by Rose Rushe
A HANDSHAKE of €40,000 has boosted the imaginative span of Elemental, Limerick’s Art and Cultural Festival taking place in more than a score of sites, September 12-14. This year’s cashflow means the introduction of international artists such as Senmaru and Kyougi, performers of Japanese traditional juggling; a theatre radio show at Savoy Hotel, kangaroos on stilts, ballet, a film of Helena Enright’s ‘The River’ performance at Curraghower Boat Club and the “sound of summer” issuing from Culture House’s coach mews off Pery Square.
There’s a tour of 15 Limerick clocks and there are as many structured venues for this fun showcasing of the city, its gardens, visual art shows, High Nelly bikes and invited productions.
Limerick Post columnist Jennifer Allen is co-founder of Elemental, working with a volunteer committee of Alan Hogan, Pius McGrath and Mags O’Donoghue on this, the third and largest yet.
“We started out purely with the view of animating the city, bringing life back into it back in 2012, long before our designation as City of Culture,” Allen recalls. “We picked a diversity of things that we like, made it a one-day wonder initially but with lots of spontaneous performance. Now we are expanded to three days but we keep it local, accessible and all around us”.
Inspiration is derived from the five elements of the earth – metal, fire and so on. Each year is themed and for 2014, it’s biodeversity. As well as film shorts, “We will have somethings going on in the Thomas Street Garden, where Finucane’s Electrical used to be, with Diarmuid Nilan being the driving force behind activity there”. There’s more of course, in a programme so stuffed that an empty page is included on which we can scribble our customised itinerary.
The committee is delighted with the success of ‘tapas’ through the streets, bite-size pieces of poetry and culture.
“It’s about making it accessible and real for people who might never go to theatre. There will be a map issued on social media for performances between 11am and 12pm and from 2pm and 3pm.
“Stuff will be repeated here and there so if busy with one you have a chance to see something else again”.
Another big name is that of Carlos Andres Gomez whose ‘Man Up’ book trades on perceptions and male territory, how it has changed. He brings his show and workshop based on this to Ormston House, Patrick Street: “It is timely, given how the rules have changed for men”.
In all about 22 places in town will be animated by Elemental, most of them free.
That terrific illustrated programme,online also, is by Jacob Stack and David Curtin and more details such as ‘Happenings Limerick’ for suddenly arranged activities will emerge on elementalfestival.com, facebook and Twitter @elementallmk
