The National Folk Theatre recently presented a production ‘Keep the faith, keep the folk’, on the Siamsa stage, closely followed by inclusion in Derry’s Echo Echo Dance Festival ‘Tradition and Beyond’. This newly imagined piece by Joanne Barry and Anne O’Donnell, explores their relationship as folk artists, from childhood training with the company to full-time professional practice, informed by decades of close working relationships, shared experiences and passions. “Keep the faith, keep the folk” is an autobiographical exploration of the boundaries of contemporary folk theatre by Siamsa’s folk artists through their own relationship as artists, friends and mothers. This piece aims to expand upon the mediums through which folk theatre is presented in collaboration with visual artist Andrew Duggan.
The festival performance of this production takes place on Friday 16th September. Anne & Joanne are also involved in workshops on Saturday 17th and a Q&A session on Sunday.
Tradition and Beyond Workshop
Saturday 17th September | 2pm-3.30pm | Joanne Barry and Anne O’Donnell (Siamsa Tíre)
Both Joanna and Anne joined Siamsa Tíre (the national folk theatre of Ireland in Kerry) when they were very young, and this has become the lens through which they examine the world as artists. The National Folk Theatre was born from a simple idea – to develop pieces of theatre around rural works songs, surrounding these songs with dance, movement and music. From these simple beginnings was born a vibrant and exciting company which continues the values of tradition and exploration. Their work exists to examine what ‘folk’ is, what it means, and how it can be brought with us into the here and now. In this workshop Joanna and Anne will introduce you to some of their working proccesses.
Echo Echo Dance Festival ‘Tradition and Beyond’ runs from September 14th to September 18th 2022.
