Latest news with #GIAF
Irish Independent
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Galway International Arts Festival 2025: Everything you need to know about its stunning street spectacle
The free event promises to make the city's streets come to life across the two evenings. Here is everything you need to know about one of the festival's most impressive spectacles. Date, time, and where to watch The Street Spectacle will spill onto Galway's streets for one performance on Friday, July 18 from 9.30pm and two further showings on Saturday, July 19 at 6pm and 9.30pm. The hour-long spectacle will travel from Eyre Square down William Street, Shop Street, Mainguard Street and Bridge Street to Dominick Street Lower and Raven Terrace. What you can see This year's spectacle is brought to Galway by parade specialists Planète Vapeur and is called Microcosmos - les Insectes Fantastiques directed by Pierre Povigna, Planète Vapeur. Directed by France's Pierre Povigna, the show will feature giant colourful recreations of insects complemented by performers. Among those on show will be a twelve-metre grasshopper with dazzling eyes and mix of stilt-walkers, musicians and acrobats on its back, as well as a water-spitting, twirling, and disoriented spider. Disruptions are expected An Garda Síochána have encouraged those attending to arrive early and if an area is crowded, to find an alternative viewing spot along the route. Some traffic disruption and parking restrictions are expected around Eyre Square, Eglinton Street, Bridge Street, Dominick Street Lower and neighbouring streets on both evenings. Other street events Galway's streets will also welcome other visual art exhibitions and street spectacles for the remainder of the GIAF. Guru Dudu presents their Silent Disco walking tours, featuring a mix of music hits from the late 20th century and commentary from the tour guide to create a flash mob atmosphere. Renowned Scottish artist David Mach returns to the GIAF with his new site-specific installation Burning Down the House. The exhibition addresses climate change and extends his impressive legacy at the festival.
RTÉ News
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
10 must-see events at Galway Arts Festival 2025
John Crumlish, Chief Executive of the Galway International Arts Festival, picks his own 10 must-sees at the 2025 edition of the west coast arts extravaganza, which runs from July 14th - 27th. In a festival like the Galway International Arts Festival, with so many great acts, productions, exhibitions and installations it makes it difficult to choose just ten from the large programme we will bring to our audiences this summer – but, gun to my head, here's my ten. 1. I am going to start with a dance/theatre world premiere called Scorched Earth created by the wonderful Luke Murphy. Luke premiered his previous production Volcano at the Festival and it was a great success, it subsequently went on to win Best Production at the Irish Times Theatre Awards. Scorched Earth is part crime-drama, part psychological thriller, part theatre, part dance, and no doubt will be another triumph for this very talented Corkman. 2. In the Heineken Big Top we will be presenting twelve great concerts, everything from Sophie Ellis Bextor to Mogwai, but here I choose The RTE Concert Orchestra with Mari Samuelson, performing a programme of work by contemporary composers including Arvo Part and Bryce Dessner from The National. For me, most importantly, the programme will include a performance of Max Richter's fabulous reimaging of Vivaldi's Four Seasons. A real treat on the very last day of GIAF 2025. 3. For the first time ever, we will have a second Big Top running throughout the Festival which will be located in the Claddagh. There we will be presenting Sabotage by NoFitState. a big visual physical spectacle full of unforgettable moments. 4. We also have a festival first with an underwater world premiere, Oh... by Mikel Murfi, set in the main tank of the Galway Atlantaquaria. 5. Another world premiere, this time from Irish National Opera. Mars, is based around four astronauts and their AI interface's journey to, and exploration of, the red planet. 6. Celebrating their 50th birthday, the marvellous Druid theatre company present new productions of Macbeth and Riders to the Sea. Happy Birthday Druid! 7. in recent years, GIAF has brought a strong sustainability focus to what it does and there are several exhibitions and installations in the 2025 programme dealing with aspects of the environmental and climate crisis including John Connelly and Conor Maloney's innovative installation, Funeral for Ashes, which pays tribute to the ash tree and deals with the terrible dieback it is facing. 8. David Mach returns to Galway with a large-scale site-specific installation called Burning Down the House. David's previous work at GIAF provided one of the biggest gallery attendances we ever had and I would predict this work will also prove to be hugely popular. 9. We also pay tribute to Micheal D Higgins as his presidency comes to an end with both an outdoor and indoor photographic exhibition at Galway City Museum celebrating his life and work. 10. In our First Thought talks series, we will, as usual, cover a range of topics including the relationship between autism and talent, the war in Ukraine, the crisis facing rural GAA clubs, conspiracy theories and misinformation, amongst others. One to look out for is the talk with photographer Eman Mohammed discussing her work which focuses on the terrible destruction of Gaza (Eman also has an exhibition of her work in the festival on the subject). So that's my ten... I could have picked a totally different ten, and if you come to the Festival this July you can decide whether I am right or wrong in my picks. See you in Galway!
