Cultural Connections
Connect with traditional Irish culture and local performers and choose from a range of guided tours and workshops, helping you to explore our exhibitions, backstage, and our history.
Festival of Folk 2023
- What: a summer festival with shows that combine the best of Irish music, song, dance, and stories; plus guided tours and cultural experiences
- When: May – Sept 2023
- Where: Siamsa Tíre, Tralee, Co Kerry, Ireland
Open for Booking Now
About the Festival of Folk
Every summer, its annual Festival of Folk takes place from May to September, featuring evening performances of shows that combine the best of Irish music, song, dance, and stories. Thousands of visitors have enjoyed these performances. The energetic, wild, and passionate way they express the best of our traditional arts creates a memorable and emotional experience for all who witness it.
Cultural Connections
The shows are but one entertaining aspect of our Festival of Folk. We also provide interactive cultural activities during the day including guided tours, workshops and intimate performances that can work in with your day itineraries.
Our guided tours allow you to connect on a deeper level with what we do here at Siamsa Tíre as you engage with the local community through our guides, members of the National Folk Theatre Academy and cast. Our dance, music and song masters that train our National Folk Theatre Training Academy students, also lead our cultural workshops.
Note: Purchase of Cultural Connections packages are subject to change due to cast availability and environmental factors but you will be notified of any such changes and offered an alternative where possible.
Cultural Connections Packages
Home
Our free Folk Homecoming Exhibition, was developed as a way of offering a window into what Siamsa Tíre does to sustain and care for Ireland’s cultural heritage. It also gives an insight into the history and practice of traditional Irish music, song, storytelling, and dance, with its wealth of regional, national, and international variations.
Photographs, audio, and video material from the Siamsa Tíre archive tell the story of our earliest beginnings more than half a century ago and introduce you to some of the people who shaped and championed our work over the years.
The exhibition explains the formation of our folk theatre training academy in 1974 and demonstrates how we sustain the traditions, both formally and informally, through a wide range of education and cultural engagement initiatives with the wider community.
Visitors also learn about our iconic 30-year-old building, which was inspired by County Kerry’s ancient Cathair na Stéige (Staigue Fort), thought to have served as an amphitheatre as well as a place of safety for its community two thousand years ago.
Connect
This package includes everything offered in the explore package as well as the option to immerse yourself further in Ireland’s cultural heritage by trying out some of our traditional arts as a workshop participant.
Choose a traditional Irish discipline to delve into with an expert from the artistic team at the National Folk Theatre.
In our music workshop, you will learn about different Irish musical styles and instruments, how they work, how they are used in National Folk Theatre productions, and learn how to play one of the basic instruments like the bodhrán or tin whistle.
In our singing workshop, you will learn a traditional Irish song in the Irish language from the National Folk Theatre song repertoire. The tutor will explain the meaning of the words and the history of the song. They will demonstrate and teach you some traditional singing techniques so that you can then join with them in singing the song and perfecting a new party piece.
In our dance workshop, you will learn some steps in the North Kerry ‘Munnix’ dance step style. Your tutor will give you an overview of the differences between Irish dancing styles and explain how Siamsa Tíre cherishes and maintains this style which is unique to our region.
All of these workshops can be tailored for individuals, families and small or large groups.
This package costs €56 per adult, €28 per child, and €134.40 for a family group of two adults plus two children.
Explore
This package offers a personal guided tour of the Folk Homecoming Exhibition plus a backstage tour of Siamsa Tíre by one of our National Folk Theatre performers. As well as sharing their personal insight into life at Siamsa Tíre, your guide will bring you on a full tour of our landmark building, including behind the scenes.
As you explore, they will tell you tales from their youth when they trained with the National Folk Theatre Training Academy and how they went on to perform and tour with Siamsa Tíre. They will show you how a modern, state-of-the-art theatre operates, and give you an insight into what it’s like to perform on stage with a few surprises along the way.
You too will get your moment in the limelight at the end of the tour when you will be invited to try on some original National Folk Theatre costumes and props which were designed, and in some cases hand-made, by our professional costume and set designers. You are welcome to take photos.
Package: €16 per adult, €8 per child, and €38.40 for a family group of two adults plus two children.
Entertain
Enjoy a live theatre performance of a National Folk Theatre production, as they take you back in time to tell the story of our Irish heritage through traditional Irish music, song and dance. Performances commence at 8.30pm and run for 1 hour 40 mins with an interval.
Tickets: €45 per adult, €22.50 per child, and €108 for a family group of two adults plus two children. For tour group rates, please contact our Box Office on 0667123055.
Celebrate
If you would like to create a VIP experience around your evening performance, we can provide a welcome reception, a guided tour through the exhibition and backstage before the performance, include tickets to the performance followed by a meet and greet with the cast and autographed souvenir programme of the show as part of a Siamsa Tíre Gift Pack for you to treasure as your momento of this special experience.
This experience starts at 8pm with the performance commencing at 8.30pm.
Package: €90 per adult, €45 per child, and €216 for a family group of two adults plus two children.
Experience
This package combines a guided tour of the Folk Homecoming Exhibition and the backstage tour of Siamsa Tíre with a special performance demonstration from members of the National Folk Theatre. At the end of your tour, a small group of our National Folk Theatre cast will give a 20-minute intimate performance of traditional Irish music, song, and dance.
Afterwards, you will be invited to engage with the artists by asking any questions you have about Irish music, song, and dance or about their lives as traditional performers and you can get a photo-opp with some of the performers.
This package costs €45 per adult, €22.50 per child, and €108 for a family group of two adults plus two children.
Engage
This package includes everything offered in the explore package as well as the option to immerse yourself further in Ireland’s cultural heritage by trying out some of our traditional arts as a workshop participant.
Choose a traditional Irish discipline to delve into with an expert from the artistic team at the National Folk Theatre.
In our music workshop, you will learn about different Irish musical styles and instruments, how they work, how they are used in National Folk Theatre productions, and learn how to play one of the basic instruments like the bodhrán or tin whistle.
In our singing workshop, you will learn a traditional Irish song in the Irish language from the National Folk Theatre song repertoire. The tutor will explain the meaning of the words and the history of the song. They will demonstrate and teach you some traditional singing techniques so that you can then join with them in singing the song and perfecting a new party piece.
In our dance workshop, you will learn some steps in the North Kerry ‘Munnix’ dance step style. Your tutor will give you an overview of the differences between Irish dancing styles and explain how Siamsa Tíre cherishes and maintains this style which is unique to our region.
All of these workshops can be tailored for individuals, families and small or large groups.
This package costs €56 per adult, €28 per child, and €134.40 for a family group of two adults plus two children.
Cherish
This half day experience includes all of our cultural elements – the guided tour through the exhibition and back stage, the intimate performance (EXPERIENCE) and the workshop of your choice (ENGAGE). We will also provide a Siamsa Tíre gift pack as a memento of your experience with us.
This package costs €80 per adult, €40 per child, and €192 for a family group of two adults plus two children.
Book Your Tour/Experience
If you would like a truly memorable and unique traditional Irish cultural experience while visiting Kerry, please fill out our tour booking enquiry form. It’s quick and easy to complete.
Festival of Folk Tour Packages - Enquiry Form
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RTÉ Supporting the Arts
Siamsa Tíre, The National Folk Theatre of Ireland, is delighted to announce that we have been awarded support from RTÉ Supporting the Arts for our Festival of Folk 2022.
Gratefully Sponsored By
