Children’s festival Bualadh Bos makes a welcome return

THIS autumn, Lime Tree Theatre | Belltable reconnects Limerick audiences with a brand new season of fantastic live performances.

One of the most exciting element of the autumn programme is the Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival 2022.

The programme is jam-packed and there is something for every child to engage with the festival over the two weeks, running from October 1 to 14.

This year, Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival is curated by playwright Liam McCarthy, who has worked alongside the Bualadh Bos Children’s Panel, to create this year’s programme. Bualadh Bos sees the very best of national and international theatre for young people across all our stages, as well as an array of workshops and community events happening all across Limerick City and County through our Bualadh Bos On Tour programme.

Fergal, a beautiful non-verbal show about the importance of being yourself and enjoying your own company, will debut at the festival. Fergal is created by festival curator Liam McCarthy. Other festival highlights include internationally renowned companies de Stilte, (Netherlands) Curious Seed (Scotland), The Egg(England), ROGU (Belgium) and Branar (Ireland) , as well as the ever popular Family Day on October 8 at the Lime Tree Theatre.

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This year,  family day will include the inaugural Bualadh Bop Festival Night, featuring Firestorm – an open air fire performance,  presented by ROGU, a DJ set with Aoife Nic Canna and storytelling with Sinead O’Brien.

There’s a keen emphasis on the voice of the child throughout all Bualadh Bos events. Last year The Bualadh Bos Children’s Panel, a group of children, helped to programme and organise the festival by choosing events and shows, giving feedback on previous work, and prioritising art forms that they wanted to experience–such as dance and film.

Organisers also worked with a group of teenagers as part of the Thomond Youth Theatre Open Workshop project.

Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival is delighted to host internationally renowned performance company Curious Seed (Scotland) with Chalk About. Chalk Aboutexplores the nature of identity and asks some BIG questions: What makes us who we are? Is it where we are from? How we talk? Our pasts or our futures? Or is it the way we dance?

Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival is particularly excited to welcome Dutch Dance Company De Stilte, who will perform Do Re Me Ka Do a show for two-five year-olds, in Dance Limerick, St John’s Square. Through humour and fun De Stilte explores the connection between movement and sound while dancers and musicians create their own universe.

Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival 2022 will also see the world premiere of Fergal, a play about the importance of enjoying your own company for ages five and up. One day Fergal, a funny looking man, arrives on the beach. He just wants to be left on his own, but everyone keeps following him.This is a home grown project, supported by the Arts Council and Branar’s Meitheal artist mentorship.

Liam McCarthy, Curator of the Festival, says: “We want to include as many children as possible in our festival, particularly those that may never have experienced an arts event at Lime Tree Theatre | Belltable before. We have partnered with our City Centre schools to deliver the Bualadh Bos on Tour Programme–where school children and teachers will have the opportunity to experience workshops in their schools as well as a theatre visit. We are keen to remove financial barriers for children and their families to attend our events”.

The Festival has also partnered with Doras as part of the Pay It Forward donation initiative, where festival tickets will be offered complimentary to families to a wide range of events at Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival this October.

Tickets for all Lime Tree Theatre | Belltable Bualadh Bos Children’s Festival events are now on sale, visit www.limetreetheatre.ie or call 061 953400

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