Strategic US focus for Culture Ireland awards

Culture Ireland, the national agency for promoting Irish arts worldwide, has awarded over €170,000 to Irish arts projects in the United States.  Over 70 Irish artists working in theatre, music, visual arts, literature and film will present their work in key US venues over the coming months with Culture Ireland’s support.  The awards were made as part of Culture Ireland’s recent grant round which will see a total of €450,000 awarded to projects across Europe, Asia, America, the Middle East, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

“Growing the reputation and market-share of Irish arts in the US is a top priority for Culture Ireland,” said CEO Eugene Downes.  “Key US festivals and venues, and especially the global cultural centre of New York, offer Irish artists and companies the opportunity to break through and achieve an international reputation for excellence.  Arts and culture are playing a more central role than ever before in lifting Ireland’s reputation in America and around the world.”

 

Irish productions in this year’s 1st Irish Festival in New York in September includes Fishamble’s award-wining production of Sebastian Barry’s The Pride of Parnell Street, Megan Riordan in Luck (Making Strange Theatre Company) and Billy Roche in Tales from Rainwater Pond (Wexford Arts Centre).  In addition, Spinning the Times will feature five new short plays by women writers (Geraldine Aron, Lucy Caldwell, Rosalind Haslet, Rosemary Jenkinson, Belinda McKeon) based on headlines from the New York Times.

 

Paula Meehan and Harry Clifton are among the Irish poets taking part in Poetry Fest 2009 at the Irish Arts Centre in New York, which will also host Andy Irvine as the special guest for its Masters in Collaboration series.  The Centre will also present Donal O’Kelly’s acclaimed production of The Cambria as part of its Autumn programme. 

 

Other Irish artists appearing in the US include Frank McGuinness, Mark O’Halloran and Lenny Abrahamson who will feature in a series of readings and talks at the Glucksman Ireland House (New York); the Cross Border Orchestra US tour (five venues in New York and Washington); Maud Cotter presenting Rumpus Room at the Point B Gallery (New York); new work by Eddie Kennedy at the John Cacciola Gallery, Chelsea (New York); and an Oisin Byrne exhibition at the Lewis/Frank Gehry Library (New Jersey).

 

Other key projects in receipt of Culture Ireland funding include the Abbey Theatre production of Mark O’Rowe’s Terminus at the Melbourne International Arts Festival; Fabulous Beast’s production of Giselle at the Harbourfront Centre, Toronto and the Sydney Festival, Australia; Colin Dunne performing Out of Time in Singapore; the 1st Irish Film Festival in South Africa (Johannesburg and Cape Town); Colum McCann, Sebastian Barry and Colm Toibin at the prestigious International Literature Festival in Berlin; Roddy Doyle, Dermot Bolger, Claire Kilroy and Glenn Patterson at the Wigtown Book Festival in Scotland; and Cló Ceardlann na gCnoc presenting the work of Gaeltacht-based artists in Greece, Portugal, Georgia and Armenia.

 

Support for contemporary music features strongly in the summer grants round with performances across three continents by composers including Kevin Volans (Wigmore Hall, London), Jennifer Walshe (Berlin), David Flynn (Museum of Modern Art, New York), Enda Bates (Gaudeamus Music Week, Amsterdam), Fergal Dowling (Contemporary Music World, Gothenburg) and Benjamin Dwyer (Biennale of Riberao Preto, Brazil).

 

Click here for the full list of grant awards.