October 2023
My residency with Baboró International Arts Festival for Children continued this year.
I was Lead Facilitator/Mentor for the inaugural Baboró Children’s Panel and delighted to carry on with the group into its second year.
Following my commission Don’t Forget to Wash Your Hands, the audio piece I made in 2021, exploring the experiences and thoughts of children and young people in relation to the Covid 19 pandemic (which won a prestigious Gold IMRO Award for Best Music, Arts and Culture Documentary!) I was thrilled that Baboró commissioned me to make a new piece for this year’s festival. The Shape of Quiet Feelings again explored the thoughts and feelings of children in Galway, this time in relation to climate change. This piece, co-conceived with Australian artist Jessica Wilson, took a more imaginative and creative angle asking children to imagine their feelings as a fantastical creature. Their imaginings were then brought to life through design, lighting, sound and music creating a theatrical immersive and participative experience for young people and their grown ups.
I also recently directed The Dead House written and performed by Martin ‘Beanz’ Warde which had a 2 week sell out run in Dublin Theatre Festival and was a pleasure to work on.
I am delighted to be working with Backstage and the NASC venue network as Mentor for their Young Curator programme for the forth year running. This is such a brilliant programme that gives young people a fantastic insight into programming and curating an arts programme. I’m also enjoying working with the University of Galway Drama Department and Creative Schools programme.
Teaser Video for The Shape of Quiet Feelings in Baboró International Arts Festival for Children