The annual First Fortnight Festival returns to An Grianán this January with a great line up of events including workshops for adults and children, evening shows and a special First Fortnight edition of our weekly wellness cafe.
Programme
Thu 9 January 10.30am to 12pm
Donegal Wellness Café Letterkenny
Free admission on the door.
A special meeting of our resident Wellness Café for First Fortnight. All are welcome to attend.
Thu 9 January at 7.30pm
Laughter’s The Best Medicine
In partnership with Mental Health Ireland
Tickets: €10
Laughter is definitely the best medicine ….. and the cheapest! In a world that is getting far too serious for its own good, we invite you to come along and have a fun evening with us to celebrate The First Fortnight Festival. There will be jokes; there will be sketches; there will be entertaining conversation, and there will even be a few prizes (but keep that to yourself).
Tue 14 January at 8pm
Declan’s Got Talent by Peter Gowan
Fight2Flight Theatre
Tickets: €18/€15
A night of sharp humour and compelling drama with Peter Gowen and Jack Healy. Declan is a man with big dreams and a stubborn inner critic. As he prepares for a talent show audition, memories from his past in 1960s East Cork and West Waterford come alive, challenging his confidence and pushing him to his limits. With themes of resilience, memory, and self-belief, Declan’s Got Talent promises an evening filled with laughter, reflection, and a touch of nostalgia.
Sat 8 February 2024 at 8pm
Zeitgeist Jukebox
Little John Nee
Tickets: €18/€15
On a night such as this, some folk meet up at an old warehouse in response to a notice on a lamppost. An invitation to join the oddest band that ever was in the making of the greatest album of the twenty-first century. Primitive recording equipment sits ready for use; the clock ticks…it’s now or never.
Zeitgeist Jukebox is an immersive theatre experience framed by Little John Nee’s masterful storytelling; a soulful antidote to the disconnection of our times, and a testament to the healing power of music. Sit back, relax and laugh. Should the music move you jump up and join the band.
“A thing of delicate beauty, I wept the whole way through” The Bell Harbour Bullhorn
Workshop Programme
Fri 10 January at 12pm
Write Future Dialogues
Dave Duggan
Join Oscar nominated dramatist and novelist Dave Duggan for this upbeat, creative event where you will write dialogues with a stranger you’ll meet in the future. Just bring your imagination. You will take your draft dialogues away with you and continue as you wish. Dave Duggan’s work includes an Oscar nominated short film, a fistful of plays for radio and stage, novels and a blog, in English and in Irish. His new collection of essays is Journeywork, A Creative Life.
Duration approx. 60 minutes followed by lunch.
Tickets: €10 (includes light lunch of soup and brown bread).
Sat 11 January at 11am
Creative Writing through Mindfulness for Children
Valerie Bryce
Children will explore each of their senses using a variety of tactile objects, audio-visual prompts and movement. Grounding and breathing techniques form an aspect of this workshop and are introduced in the context of managing emotions and trusting in themselves, their worth and their creative abilities. The exercises are designed to spark their imagination and promote confidence in using the written word as a tool for self-expression.
Suitable for ages 8 to 12 years.
Duration: 120 minutes
Tickets: €8 (includes materials to take home)
Sat 12 January at 6pm
An Arts Life: What The Hell Is Possible And How
Ultan Pringle
Actor, writer and theatre maker Ultan Pringle hosts a two hour workshop and discussion on the eternal question of how the hell to create a sustainable and engaging career in the Irish arts landscape. Exploring funding opportunities in Ireland and how best to approach them, nurturing your own creative practice amongst the madness and how to sustain yourself and your art, the workshop promises to be a hopeful and invigorating exploration of what’s possible.
Duration: 120 minutes.
Free Admission
About First Fortnight
First Fortnight is a charity that challenges stigmas around mental health through arts and cultural action. Every January they present the First Fortnight Festival, an annual mental health, arts and culture festival throughout Ireland.
The festival celebrates the arts as a powerful catalyst for sparking unscripted conversations around mental ill health and serves to challenge the stigma associated with mental ill-health.
The festival aspires to make the beginning of each year synonymous with mental health awareness, actively challenging societal prejudices, and eradicating the pervasive stigma surrounding mental health.
Find out more here: firstfortnight.ie