Tuesday Feb 26th - Sunday March 2nd
The Writing Workshop at thisisnotashop
A Week of Miscellany
Tue-Sat 7pm Nightly, Sunday 1pm Brunch
The Writing Workshop at thisisnotashop was formed in July 2007 as a place for writers and artists interested in text to share their work and collaborate. A Week of Miscellany showcases the fruits of this exploration with evenings of presentation, participation, entertainment, and reflection: a veritable exercise in ‘work-in-progress-ness’. Each night one of the workshop’s participants will present / perform their work- all are quite different so please see details below.
Tue Feb 26: Felicity Williams
Wed Feb 27: Gerry McDonnell with Maura Foley and Damein O’Donnell
Thu Feb: 28: Susan Thompson
Fri Feb 29: Kay Inckle
Sat Mar 1: Jessica Foley and Kathryn Maguire
Sun Mar 2: Jessamyn Fiore
*If you are interested in participating in the next round of Writing Workshops (beginning May/June 2008) please come to one of the nights of the Writing Workshop Week at thisisnotashop to see the space and meet the organizers Jessamyn and Jessica. There we will have a form for you to complete that will allow us to get in touch before the next season of workshops begin.
Tuesday February 26th, 7pm:
Felicity Williams presents Benburb Street
Format: Audio Piece
Felicity Williams’ Benburb Street investigates the street, it’s past and present identity, cultural and architectural history, social products and future plans. In exploring the role of landscape, people and public experience Williams has brought together an interesting and insightful collection of dialogues from people connected to the street. With specific emphasis on truth and identity, she has not created but presented a piece of work that intimately communicates via human voice, memory and knowledge.Through an investigative process and objective collation of tangible information Williams has drawn attention to the changing territory, community and environment of the inner city area, and the experience of living, occupying and using public and private space.From the Viking settlement, the British occupation and the bustling businesses, to the desolate buildings, prostitutes, Luas line and developing apartment blocks, Benburb Street is rich in history and character, commuters and divisions. This is not subjective it is real. Williams explores how politics, history and society implicate change, how money and culture blur boundaries and understanding, and what Benburb Street is like today.
Wednesday February 27th, 7pm:
Gerry McDonnell presents Voices in an Empty Room
Featuring Performances by Maura Foley and Damien O’Donnell
Format: Live theatrical performance and reading.
Gerry McDonnell’s poems give a voice to those beyond the grave. On this very special and spooky evening actors Maura Foley and Damien O’Donnell join Gerry to bring life to the dead and let them tell their stories- some humorous, some poignant, some curious - all in a celebration of their lives once lived.
Gerry Mc Donnell is a Dublin born poet and playwright. He has written for radio, stage and TV and has had several books of poetry published. His work to date has focused on James Clarence Mangan, Jews of 19th century Ireland, and people in everyday life - heroes and heroines of the daily round celebrated in prose and poetry.
Thursday February 28th, 7pm:
Susan Thompson
Format: Videos with original sounds and writing and one imaginary film.
presently, in my mind, gravity has taken a holiday. The
Unconscious, my Unconscious is slowly slowly rolling uphill. It’s not
staying down where it belongs anymore.
presently, in my mind, gravity is taking a holiday, my mind is
turning into a mystery spot and what seemed a large part of me
now seems small or rather and more truthfully, what seemed small
is getting bigger by the minute.
Susan Thompson is an artist and writer currently completing the M.A. in Visual Arts Practices at IADT
Friday February 29th, 7pm:
Kay Inckle presents Absent Friends: A Celebration of February 29th
Format: Dinner and readings- audience participation encouraged
A buffet dinner, readings and costume- all Indian themed- to celebrate the leap year and to ask the question, what would it be like to have been born on the 29th of February? An open mike session invites participants to share their own (brief) responses in prose, poetry, story, song, mime, performance, etc to whatever this proposition inspires in them.
Saturday March 1st, 7pm:
Jessica Foley
with a secret event by Kathryn Maguire
Format: Some colouring in, some writing, some sound.
In the grids and metal architecture of colour
Do they rummage? Do they find their voices?
The slide goes one way down –
And sure the ground is padded anyway.
I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately about Benburb Street – for the purposes of an exhibition I’m doing – but instead of going one way, I’ve gone the other. A strange lady crossed my path – well not so much strange as generous, but perhaps that’s one and the same thing. She didn’t speak so much, but I read reports of her activities, her generosity, and, well, it was all so long ago. She began these community gardens – and they flourished – they fed the women and children (I don’t know if they fed the men, but one would suppose that they did) – and they also became impromptu playgrounds for the smaller more sprightly folk, namely the children. Gardens to play in, to grow in – they didn’t last it seems – at least I couldn’t find any – one near broadstone I’m told, the Lady Aberdeens. A remnant of play. But sure isn’t that what the streets are? Scars left over from the corrosive, adaptive, incessant, innovative, sparkling, ruthless and relentless bouts of activity known affectionately as play? The streets echoing the traffic of our lives, but really the spaces are silent – still. Like ghosts in a photograph – tricks of the light and time – I suppose if you had the imagination you could visualise it – or you could wander toward one of the designated areas – the fenced in rainbows – the voices echo there still, though in languages I can’t follow. Still, tis nice to hear. I thought I’d try to find some play – but I figure I’ll just have to do it myself. All the world’s a stage after all.
The space is set up for participative colouring-in, reading, listening, and of course chatting, remembering, thinking, drinking, laughing, coughing, sniffing, debating and, hopefully, enjoying.
Sunday March 2nd, 1pm:
Jessamyn Fiore presents A Brunch with Real Maple Syrup
Format: Brunch and Reading
Sunday Pancakes with Real Maple Syrup will be served up hot while Jessamyn Fiore reads some new works in progress. This casual reading will include a selection from current projects and will hopefully spark discussion to give the author feedback on her progress. So if you enjoy pancakes, mimosas, and writing- join us for a Sunday toast to the end of the writing workshop week!
Jessamyn Fiore Graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 2002 and moved to Ireland where she founded The Road Show Theater. For the company she wrote/directed/produced The Mysterious World of Birds in 2003 and wrote/produced SANDWICH in 2005 which toured to London, Prague, Edinburgh, and Dublin. In June 2007 a new production of SANDWICH was judged one of the top three plays of The Wonderland Festival in NYC. Also in NYC her short play entitled Water and Discarded Hair was produced as part of The Emerging Artists Theatre EATfest in Oct, 2007. Jessamyn is a director/partner of thisisnotashop gallery and one of the organizers of the Writing Workshop.
