Beckett Festival 2014
Thursday 31st July to Sunday 10th August 2014various venues, Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, BT49 0NQ, Northern Ireland MAP
varies depending upon event
The third International Beckett Festival, takes place in Enniskillen in Northern Ireland from Thursday 31st July to Sunday 10th August 2014.
Line-up
Klaus Maria Brandauer, Gavin Bryars, Tacita Dean, Adrian Dunbar, Heiner Goebbels, Antony Gormley, The Hilliard Ensemble, Derek Jarman, Netia Jones, Steve McQueen, Fiona Shaw, Peter Stein and John Tomlinson are amongst the artists featured in the programme. In total there will be over 120 events at a dozen or more venues
The Festival opening will be a double presentation of Samuel Beckett’s classic Waiting for Godot in two separate productions, one in French and one in Yiddish.
En Attendant Godot will be presented by Theatre NoNo, based in Marseilles, one of the most exciting new French theatre groups, steeped in the clown and cabaret tradition.
Wartn Af Godot will be presented by New Yiddish Rep from New York. Directed by Moshe Yassur, in an authorised translation by Shane Baker, the production attempts to restore ‘Godot’ to its language of origin.
Other highlights of the programme include:
A new production of Samuel Beckett’s one act play, Catastrophe (1982), directed by Adrian Dunbar, Festival Artistic Associate, and featuring the theatrical debut of Ceithleann Island Theatre Company.
Secret location, County Fermanagh
The UK and Irish premiere of Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape (1958), directed by Peter Stein and performed by Klaus Maria Brandaue.
Ardhowen Theatre, by the Upper Lake
John Cage’s Roaratorio: An Irish Circus on Finnegans Wake will be presented as a sound installation in the underground caves of Marble Arch, which can only be entered by boat. Excerpts from the dance version of the piece created by Merce Cunningham will also be presented artists from the local Dylan Quinn Dance Theatre. Produced by the Sonic Arts Research Centre, Queen’s University Belfast, and Dylan Quinn Dance Theatre.
Marble Arch Caves, County Fermanagh
Heiner Goebbels and the Hilliard Ensemble will present the third and last section of Goebbels’ acclaimed music-theatre work, I Went into the House but did not enter, produced by the Theatre Vidy Lausanne.
Ardhowen Theatre
Gavin Bryars, will be the Festival’s composer in residence. He will present three concerts in three churches in Enniskillen. The opening concert: Celebrating Godot, will feature his most popular work, Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet in a special performance by the Gavin Bryars Ensemble with guests, Yurodny and The Crash Ensemble.
St Michael’s Church, the Presbyterian Church and St Macartin’s Cathedral
Sir John Tomlinson and pianist Julius Drake will perform Winterreise.
St Macartin’s Cathedral
Rising young opera and theatre director, Netia Jones, will curate a live performance by the Crash Ensemble and actors of Beckett’s music theatre piece for radio, Words and Music, with music Morton Feldman. Venue: Ardhowen Theatre Four leading visual artists will be featured in the programme: Tacita Dean, Antony Gormley, Steve McQueen and Gerard Byrne, with exhibitions in locations across Enniskillen. Antony Gormley’s Tree for Waiting for Godot will be installed at Enniskillen Castle; there will be an exhibition of work by Tacita Dean and Steve McQueen’s Deadpan (1997) and Gerard Byrne’s photographic installation will be on show at Castle Coole.
During the Festival, there will be an opportunity to view an installation featuring Derek Jarman’s film, Waiting For Waiting For Godot (1983) at St Macartin’s Cathedral Hall.
Awake All Finnegans calls upon all Finnegans (and Finns) in the world to join in a continuous reading of the whole of Finnegans Wake, starting at 10 am on 1 August and ending on at 6 pm on 10 August.
The programme of talks and special events will feature amongst others: Alfred Brendel, Alex Bellos, James Knowlson, Claudia Roden, Ed Vulliamy, Philippe Sands, Germaine Greer, Blake Morrison, and Fiona Shaw.
BBC Radio 3 has commissioned five essays on five perspectives on Beckett’s life and work. The essays will be presented by five key speakers at the festival and will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s The Essay, during September this year.
The whole town of Enniskillen will participate in the Festival, including high street shops and restaurants, which will respond with such ideas as Beckett burgers at the local butcher, barbers doing Beckett haircuts, Clov and Hamm Sandwiches at the café.
Tickets
Ticket prices vary depending upon event.
More info
The festival, founded and directed by Seán Doran in 2012, is unique as the only festival solely dedicated to celebrating Samuel Beckett through the full range of the arts, including theatre, dance, film, visual arts, literature and broadcast. Events and performances will take place in locations around the island town of Enniskillen and the surrounding landscape of the lake-district in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, the place where Beckett spent his formative years, as a student at the Portora Royal School in Enniskillen.
More information will be here when available.
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