Excitement is building ahead of this year’s Baboró International Arts Festival for Children, which kicks off in Galway this Monday October 15 for seven days. The programme is bursting with theatre, dance, music, exhibitions, film, and literature as well as talks and workshops for children and adults. There are also opportunities for children and adults to get creative while spending quality time together.
Artists from Ireland, Australia, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Scotland and England will present a feast of 51 events across seven days designed especially for children and families. Baboró enables children and families to experience first hand the transformative power of the creative arts.
After school
Looking for something to do with the kids after school? A reminder that Baboró is not just for the weekend. Plenty of events are running during the week so why not see a show after school and then come back for more at the weekend. Some of the shows you can catch early next week include Half Light (8+ ), a tender tale about finding light in dark times combining storytelling, comedy and live music (Tuesday 7pm, Town Hall Theatre ); Tetris (ages 5-12 ) a fun, interactive performance exploring the way we interact with each other (Wednesday 6.30pm, Black Box Theatre ); Narrow (ages 6-12 ) recreates one couple’s quest for domestic bliss through an intimate and funny love story (Monday and Wednesday, 5pm, An Taibhdhearc. ).
There is also Branar’s How to Catch a Star, Sky, Egg-tion Hero and lots more.Seeing as it is almost Halloween, why not check out Nosferatu (ages 8+ ), a gripping story described as ‘Dracula but not quite as you know it’. It’ i running Friday 19 October – Sunday 21 October in An Taibhdhearc. Also on that weekend is one of this year’s festival highlights; The Young King (ages 8+ ) is a beautiful piece of immersive theatre with the tender language of Oscar Wilde. It is running in the Black Box Theatre the weekend of Friday 19 Oct to Sunday 21 Oct and is the perfect show for all the family.
Black Beauty (ages 5-12 ) is sure to be another highlight; this vibrant retelling of the much-loved classic story blends storytelling, music and puppetry and is on Thursday 18 October to Sunday 21 October.
Free events
There are plenty of free events for all the family to enjoy. They include two readings in Ballybane and Westside libraries with Darkmouth author, Shane Hegarty (Wednesday 17 October ); exhibitions including new work from Finbar McHugh which can be seen in his exhibition, Floating, and In Celebration of Children, a photographic exhibition by Michelle O’Grady from Réalta School of Speech and Drama, and Julia Dunin Photography, which captured portraits of children designed to raise self-esteem and confidence. A third exhibition in Galway Arts Centre, Human Being and Human Becoming features artworks by Siobhan McGibbon and pupils from Scoil Chroí Íosa.
There is a food and folklore event, Fishy Tales, on Wednesday October 17 in The Kitchen Café and there is the hugely popular storytelling in Charlie Byrnes bookshop on Saturday 20 October and Sunday 21 October. On Friday October 19, children and families are invited to take part in Wonder Walls, a unique live drawing experience in The Wonder Works on Market Street (the former Connacht Tribune print works ).
The film programme includes the Oscar-nominated The Breadwinner showing in the Pálás Cinema on Monday October 15 at 4pm. There are wonderful workshops for children including Design Your Own Board Game with Brenda Romero (Friday October 19 ) and a Toy Repairs workshop in Just Art It for those much-loved toys, which need some TLC and a second chance (Saturday October 20 ).
Grown-Ups
Baboró is not just for the kids. There is also a programme for grown-ups with talks and workshops for teachers, parents and arts practitioners to develop their skills. They include a dance masterclass with David Bolger, artistic director of CoisCéim Dance Theatre, and ways to foster an environment of imagination and innovation for children. There is also an information session on writing picture books in association with Children’s Books Ireland.
Tickets
Tickets can be booked online at www.baboro.ie or at the Town Hall Theatre in Galway on 091 569 777. Tickets for public shows are €9 or €30 for a family ticket for four persons.
Baboró International Arts Festival for Children starts this Monday and runs from October 15 – 21 in venues throughout Galway.Baboró would like to acknowledge the continued support of its principal funding agencies the Arts Council and Galway City and County Councils, and the support of its Premier Sponsors, KBC and Medtronic.
