Terryglass Arts Festival punches above its weight

The Co Tipperary village of Terryglass will become a cultural mecca for five days this week.

Celebrating its 18th year, Terryglass Arts Festival offers an exciting programme of arts, theatre, music, visual arts, and performance from August 17-21.

The brainchild of the local postman, Oliver Darcy, and Tipperary County Council arts officer Melanie Scott, Terryglass Arts Festival punches well above its weight for the calibre of artists it attracts to the lakeside village, the population of the which swells fourfold for the duration of the festival.

Headline acts performing during this year’s festival include singing star Rebecca Storm, who performs an intimate concert in Terryglass Church on Friday at 8.30pm.

Kicking off the festival tomorrow are the hugely successful short plays Arsehammers and Bonfire Night by award-winning writer Claire Dowie.

Dark humour prevails on Thursday with Noni Stapleton’s one woman show Charolais. The age-old story of female jealousy is given a new twist as the other woman is a cow, a literal one, a purebred Charolais heifer.

This year’s festival celebrates the visual arts and features Irish-born artists who have achieved national acclaim.

In collaboration with the Damer House Gallery, Terryglass Arts Festival will showcase the work of three Midlands-based artists, Ciarnad Ryan, Patrick Fitzpatrick, and Katrina Maguire who were asked to respond to the theme ‘The Raven and the Writing Desk’.

Transforming the Village Square in Terryglass will be ‘Solas’, a series of site-specific installations from Aoife Banville, who has created largescale aerial pieces which will be suspended along the tree-lined path.

Tickets are available from The Derg Inn Shop, Terryglass, or at terryglassartsfestival.ie