Tag Archives: Arts Council

SIX schools in Clare are set to join the Creative Schools initiative, the Arts Council have announced. The local schools are among 186 schools and centres across Ireland who applied to be part of the initiative. The Clare schools to take part are: Scoil Naisiunte Eoin Baiste, Ballyvaughan NS; Connolly National School; Ennis Community College; Scariff Community College; Scoil na Mainistreach Quin Dangan and Eidhneach National School in Inagh.  According to the Arts Council the very high level of applications to be part of this two-year process reflects the importance that schools and youth reach centres put on creativity and their ambition to celebrate and put creative thinking at the very heart of what they do.  Participation in the Creative Schools initiative aims to empower children and young people to develop, implement and evaluate arts and creative activity throughout their schools/centres and stimulate additional ways of working which reinforce the impact of creativity on children and young people’s learning, development and well-being.  The initiative is designed to provide opportunities for children and young people to build their …

NORTH Clare writer and poet Grace Wells has been announced as the Clare artist for 2022’s Platform 31 scheme. Platform 31 is a nationwide artist development scheme involving 31 local authority offices across the country in collaboration with the Arts Council. It is designed to support artists to reflect on and develop their practice or make work in a new way, while being connected with and supported by peer practitioners, advisors and mentors. Thirty-one participating artists, one from each Local Authority area in Ireland, have been announced including Grace who was named Ennistymon Poetry Town Poet Laureate in 2021. Developed by the Association of Local Authority Arts Offices (ALAAO) with the Arts Council, Platform 31 offers two elements of support – financial and developmental – for mid-career artists across all disciplines. Speaking about the announcement, Grace said, “I’m delighted to have been selected for Platform 31. It’s a unique opportunity for me to connect with other artists and consider different …

ENNIS’ Market building will be transformed this Sunday hosting a free music and dance event celebrating cultural diversity. Ennis Mela is the final Faoin Spéir|In the Open event and is presented by Clare Arts Office and Fidget Feet. In the Open | Faoin Spéir is an Arts Council funded programme developed in response to the Covid-19 crisis which has seen a variety of outdoor arts events taking place in public spaces around Ireland. On Sunday from 1pm to 4pm the Ennis Market Building will showcase the talents of musicians and dancers from all over the world. “Ennis Mela is a great way for all the family to get outdoors and experience a unique event together. Fidget Feet bring some brightness and joy, we hope you can join us,” said a spokesperson. Participants include The South Asian Dance Academy (SADA), Ireland’s leading Bollywooddance troupe providing amazing Bollywood and classical performances and workshops throughout the island of Ireland. AMDIE is a group based …

THREE Clare poets have been named as recipients of Poetry Town Bursaries. Sixmilebridge based Carrie Barrett O’Donnell is based in Sixmilebridge, Eileen O’Malley who lives between Miltown Malbay and Spanish Point and Marianne Slevin living in Doolin are among the 24 awardees of the bursary scheme. Poetry Ireland put a call out during October for submissions from poets all over the island of Ireland, with three categories (New Poets, Experienced and Spoken Word). Each bursary was worth €300-500, depending on the level of support requested by the applicant.   The bursaries are designed to be used by the awardees for opportunities to develop their poetry – some examples given during the submission process were: taking a writing course, attending a writing residency, paying for mentoring or critical assessment, paying a filmmaker to create a film of poetry work, or simply taking time off work to devote to writing.   Niamh O’Donnell, Director of Poetry Ireland, said, “We were overwhelmed with the number of applications for bursaries and …

WITH the long awaited and welcome return of live entertainment, an exciting event like no other is on its way to glór. The Iron Annie Cabaret will be travelling the country in style, with 15 dates scheduled this autumn including right here in Ennis on Thursday, November 18. The show is based on Luke Cassidy’s critically acclaimed debut novel which The Irish Independent described as “probably the most ambitious and well-written debut this year.” Now, as producer, Luke Cassidy is bringing that same story to the stage. The Iron Annie Cabaret tells the story of Aoife, and her doomed relationship with the beautiful but capricious Annie. Set against the backdrop of a larger-than-life criminal underworld of Dundalk, their adventures also take them on a whirlwind trip across the Irish Sea to offload ten kilos of cocaine swiped from a rival. A Juncture Arts production, the Iron Annie Cabaret stars actor Eleanor McLoughlin as the inimitable Aoife, and is directed by …

CLARE’S cultural community will come together on Friday to showcase the very best the county has to offer. Clare Culture Night 2021 will see 30 free cultural events being held, with a mix of live and virtual events allowing audiences across the county and beyond to connect through culture. The myriad of events will run throughout the evening from 4pm. This year’s programme, which is organised by Clare Arts Office and funded by Clare County Council and the Arts Council, is filled with free live events across the county from Ennis to Doolin, Lissycasey to Mountshannon, Feakle to Ennistymon, and free online events. The host of virtual events will provide culture from all corners of the county and will be available to view throughout the evening. This year, artist Ana Colomer has created a unique piece for Culture Night, combining puppetry, storytelling, film and music, which was filmed in various locations around the county. Malbay Studios presents ‘Lugh – The …

GLÓR is continuing to put its best foot forward since reopening, with plans in place for some ‘air’ raising events in the near future. Fidget Feet Aerial Dance, in partnership with Clare Arts Office, are bringing the In the Open arts programme to Ennis with a series of outdoor events planned over the coming months. The first event will be Fidget Feet’s brand new outdoor show,  A Handful of Dreams, currently touring nationwide, which is coming to glór’s car park from August 20 to 22. The free ticketed family event will be accompanied by a complimentary performance of traditional Irish music and dance, featuring local musicians and set dancers. “A Handful of Dreams is an awe-inspiring and heart-warming outdoor show that combines aerial and circus arts with live Irish traditional music and dance. Infusing a specially designed outdoor rig with an ancient magic, this beautiful celebration will connect to the hearts of each audience member while restoring the joy of …

CHILDREN in a family hub and two Direct Provision centres in Clare received a gift package of new books by leading Irish authors as part of an Arts Council initiative to ensure that as mny people as possible can experience Culture Night. Encouraging all parents to participate with their children, the government agency for funding and developing the arts, has partnered with Children’s Books Ireland to publish a special guide to 100 of the best Irish books for children. The Books Make Things Better reading guide will be distributed free of charge through bookshops and libraries, or can be downloaded on the Internet. Two direct provision centres in Meelick and Lisdoonvarna and Novas family hub in Ennis are among those to benefit from the initiative. “This is the first year that the Arts Council has taken on the stewardship of Culture Night, and it’s a year of extraordinary challenges, not least for artists and the entire arts sector,” said Arts Council Director Maureen …