Irish Independent
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Galway International Arts Festival 2025: Locals and visitors react as festival opens in Eyre Square
Now in its 48th year, the festival started on Monday July 14 and will run until July 27. Despite the wet start, with Met Eireann issuing a thunderstorm warning for most of Monday afternoon, the event has already attracted hundreds of expectant people from far and wide. Ames: New to Galway, excited for first arts festival Speaking to the Irish Independent at the Festival Garden in Eyre Square, Ames, who has only been living in the town of the Tribes for five weeks, said he loves the atmosphere already. 'It's absolutely lovely. Everybody's very cheerful and the arts are absolutely beautiful. Talking about the shows ahead, he added: 'I'm going to be looking at the schedule soon. It's all new to me, but it's very exciting. I was a big, big fan of the arts festivals in the States and I come from Tucson, which is known for gemstones and art festivals. So I'm just super excited.' John: Galway native celebrates festival tradition Not too far from him we met Galway city native John, who said he has enjoyed GIAF since he was a child. 'It's quite a fun time, it always brings a lovely vibrant energy to the city. I love to just exploring and walk around.' 'There's a lot of stuff when you finish work, people in the city can just run up to it and have a look at it. I think that's what makes the Galway Arts Festival so unique. 'It's so accessible for everyone. We've just walked up the city there and we've been to two installations already and I think that's what makes it so unique. It's kind of alive. It's not in a gallery, behind a building or something, it's alive,' he said. Eve: 20-year resident says festival has 'something for everyone' Eve is also a festival regular as she has been living in Galway city for 20 years. She explained that her favourite thing about the festival is that 'there's something for everyone'. She added: 'I think everybody from Galway loves [the festival],' she said. 'It brings a real great vibe and you get to see nice things. It's something different, like the circus last night was amazing with Sabotage. So I'd say anyone out there, come to Galway.' The festival is also a special event for staff and business owners. The much-loved Tiny Traders Market has been set up in the festival garden and will use the opportunity to showcase some of its vendors. Martha Begley Schade: Author calls festival stall 'fantastic honour' One of those sellers is children books author, Martha Begley Schade, who said it is a 'fantastic honour and pleasure' for her to be part of it and have a stall at the Festival Garden. She said: 'I think it's absolutely wonderful. The atmosphere here is just really great. People are friendly and there's a class, a class feeling about being here. I'm never asked 'are you the author?' Because people just take it for granted that this is the standard that we're bringing. 'It's a wonderful opportunity to actually showcase your products and a bit of Galway to right around the world and it's a lovely feeling because I do feel I'm representing Galway in a small way. 'My dream is that the books will have an impact, so that I have a positive influence on children growing up and being better adults. So can you imagine taking that out onto an international stage? It's a wonderful feeling and I'm really appreciative of the fact that I could be here. Plus all this staff here, the security guys, the guys with the coffee, it's a really fantastic honour and pleasure to be here.' Headline acts and diverse programming A variety of acts are on offer at this year's festival. Locally formed band The Stunning return to familiar territory when they perform at the Heineken Big Top on July 26. Further headline acts consist of Irish bands Kingfishr (July 20), Picture This (July 21-22) and the Mary Wallopers (July 19), while Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Natasha Bedingfield will also take to the Big Top on July 17. There is plenty more on offer outside of just music. A variety of visual arts performances, talks, and theatre shows will take place in venues across the city. The hefty list of shows includes Oh… a solo show by Mikel Murfi set in the main tank of Galway Atlantaquaria and shows Scorched Earth by Luke Murphy and The Cave by Caitríona McLaughlin and starring Aaron Monaghan, Judith Roddy and Tommy Tiernan.
