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Féile Fáilte as part of the The Casement Project comes to Banna Strand in July.
LOCAL, visitors, young and old are invited to come along to Féile Fáilte, a free, outdoor, day-long celebration of the dancing body, on the beach made famous by Roger Casement’s ill-fated 1916 landing.
Running from 3pm to midnight on Saturday, July 23, Féile Fáilte will feature dance performances, an evening ceilí, a sun-down beach disco, musical guests and a midnight spectacle of light to “welcome the stranger”, re-imagining the Ireland that greeted Casement’s coming ashore there as a welcoming body of dynamic inclusivity.
Dancer performances already confirmed for this free event include Croí Glan Integrated Dance Company, performing Fearghus Ó Conchúir’s The Rhythm of Fierce and John Scott’s Irish Modern Dance Theatre. Siamsa Tíre will be bringing their beautiful singing and dancing to the beach in an extract from their acclaimed show, Oileán.
Fearghus Ó Conchúir and his exciting company of dancers will present a special ‘unplugged’ performance of ‘Butterflies and Bones: The Casement Project’, fresh from its world premiere in London and ahead of its official Irish premiere in Dublin.
Dance enthusiasts from Kerry will also perform in a specially commissioned piece by long-time Kerry Dance Artist in Residence, Catherine Young.
As well as dancing, there will be a wide variety of music to hear and dance along to, including local legend Paddy Hanafin as céilí-master, Alma Kelliher (of The Evertides) and Limerick-based musical trio Rusangano Family.
Curated by choreographer Fearghus Ó Conchúir, Féilte Fáilte is part of The Casement Project, a year-long choreography of bodies and ideas by taking place across national boundaries and includes events on stage, on screen, in the academy and, now, on a beach. The Casement Project uses the complicated legacy of British knight, Irish republican and international humanitarian Roger Casement to reflect on today’s issues of belonging and becoming.
Speaking about Féilte Fáilte, Fearghus said “Beautiful Banna beach makes me want to dance, to run, to jump, to swim, to kick a ball. It’s a place that welcomes bodies to enjoy themselves so it’s the ideal location for our celebration of an Ireland that welcomes the stranger, an Ireland that Roger Casement as an international humanitarian would have been delighted to dance with.”
Full schedule, travel information and more at information at: www.thecasementproject.ie/project/on-the-beach/
