Kinsale Arts Week
Kinsale will be electrified by the best in art, music, spectacle, theatre, literature and family entertainment in July
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Download your Kinsale Arts Week festival programme
Between 10 & 18 July Kinsale Arts Week invites you to one of the most picturesque seaside towns in Ireland, a mere 40 minute drive from Cork City, and only three and a half hours from Dublin. There will be lots to enjoy, with music in a breathtaking historic fortress, classical concerts, children’s events, dance, theatre, artists trails, workshops in everything from tiny book making to Commedia Dell’ Arte and a brand new art gallery space housing work by some of Ireland’s finest artists, all squeezed in to a town blessed with stunning scenery and mouthwatering cuisine.
Now in its 6th year, Kinsale Arts Week annually transforms the town of Kinsale in to an artistic hub of activity for nine event-packed days and nights. Shop windows become exhibition spaces, historic forts become music venues and old mills are given a new lease of life as art galleries.
Here are some of the 2010 highlights:
MUSIC - In addition to the outdoor gigs at Charlesfort (Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Camille O’Sullivan, The Bootleg Beatles), the festival is delighted to welcome one of the foremost pianists of his generation, Jack Gibbons, to Kinsale. Jack Gibbons’acclaimed performances have been received with tremendous standing ovations in some of the world's greatest concert halls, including New York’s Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall and London’s Queen Elizabeth and Royal Albert Halls. Jack will play a programme of Gershwin and Chopin.
Fresh from their 2010 tour of China, the Irish Chamber Orchestra will bring their superb musicianship to the sublime setting of St. Multose Church. Now performing regularly as a duo, popular accordionist Dermot Dunne and virtuoso violinist Katherine Hunka will join the ensemble as they present an exciting mix of music which ranges from celebrated classics and virtuoso show pieces to a selection of works with a strong Latin flavour.
VISUAL ART - This year the festival is very proud to announce the opening of a new visual arts hub in Kinsale; the town’s beautiful, deserted old mill building has been renovated and transformed into a fantastic new venue for the visual arts programme at the festival.
'The KAW Art Hub at the Mill'will feature work by Alice Maher, Dorothy Cross, Patrick Scott, Charles Tyrell, Donald Teskey, John Doherty and Eithne Jordan.
Also on show at the Mill, to celebrate the arrival of the Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race to Kinsale, the festival has invited each of the international regions participating in the race to select an artist to represent them at an art exhibition in Kinsale. Stopover will feature work from Australia to Scotland and Jamaica to Canada.
There will also be an Artist’s Trail taking visitors on a magical mystery tour through the wealth of artist’s studios in Kinsale and its surrounds.
LITERATURE - The literature programme is packed this year with a wide variety of gems, with readings by multi-award winning novelist Joseph O'Connor and acclaimed author Claire Kilroy and a screening of the insightful documentary into the life and work of poet Derek Mahon by Roger Greene. The screening will be followed by a Q&A session with Derek and Roger. Poet Christopher Reid, winner of the Costa Book of the Year 2009, will also read his work, as will poet Gerard Smyth.
DANCE - An exciting series of film screenings sees Kinsale play host to a season of Screen Dance, an artistic genre where choreography and film reside together. There will be screenings of the stunning Forward Motion, a British Council project co-produced with South East Dance in the UK. This is an outstanding collection of British screen dance films, accompanied by interviews with artists to contextualise their work.
RTÉ’s excellentDance on the Box 2010 will also be screened, providing people with the opportunity to see some of the most skilled Irish dance and film practitioners work together. The screening will be introduced by David Bolger, Artistic Director of CoisCéim Dance, whose film Deep End Dance in collaboration with Conor Horgan will be screened during the festival.
COMEDY - Fresh from gracing our TV screens for the World Cup, the AprèsMatch team will be coming out to play ball for Kinsale Arts Week. AprèsMatch first appeared on RTE in 1998 and have since become a household name. Apart from the usual mix of weird and wonderful characters such as Bill, Eamon, Liam, John, Gary Lineker, Mark Lawrenson, George Hook, and Martin King this show will also include new targets like Martin O’Neill, Ryan Tubridy, Brendan O’Connor, Vincent Browne, Joan Burton and many more. Kevin Mc Aleer will also return to the festival after his roaring success in 2008.
THEATRE - Prepare to step into a world stirring with drama and romance as La Locandiera by Wonderland Productions transforms Kinsale’s Ballinacurra House into the world of 18th century Florence. Enjoy a delicious four course meal and allow Mirandolina, the hostess at the inn, to serve you whilst her suitors caper, court and swordfight for her attention.
Acclaimed UK company Sharpwire bring their spellbinding one man operatic thriller Johnny’s Midnight Goggles to the festival, with the incredibly skilled actor Matthew Sharp also giving an Opera singing master class and lunchtime cello recital during the festival.
FAMILY - Keeping the kids entertained at Kinsale Arts Week shouldn’t be a problem with a myriad of activities to keep them happy, with theatre for children from 18 months to 18 years and a family Green Day filled with lots of green-themed entertainment and activities including a Vegetable Circus, growing workshops and a community dance performance. There are also a whole host of workshops for the kids to get their teeth into, including a Play in a Day and Tiny Book Making!And of course there will be the ever popular Street Day taking over the street of Kinsale for a day of outdoor fun.
http://www.kinsaleartsweek.com/