A trip to the Wexford Arts Festival 2021

I think of this poem as I reflect back on the week I’ve spent in Wexford. I’m fortunate to have family down here who kindly put me up for a few nights – not in their home exactly, but in their shed out the back garden. However, this one wasn’t a standing ruin slowly being swallowed up by surrounding vegetation. Kitted out with a comfy bed, thick insulation and decorative skateboards for good measure – it served as the perfect place for me to rest my head during my trip to Wexford for the Arts Festival running alongside Wexford Festival Opera.

October is the time of the year when artists, actors, musicians and many other creatives come together in Wexford town to showcase their work. The place becomes a hive of activity, and each turn you take leads you to a different artistic outlet – whether that be a walk down the Creative Hub arcade, a look inside the Spiegeltent or a visit to the gallery at the Wexford Arts Centre. Both The Arts and Opera Festivals combine their weight of influence at this time of the year to offer locals and visitors a lasting cultural experience.

Arriving late Thursday afternoon, I went to see a production of the play Eden, with my aunt, Elizabeth at the Wexford Arts Centre. Set in the rural town of Edenderry in Ireland, the play tells the story of Billy and Breda, a married couple whose relationship is on the rocks. Over the course of one eventful night out, Eden reminds us of our own vulnerability – something I’ve talked more about in my review of the play. It was a memorable performance, showing us that even with a small cast and sparse stage design, a powerful story can still resonate deeply long after the curtain has come down.

Opera is definitely an acquired taste. However, that’s not all the National Opera House had on offer. On Friday afternoon, I saw a screening of a concert by the China National Symphony Orchestra. As someone who dabbles in classical music listening, I sensed that while unusual, it might be something I actually like. In a tribute to Richard Strauss, the highlights were the stirring soprano vocal of Li Jingjing and the quality performance by violinist and concertmaster, Liu Yunzhi. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I left the Opera house that day feeling refreshingly calm and relaxed as I ventured out onto the streets again.

Mary-Ruth Walsh launched her exhibition Skin Deep at the Wexford Arts Centre on Saturday. As a contemporary mixed-media artist, her work on display focuses on the theme of skin and its relationship to Architecture. A parallel drawn between the two is a necessity to strive for perfection, and how flaws aren’t valued enough by society and don’t fit our high beauty standards. She spoke more on the topic in conversation with filmmaker, curator and academic, Katherine Waugh at the Arts Centre. One of the joys here, was being a part of a large gathering – which felt alien at first, given the past 18 months we’ve experienced.

One of the more curious attractions was the Creative Hub, an arcade running from Main Street up through to High Street. Here, you could find many artists both local and from afar, exhibiting their work from old retail units. My aunt Elizabeth, well acquainted with the arts in Wexford, introduced me to a whole host of creatives – including Anya von Gosseln, Bernadette Doolan, photographer, Vavara Shinkarenko, Jonny Murphy and more. I also met Olivia O’Dwyer, a fellow Limerick native. who showed us her exhibition, Lockdown Diaries, in the Annexe of the Arts Centre. As someone who creates art, I enjoyed getting to meet other artists and learn about what inspires them and their process.

There was much to take in wherever you looked. The twinning of the Wexford Arts Festival and Festival Opera is a smart move, but they do inhabit two very different spheres. Much of promotion on Television or online seemed to only highlight the Opera Festival but not the broader celebration of the arts happening at the same time. It’s as though many people only discover the arts festival incidentally, on visiting the Opera, which is fine in of itself, but I think more could be done on a national level to draw attention to the great artistic showcases Wexford has to offer.

Fortunately, I’ll be returning this week to take in the events left to run – namely the Cáca Milis Cabaret and a talk by Colm Tóibín on Friday. Hopefully, I’ll squeeze in a trip to the Spiegeltent before the festival comes to a close. The first week was a whirlwind with more to come just a few days from now. Soon enough, I’ll be settling back into the lovely garden shed in Co. Wexford. As Derek Mahon neatly puts it – ‘Even now there are places where a thought might grow.’