Irish Spoken Word Events Happening in August

August sees the return of some familiar events, as well as online workshops and a micro-festival for lovers of performance art and culture to sink their teeth into.

Candlelit Tales return to their home away from home, The Harbour Bar, for their first in-person event since the closure of venues and the mass cancellations of shows. All-Ireland Slam Champion Beau Williams will run online workshops for poets to improve their craft and at the end of the month will do a live performance from his sitting room.
Cork’s longstanding poetry night Ó Bhéal will continue to run their shows online for the time being. This month they welcome Coventry poets Emilie Lauren Jones and Matt Black. De Barra’s Spoken Word online event will also feature these two poets from the UK and include a writing challenge and Open Mic. Community storytelling and performance group The Cork Yarnspinners host their monthly night of story, song and verse online for local and international storytellers. At the end of the month, H&G Creations launch micro-festival HOME, an experience for the senses born out of the idea of bringing people together to reconnect after long isolation. A chance to play, eat, dance and stay in an idyllic country setting.

Details for all the events are listed below with contact information and website links available to book tickets.

Candlelit Tales

On Wednesday 5th August The Harbour Bar in Bray welcomes back Candlelit Tales for an eve of Irish storytelling. Each month the collective behind Candlelit Tales create tailor-made arranging a new set of stories revolving around the same theme, and perform to this set theme across four different venues in Dublin and Bray. With an endless amount of material to work with, the group finds new and innovative ways to tell old stories in new and exciting ways. Musicians work on the score in rotation, to fine tune the moods and melody of these tales. They also produce theatre shows, full scale dance theatre, shadow puppetry and more. This month, Lughnasa, marks the start of the harvest.
This event will be run with strict regulations to ensure the safety of guests and facilitators. Candlelit Tales have highlighted the importance of social distancing and remind audience members to be mindful of each other. Doors open at 8.00pm, with the show starting at 8.30pm sharp. The event will run for no longer than 105 mins. Each customer must purchase a meal to the value of €9. The ticket to the event includes a meal voucher for €9 which will be given to you on arrival. This voucher must be used at onsite, Fishbar.

Virtual Poetry Writing Workshop

Award-winning spoken word poet, writer, and facilitator, Beau Williams has three online spoken word events scheduled this month. Two Virtual Poetry Writing Workshops will run on Saturday, August 8th and on Monday August 18th. Both workshops will run online at 7:00 GMT and will run for approximately 90 minutes.

The first workshop will focus on returning to the core values that poetry shares with discussion on why we write and the removal of all rules and barriers associated with conventional poetry. In this workshop Williams will address the healing properties of writing and using poetry as a means to untangle minds and make sense of the world. Lastly, the class will build a toolbox that will help writers accurately translate thoughts to the page. In this workshop there will be an analysis on poems, writing exercises, and the opportunity to edit work as a collective.
The second workshop will focus on imagery and how to successfully incorporate it into poetry. The objective of this workshop is to teach writers to make their poetry pop and find the best way to translate a story from inside your head onto the page and get the tools to build the world the way you want.
There are no requirements to take part in these workshops as writers do not need to have prior skills to take part. The workshops however will still be relevant and effective for experienced poets. Tickets are €20 and can be purchased on Beau Williams’ website

‘Whiskey and Words’ Live Poetry Show

On Saturday August 29th, Beau Williams is scheduled to do a live online performance. The event "Whiskey and Words" is a live poetry show from the poet’s sitting room. The event will include a set of original work and a Q&A. There will be copies of his poetry collections available for purchase. Tickets are €10 and can be purchased on Beau Williams’ website. This virtual event takes place at 7:00 GMT and will run for approximately 60 minutes.

Ó Bhéal

On Monday August 10th Ó Bhéal in association with Cork City Council, Coventry City Council and Here Comes Everyone, Join the Network & Silhouette Press presents a Twin Cities Celebration with Coventry poets Emilie Lauren Jones and Matt Black.
Last year Lauren Jones was one of the commissioned poets for the UK City of Culture project ‘Humans of Cov’. She was the 2019 PGR Slam winner, Stafford Word Slam winner, and a Gorilla Slam finalist. Lauren Jones has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Birmingham. She is Poet in Residence for Hillz FM and part of the 2020 cohort for the Nine Arches Press ‘Dynamo’ scheme.
Matt Black lives in Leamington Spa and writes for adults and children. A specialist in commissions, he is a joyful mischief maker, a serious entertainer, a reluctant grown-up and a celebrationist. He was Derbyshire Poet Laureate from 2011-2013. Events are running online at this time. Details of upcoming events can be found on the Ó Bhéal website.

De Barra’s Spoken Word

On Tuesday August 11th, De Barra’s Spoken Word in Clonakilty will feature poets Matt Black and Emilie Lauren Jones from Coventry, hosted by Ó Bhéal the evening before. Ó Bhéal's “Twin Cities Poetry Event”, involving exchanges of local poets between Coventry, UK and Cork City, has led to beautiful sessions in Clonakilty in recent years.
The event will run online using Zoom, as well as a livestream on Facebook and YouTube from 8.30 GMT onwards. Featured poets are Matt Black and Emilie Lauren Jones from Coventry who will have been hosted by Ó Bhéal the evening before. Ó Bhéal, spearheaded by Paul Casey, is a source of inspiration for DeBarra's Spoken Word and to honour this there will be a Five Word Challenge at the start of the event and an Open Mic with 11 guests maximum.
The Zoom link will be posted on De Barra’s Spoken Word Facebook page just before it starts. The YouTube link is here

The Cork Yarnspinners

On Thursday August 20th, The Cork Yarnspinners will host a night of story, song and verse with a full running list of contributors, including international contributors and guests. The Cork Yarnspinners are a community storytelling and performance group who aim to keep the ancient Irish arts of storytelling and song alive through myth, legend, humour and folklore. They gather for monthly sessions to hear and tell old stories and new, often inviting special guests, and also offer storytelling for children and organise theatre-based performances. Contact corkyarnspinner@gmail.com for details and to join in on this online session of story, song and verse at 8.00 GMT.

HOME

HOME is a micro-festival brought to you by H&G Creations, a creative agency specialising in experiential event creation, planning and production. The festival takes place in Mount Druid, Co Westmeath the last weekend of the month August 28th to 30th. It will be a combination of the best in Irish art, music, food, workshops, wellness with an emphasis on supporting the Irish arts and culture sector that has taken such a heavy hit during the pandemic. There is a choice of accommodation for guests including glamping in traditional yurts and beautifully decorated huts – a home away from home. A focus of HOME is supporting Irish artists, DJs, bands, musicians, creatives and performers. There will be spoken word by artists Lewis Kenny and Sean Cuddy. There is 100 maximum allowed to attend adhering to HSE/Gov guidelines. For more information and to purchase tickets click the link here.

**Ireland's Virtual Poetry Marketplace**

**Beau Williams on Performing Internationally**

Boundless & BareAugust 4, 2020