After two years of limited live events, there’s a real joy in getting back together this summer and sharing in the collective experiences that we’ve all missed. So, we are thrilled to welcome back audiences to a joyful, exciting and dynamic festival of multi-disciplinary arts presented in person at our HQ in the grounds of Carlow College and at various locations across Carlow town.

This year’s programme is a truly eclectic mix of music, circus, dance, theatre, visual arts, street art and so much more. There’s new work by a number of Irish artists including Sinéad Cormack’s The Shed, an immersive theatre show for just one audience member at a time, Philip Connaughton’s No Control, a moving new dance piece inspired by loss of privacy and performance space, and Darragh McLoughlin’s For As Long As We Are Here where circus artists perform astonishing acts of physical endurance.

We are also bringing some really exciting work from international artists to Carlow including Seeking Unicorns by Chiara Bersani, an Italian artist whose work emphasises the political significance that a body can assume, and Work, an extraordinary piece of physical theatre-slash-visual art by Italian-Belgian artist Claudio Stellato. French visual artists Clédat & Petitpierre present The Bathers, two larger-than-life living dolls made entirely of pleated tulle, and anonymous French street artist Ememem will bring a touch of surrealism and magic to Delta Sensory Gardens with his beautiful mosaic designs.

Music fans can look forward to an expanded line-up of shows this year. The O’Hara’s Quarter hosts some of Ireland’s most acclaimed stars including Tolü Makay, Wyvern Lingo and Malaki and there’s a special homecoming performance from Carlow’s very own Ye Vagabonds in VISUAL. We are also delighted to be partnering with Carlow Live & Local to present three days of the best local talent, including Jerry Fish, Shane Hennessy and a host of rising stars.

Cruinniú na nÓg, Ireland’s national day of creativity for children and young people coincides with the festival on Saturday 11 June so we’ve got a brilliant programme of fun, free performances and workshops for kids and families both on the Saturday and running into Sunday too. The highlight will be our first Carlow Carnival of Collective Joy, parading through Carlow town on Saturday afternoon, and planned, delivered and performed in partnership with the children of Carlow!

And that just scratches the surface of what’s in store! So, we invite you to join us for the first multidisciplinary festival of the summer. We hope that for the people of Carlow and beyond, the festival is a chance to relax, to discover, and to celebrate together.

The Festival Team