Fermanagh Live Arts Festival: Exciting events lined up

The voluntary committee who deliver the annual festival of live music, theatre, literature, creative arts and spoken word events have confirmed that this year’s Fermanagh Live will take place from Thursday, October 6 to Sunday, October 9.

All FLive events are hoped to be delivered live in person, and this year sees the return of some festival favourites such as award-winning comedian and performer Seamus O’Rourke, who will stage his hilarious one-man show, 'The Handyman', in the Ardhowen Theatre.

The formidable duo of concert pianist Ruth McGinley and saxophonist Gerard McChrystal return to the Methodist Church in Enniskillen for a stellar show of Classical, Jazz and Traditional-inspired music on the last day of the festival.

Retired architect-turned-storyteller and historian, Richard Pierce, also returns with a new talk, on an intriguing topic yet to be revealed, in the Ardhowen.

Jazz features prominently in this year’s FLive line-up with Jazz quartet ‘Jazz Gazette’ taking to the stage for a ‘Gin 'n' Jazz’ night, in association with the Boatyard Distillery, in the Westville Hotel, Enniskillen on Saturday, October 8.

Staying with Jazz, Victoria Geelan and pianist Scott Flanigan perform in the Ardhowen Gallery bar on the evening of Sunday, October 9.

The festival committee are also welcoming Classical Folk music trio Iona Sound to Fermanagh Live for the first time this year.

The trio of renowned musicians – Rory Pierce (low D whistle, cello, who is originally from Fermanagh), Max Greenwood (piano) and Brid Cannon (violin) will perform an hour-long concert of traditional folk music accompanied by dreamlike visual projections of the landscapes of Ireland, Scotland and Scandinavia in the Ardhowen Theatre on Saturday, October 9.

The standalone show proposes to be the perfect prelude to the Gin 'n' Jazz night taking place later that evening in the Westville Hotel, for anyone seeking the full festival experience.

Literature also holds its own on the FLive programme, with writer Priscilla Morris – the author of ‘Black Butterflies’, an exquisitely crafted debut novel about the siege of Sarajevo – in conversation with BBC journalist Juilan Fowler for an atmospheric book reading and twilight tour of the lakes aboard the MV Kestrel on Friday, October 6.

Acclaimed fiction writer Bernie McGill – author of ‘The Watchhouse’, and ‘This Train Is For’ – will be giving a creative writing workshop and book club reading in The Ardhowen on Saturday, October 7.

Saturday will also see gifted Leitrim poet Stephen Murphy deliver a 70-minute poem in Pat’s Bar at The Diamond in Enniskillen, where the FLive festival will later that evening also stage the All Ulster Poetry Slam final, hosted by Radio Foyle’s resident poet and wordsmith, Frank Rafferty.

That will be followed by an open mic poetry night, in association with The Thing Itself, giving local performers the chance to have their voices and creations heard.

The festival committee are also currently developing a series of creative writing and storytelling workshops with a number of Fermanagh schools as part of their Schools Engagement Programme, which hopes to see several published authors visiting local schools during the October festival.

Younger children can also take part in several Rhythm Tots music workshops, in association with Gildea School of Music.

This year’s FLive festival is planned to open on Thursday, October 6 with the screening of a special, yet to be announced, film screening by Fermanagh Film Club.

Tickets for the festival’s full programme of events will be available via the FLive website soon, at http://www.flive.org.uk/.

The festival plans to officially launch with a special event in the Devenish Gallery, Enniskillen, on Friday, September 23.

For updates, keep an eye on the FLive social media pages on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.