Mayo County Council Bealtaine 2010 - Celebrating creativity in older age
It’s that time of year again! Mayo County Council Arts Office is almost ready to embark on a month long programme of activity for Bealtaine 2010. This is the fifteenth year of Bealtaine, the national festival which celebrates creativity in older age – co-ordinated nationally by Age and Opportunity. Bealtaine aims to involve older people in the arts, through expression and active participation. It also encourages older people to engage as an experienced audience for all art forms.
Everybody is welcome to join Mayo County Council Arts Office at the launch of Bealtaine 2010 programme in the Welcome Inn Hotel, Castlebar on Thursday 29th April at 2.30pm. Cllr John Cribbin, Cathaoirleach , Mayo County Council will officially launch the programme. Tea/Coffee and sandwiches will be served and music will be provided by Ian Date and the River Lee Jazz Band. The perfect start to Bealtaine in Mayo, this is an occasion where A.R.A’s will have a chance to meet up, chat and dance the afternoon away with live Jazz music.
During the month of May Emer Mayock and Joe Byrne, Artists in Residence, will be calling to and sharing their music and stories with a number of groups throughout the county. This residency project will provide the musicians and group members with the opportunity to explore the music, song and stories of the county.
Mayo County Council Arts Office will be running a Dance residency providing a number of ARA’s throughout Mayo with dance workshops during Bealtaine 2010. Grainne Anderson will be working with the Mayo ARAs. She is a member of Dance Theatre of Ireland’s Education and Outreach team and she has worked with many companies and age groups both in Ireland and Scotland.
‘Reflecting Colours – Art in the Windows’ is an exciting exhibition which celebrates the work of older people involved in Mayo County Council Arts & Health Programme. A wonderful variety of colourful posters are on show in the windows of shops, banks and other businesses along Bridge St. in Westport throughout the month of May. Mayo County Council Arts Office wishes to thank all the businesses which generously volunteered their window spaces for this exhibition.
Also as part of this years programme Tony Curtis will read his poetry at Mayo County Library on Tuesday May 4th at 6.30pm. Tony was born in Dublin and has had several collections of poetry published. Both Tom Meskell and Aileen Lambert, artists involved in public art commissions in Mayo at present, will be presenting their work and projects to a number of groups in the county.
In partnership, Mayo County Council Arts Office, Mayo Artsquad, local artists and The National Museum of Ireland – Country Life will continue the work of New Ground (2008/2009) in a site-specific project as part of Feile na Tuaithe in May. The art works created on site will directly reference the museum’s collection.
All details of the programme are listed in the Bealtaine brochure which is available from the Arts Office. Please contact us at 094-9024444 Ext 7558 | 7471 or mayoarts@mayococo.ie if you would like more information or a hard copy of the brochure.
Posted: 22/04/2010