Irish Independent
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
View from the street as Galway International Arts Festival kicks off – ‘It's a fantastic honour to be here'
Now in its 48th year, the festival started on Monday July 14 and will run until July 27. Despite the wet start, with Met Eireann issuing a thunderstorm warning for most of Monday afternoon, the event has already attracted hundreds of expectant people from far and wide. Speaking to the Irish Independent at the Festival Garden in Eyre Square, Ames, who has only been living in the town of the Tribes for five weeks, said he loves the atmosphere already. 'It's absolutely lovely. Everybody's very cheerful and the arts are absolutely beautiful. Talking about the shows ahead, he added: 'I'm going to be looking at the schedule soon. It's all new to me, but it's very exciting. I was a big, big fan of the arts festivals in the States and I come from Tucson, which is known for gemstones and art festivals. So I'm just super excited.' Not too far from him we met Galway city native John, who said he has enjoyed GIAF since he was a child. 'It's quite a fun time, it always brings a lovely vibrant energy to the city. I love to just exploring and walk around.' 'There's a lot of stuff when you finish work, people in the city can just run up to it and have a look at it. I think that's what makes the Galway Arts Festival so unique. 'It's so accessible for everyone. We've just walked up the city there and we've been to two installations already and I think that's what makes it so unique. It's kind of alive. It's not in a gallery, behind a building or something, it's alive,' he said. Eve is also a festival regular as she has been living in Galway city for 20 years. She explained that her favourite thing about the festival is that 'there's something for everyone'. She added: 'I think everybody from Galway loves [the festival],' she said. 'It brings a real great vibe and you get to see nice things. It's something different, like the circus last night was amazing with Sabotage. So I'd say anyone out there, come to Galway.' The festival is also a special event for staff and business owners. The much-loved Tiny Traders Market has been set up in the festival garden and will use the opportunity to showcase some of its vendors. One of those sellers is children books author, Martha Begley Schade, who said it is a 'fantastic honour and pleasure' for her to be part of it and have a stall at the Festival Garden. She said: 'I think it's absolutely wonderful. The atmosphere here is just really great. People are friendly and there's a class, a class feeling about being here. I'm never asked 'are you the author?' Because people just take it for granted that this is the standard that we're bringing. 'It's a wonderful opportunity to actually showcase your products and a bit of Galway to right around the world and it's a lovely feeling because I do feel I'm representing Galway in a small way. 'My dream is that the books will have an impact, so that I have a positive influence on children growing up and being better adults. So can you imagine taking that out onto an international stage? It's a wonderful feeling and I'm really appreciative of the fact that I could be here. Plus all this staff here, the security guys, the guys with the coffee, it's a really fantastic honour and pleasure to be here.' A variety of acts are on offer at this year's festival. Locally formed band The Stunning return to familiar territory when they perform at the Heineken Big Top on July 26. Further headline acts consist of Irish bands Kingfishr (July 20), Picture This (July 21-22) and the Mary Wallopers (July 19), while Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Natasha Bedingfield will also take to the Big Top on July 17. There is plenty more on offer outside of just music. A variety of visual arts performances, talks, and theatre shows will take place in venues across the city. The hefty list of shows includes Oh… a solo show by Mikel Murfi set in the main tank of Galway Atlantaquaria and shows Scorched Earth by Luke Murphy and The Cave by Caitríona McLaughlin and starring Aaron Monaghan, Judith Roddy and Tommy Tiernan.
RTÉ News
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Galway International Arts Festival announces 2025 programme
The Galway International Arts Festival (GIAF) has officially launched its 2025 programme, revealing what organisers describe as their most ambitious line-up to date. Running from 14–27 July, the two-week event will transform Galway city and county into a vibrant stage for theatre, music, circus, dance, visual arts, and public talks. This year's programme boasts eight world premieres and festival commissions, including a major new opera, immersive theatre, and a large-scale visual art installation. Standout performances include Sabotage, a daring new circus production by NoFit State, set in the NoFit State Big Top at Nimmo's Pier, promising "jaw-dropping" acrobatics, live music, and striking visuals. Festival regulars Druid Theatre will celebrate their 50th anniversary with a double-bill featuring J.M. Synge's Riders to the Sea and Shakespeare's Macbeth, both directed by Tony Award-winner Garry Hynes, while Irish National Opera and composer Jennifer Walshe will debut Mars, a futuristic new opera that explores space, isolation, and technology. GIAF 2025 also includes The Cave, a new black comedy by Kevin Barry, starring comedian Tommy Tiernan and produced by the Abbey Theatre, and Scorched Earth, a dance-theatre fusion from choreographer Luke Murphy delving into themes of ambition and legacy. Another innovative production, Mikel Murfi's solo show Oh …, will be performed underwater at Galway Atlantaquaria, while The Baby's Room is the latest immersive theatre installation presented as part of an ongoing extraordinary series, Rooms, created by Enda Walsh and Paul Fahy. As ever, visual art will play a prominent role at this year's GAF, led by UK artist David Mach, who returns with a major new installation Burning Down the House. Other exhibitions address themes such as ecology, climate change, and cultural memory, with works by Erin Lawlor, Richard Long, and Palestinian photojournalist Eman Mohammed among others. Music lovers can expect a packed schedule at the Heineken Big Top and other city venues; headliners include Mogwai, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Natasha Bedingfield, Villagers, and violinist Mari Samuelsen performing with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. The festival will also celebrate local hero Mary Coughlan's 40th year in music with a very special performance. The First Thought Talks series will return as GIAF's platform for public discourse. This year's speakers include U.S. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, journalists Fintan O'Toole, Róisín Ingle, and Lara Marlowe, and historians Diarmaid Ferriter and Phillips P. O'Brien. Discussions will cover a wide array of topics including political trauma, climate transition, and global conflicts. In the streets, audiences can expect large-scale spectacles like Microcosmos, featuring a giant mechanical insect from Planet Vapeur, and Six, a high-energy performance by Canada's Flip Fabrique in Eyre Square. Chief Executive John Crumlish described this year's event as "one large two-week celebration of the imagination," while Artistic Director Paul Fahy praised the festival's "transformative power" and collaborative spirit. "There is simply nowhere quite like Galway during the Festival," says Fahy, "the city offers a special magical atmosphere every July."
