9th Donegal Bay and Blue Stacks Festival programme out last weekend
Last weekend saw the publication of the programme of events for 9th. annual Donegal Bay and Blue Stacks Festival which runs this year from Tuesday to Sunday, September 29 to October 4, in various towns and villages throughout South and South West Donegal including Ballyshannon, Bundoran, Pettigo, Ballybofey, Leghowney, Rossnowlagh, Gleann Choilm Cille, An Carraig, Cill Chartha, Ardara and Glenties.
Among the highlights of this year’s event are the Festival’s ‘Constellations’ Carnival Parade on Saturday night October 3 which this year celebrates International Year of Astronomy and also heralds the start of the World Space Week Ireland programme of events.
Balor Rep
Theatre features strongly on the Programme with the Balor Rep producing two shows for the Festival – Brian Friel’s classic, Lovers in Kilcar and Ardara on Saturday and Sunday, October 3 and 4 and the hugely popular country musical, Stand By Your Man : The Story of Tammy Wynette at the Abbey Arts Centre, Ballyshannon on Wednesday night September 30.
The Donegal Drama Circle take up residence at Leghowney Hall from Wednesday to Friday, September 30 to October 2, in an eagerly anticipated production of Sean O’Casey’s famous tragic-comedy, The Shadow of a Gunman while ajtc Touring Theatre from Guilford, UK, visit Donegal for the first time with their very successful stage adaptation of Bruce Chatwin’s classic Borders novel, On The Black Hill, at the Balor Arts Centre, Ballybofey on Wednesday night, September 30.
And there’s travelling theatre of a different kind when Fergus Cleary takes to the road with the SITT rural bus service from Glencolumbkille to Killybegs, Portnoo to Donegal Town, and all points between !
New Opera in the North West
In addition , the Festival is particularly delighted to host two performances of the newly formed NortWest Opera company’s production of Hansel and Gretel, directed by Letterkenny Musical Society stalwart Billy Patterson at the Balor Arts Centre on Friday and Saturday, October 2 and 3. Performed in English by a cast of professional singers from Germany led by Donegal soprano Anne Jennings, the production will be accompanied by a live Orchestra and will feature the award-winning Omagh College Choir and students of the Terri Lafferty School of Irish Dancing.
Festival audiences can look forward to the best of Donegal music with hot new traditional band Dalltach at An Clachn in Glencolumbkille on Thursday, October 1, Inishowen’s Henry Girls at Dicey Reilly’s, Ballyshannon on Friday
October 2 , the annual Cairdeas na bhFidlir Donegal Fiddlers Gathering in Glenties – featuring the Gala Concert on Saturday night, October 3 with Peter and Jimmy Cambell, Noel O’Gara, John Byrne, Martin McGinley and TG4 Traditional Musician of The Year award-winner, John Carty - Liam Deery’s new CD launch at the Balor Arts Centre on Sunday night, October 4 while the much-travelled musicians of the Donegal Chamber Orchestra performing the Festival Opening Concert at The Abbey Centre, Ballyshannon on September 29.
The innovative Modal Citizens collective are producing two shows with the Festival in Bundoran, featuring the combined talents of the Rare Groove Orchestra with Mirenda Rosenberg at The Chasin Bull and Onya O’Doherty with the Modal Citizens Jazz Quintet at Marlboro House, on Friday and Saturday night respectively, October 2 and 3.
Writers Go Down To Sea.
The Festival’s enviable literary programme has been curated by Denise Blake and it takes place at the Sand House Hotel Rossnowlagh on Saturday and Sunday, October 2 and 3. An extensive programme of creative Writing Workshops, Readings and Music will include Ted and Annie Deppe, Kevin Higgins and Susan Millar Du Mars, Imelda Maguire, Kathryn Daily, Bridget O’Toole, Winnifred McNulty, Denise Blake and Patricia Morris.
The visual arts enjoy a strong presence in this year’s programme with Dath le Chile featuring new work by Deborah J. Stockdale, Margaret Cunningham and Ana Stromberg at An Gailear, Glencolumbkille, Martin Mujyanama’s Rwandan Survivor Stories presentation at Ardara Heritage Centre on Wednesday, September 30 , Kieran D. Murray’s wonderful photographic studies of Irish holy wells at the man-made Images Gallery in Mountcharles, Kevin Lowery’s coastal explorations at Bundoran Community library and exhibitions by Garvan Gallagher, Christy Keeney and Mary Feeney in Carrick and Ardara Heritage Centre, as part of the re-emergent Bunts visual art initiative.
The Donegal Bay and Blue Stacks Festival is an initiative of Donegal County Council’s Cultural Services Department to provide a colourful and exciting context for enjoyment of the arts in all their manifestations in the south of the county.
The Festival programme is created in partnership with a number of prominent arts initiatives in the including the County Donegal VEC Music Education Service, The Abbey Arts Centre and Erne Enterprise Development Company Ltd. in Ballyshannon, Cairdeas na bhFidlir, the Modal Cirtizens music producers group in Bundoran, the Balor Arts Centre and the Balor Rep theatre company in Ballybofey, Donegal Town Drama Circle in Donegal Town, Inishowen-based LUXe theatre company, man-made Images Photographic Gallery in Mountcharles, the Dath le Chile artists group and An Clachn The Folk Village in Glencolumbkille.
This year, in celebration of International Year of Astronomy 2009, the Festival is working particularly closely with the Northern Ireland Space Office, the Armagh Planetarium and Discover Science and Engineering.
The Festival is funded by Donegal County Council, The Arts Council An Comhairle Ealaon and Discover Science and Engineering.
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Weather for Donegal
Thursday 17 May 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 6 C to 10 C
Wind Speed: 7 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Light rain
Temperature: 7 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: North east
