Kilkenny City Map With walking trail

for Visual Art

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Barnstorm Theatre

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Black Abbey

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Take a bow!

The arts really matter to us in Ireland; they are a big part of people’s lives, the country’s single most popular pursuit. Our artists interpret our past, define who we are today, and imagine our future. We can all take pride in the enormous reputation our artists have earned around the world.

The arts play a vital role in our economy, and smart investment of taxpayers’ money in the arts is repaid many times over. The dividends come in the form of a high value, creative economy driven by a flexible, educated, innovative work force, and in a cultural tourism industry worth A5 billion a year.

The Arts Council is the Irish Government agency for funding and developing the arts. Arts Council funding from the taxpayer, through the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism, for 2009 is A75 million, that’s about A1 euro a week for every household.

So, at the end of your next great festival experience, don’t forget the role you played and take a bow yourself!

Find out what’s on at www.events.artscouncil.ie Find out what’s on at

www.events.artscouncil.ie You can find out more about the arts here:

www.artscouncil.ie