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November 2024

 

Irish-Australian Arts News
November 2024

We are half-way through the Irish Film Festival season and there are loads of pix below from Sydney, Melbourne and Perth plus a preview of Brisbane and Canberra.

We have published our 2024 Q&A’s on YouTube so catch up with our interviews with directors and actors including Margo Harkin (Stolen) and Brendan Gleeson.

We have a double pass to giveaway to Samuel Beckett play Waiting for Godot at the State Theatre in Canberra.

And we also have some Irish music and TV shows making their way to Australia.

Last but by no means least is our diary of Irish events around Australia in our Events Diary at the bottom of this email, including WNOW’s 60 for 60 fundraiser at the end of the month. Beir Bua!

IFF24 Highlights so far

The Irish Film Festival is well and truly underway with our Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth screenings complete and the online streaming wrapped up. A huge thank you to everyone who has supported the festival so far – we’ve had so much fun celebrating Irish cinema with you. 

 In Sydney we had a sell out opening night and were joined by director Shauna Keogh for our screening of The Guards. In Melbourne, sponsor Artisan Ireland hosted a whiskey tasting at our opening night and for Perth’s opening night we were joined by musician Fiona Rae and ‘Sligo’ Nell!

Highlights and posts from our opening nights can be seen on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Brisbane and Canberra, we are coming your way, grab your tickets at irishfilmfestival.com.au

 

IFF24 Q&As

In a rush to leave the theatre? Did you miss the post-screening Q&A? Never fear, all 8 of the 2024 IFF Q&As are available to watch on YouTube. 

Watch our festival director Enda Murray have a chat with Brendan Gleeson, Barry Ward, Margo Harkin, Strange Boy, Ali White and more directors & stars of the IFF.

Warning: if you haven’t seen the films yet the Q&As may contain spoilers.

We also have an Irish Film Festival 2024 Playlist full of trailers, Q&A’s and shoutouts.

Waiting for Godot – State Theatre, Canberra

The Street Theatre in Canberra are presenting a brand new production of Waiting for Godot, opening 9 November through 24 November and have given us a double pass ticket giveaway. Dublin-born Nobel Prize-winning writer Samuel Beckett captured the consciousness of generations with his landmark work writing what is considered by many to be one of, if not the, most influential play of the 20th century. Haunting, tragic, hilarious, it truly is the play that changed all the rules of theatre.
 
Caroline Stacey OAM directs this classic filled with a mix of bright comedy and dark philosophical hues to create a moment by moment experience of what it feels like to be alive. Sporting a formidable cast of leading Canberra actors – Christopher Samuel Carroll, PJ Williams, Craig Alexander, James Scott and designers Véronique Benett and Kimmo Vennonen expect plenty of theatrical magic. You won’t want to miss this remarkable performance experience to discover or rediscover Waiting for Godot.
 
Watch the trailer. Get the vibe.
https://vimeo.com/1024186407

Reply to this email telling us who is waiting for Godot by COB on November 13th to go into the draw for a double pass during the season at The Street Theatre, the ACT’s award-winning home of live performance. Please also advise your preferred performance date. 

More info and bookings: https://www.thestreet.org.au/shows/waiting-godot

Other Stories

  • Dermot Kennedy festival in Sydney
    Multi-platinum Irish singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy announces MISNEACH (‘Courage’ in Gaelic), a new global music festival celebrating Ireland’s rich music heritage, coming to Sydney this St Patrick’s Day! Dermot leads the festival’s lineup, with more artists to be announced soon.
    Tickets: axs.com/au/events/698493/dermot-kennedy-presents-misneach-tickets?skin=misneach
     
  • Damien Rice Australian Tour: 22 January – 6 February
    Known for his hauntingly beautiful live shows, Damien Rice has the ability to transform the biggest of rooms into the most intimate spaces. Often performing with no setlist, Rice has built an incredible connection with fans that continues to evolve with each live performance.
    visiting Adelaide, Melbourne, Bendigo, Canberra, Thirroul, Sydney, Newcastle, & Brisbane
    Tickets: frontiertouring.com/damienrice
     
  • Bloodlands on SBS OnDemand
    Set in Northern Ireland and starring the inimitable James Nesbitt, this revenge-fuelled thriller will leave you questioning everything. Veteran detective Tom Brannick (James Nesbitt) faces his toughest case yet – one with deep personal significance. Will he be able to hold his own? The show stars a long list of much-loved Irish talent including Lorcan Cranitch (The Quiet Girl, Tarrac), Charlene McKenna (Peaky Blinders), Victoria Smurfitt (Ballykissangel) and Ian McElhinney (Derry Girls).
    sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-series/bloodlands
     
  • The Gone on SBS OnDemand
    When a young Irish couple vanishes from a small town in the North Island of New Zealand, Irish Detective Theo Richter teams with Kiwi Detective Diana Huia to find them.
    sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-series/the-gone
     
  • Say Nothing coming to Disney+ 14 November
    The book Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe offered not just a forensic account of a brutal crime but a vivid portrait of the world in which it happened. This dramatization by Disney has been criticized for its depiction of the Troubles. Make up your own mind.
    Trailer: youtu.be/ETo4hnxVFho?si=xSKwn5hJmXsCtINx
     
  • Bad Sisters returns to the screen
    Apple TV+ has set Wednesday, November 13, for the Season 2 premiere of Sharon Horgan’s dark murder-mystery comedy series Bad Sisters. 
    Season 2 continues to follow the lives of the Garvey sisters played by Sharon Horgan as ‘Eva,’ Anne-Marie Duff as ‘Grace,’ Eva Birthistle as ‘Ursula’, Sarah Greene as ‘Bibi,’ and Eve Hewson as ‘Becka.’ Two years after the “accidental death” of ‘Grace’s’ abusive husband, the close-knit Garvey sisters may have moved on but when past truths resurface, the ladies are thrust back into the spotlight, suspicions are at an all-time high, lies are told, secrets revealed and the sisters are forced to work out who they can trust. 
    Season 1 of Bad Sisters was one of the most lauded series in Ireland in 2023.
    Trailer: youtube.com/watch?v=eixYGYmuu0g
     
  • WNOW’s 60 for 60 on 29 November
    WNOW are walking 60km to acknowledge the 60 men lost to suicide every 60 minutes around the world. They want to change that.
    60 for 60 is an endurance challenge to push you physically and mentally and connect socially whilst raising funds to help men’s mental health.
    wnow-60-for-60-walk-2024.raiselysite.com/
     
  • New edition of Tinteán
    Melbourne based Irish Online Magazine Tinteán dropped a new edition on the 10th of October and all the articles are now available to read on their website. This month’s edition also includes reviews of the IFF films.
    tintean.org.au/

NOVEMBER EVENTS DIARY!

Click on the link above to check out our events diary for November 2024 onwards which includes some exciting news on Irish music national tours and other riveting stuff.

Add your event to our Monthly Newsletter
We have had some enquiries from Irish organisations about publicising their events in our newsletter. If you have an event coming up  then get the info to us by the 21st of the month and we will do our best to include it in our newsletter. It helps if you can provide the text ‘ready to go’ and remember – a picture tells 1000 words so send some pics too!

Slán agus beannacht
Natalie O’Neill & Enda Murray (director)
Irish Film Festival