by Saoirse Anton

May always feels like the start of a new chapter in the year. Late Spring brings sunshine with actual warmth, jackets are left at home with confidence, pretty summer dresses are pulled out of the back of the wardrobe, indoor activities are replaced with outdoor ones, and everyone’s mood seems to lift.

As I prepare for the start of a new chapter, moving to somewhere new at the end of the month, I am struck by the thought that May feels like a time for movement. (But don’t worry, this column isn’t going anywhere!)

Whether it’s a move like I’m making, just a stroll in the park, or a dance with friends, this May I’m making time for movement and it looks like our stages are too! Read on to find some of my recommendations of the movers and shakers on Irish stages this month.

Dublin Dance Festival

This list couldn’t be complete without a mention of Dublin Dance Festival. Running from 14th to 25th May, the programme is a feast of movement, from productions by acclaimed Irish and international artists, to workshops, showcases and dance films. There truly is something for everyone. My personal highlights of the programme are Bench#3 from CoisCéim Dance and Waterways Ireland, an outdoor dance performance inspired by Dublin’s canals, and 13 Tongues from Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, an exciting representation of the sights, sounds and atmosphere of Taipei’s Bangka District, set to a score of Taiwanese folk music, Taoist chants and electronica.

Carlow Arts Festival

Coming hot on the heels of Dublin Dance Festival, Carlow Arts Festival brings a rich programme taking in theatre, music, dance, comedy, spoken word, visual art, circus and more. I’m particularly hoping to catch Gandini Juggling’s The Games We Play, described as a lecture that pretends to be a show (or a show that pretends to be a lecture?), and Singing & Cycling. Part of the Cycles project which has been running over the past year, Singing & Cycling is a workshop in which participants learn a specially commissioned song by Ye Vagabonds in preparation for a collective cycle of an 18km loop with live and recorded music and audio experiences shaping the journey on the 14th July.  

Fall & Float

In my experience, Mónica Muñoz’s dance work is always a delight of playful and insightful energy. Fall & Float promises to be a joyful family show, with dance, acrobatics and balloons providing a treat for the senses and the imagination. It is on tour around the country for the month of June so you have lots of chances to catch it!

Clown Station

Sometimes you don’t need words to connect to each other. Romanian company Luceafărul Theatre brings a family show to Draíocht Blanchardstown for International Children’s Day on the first of June. In Clown Station, 8 performers bring a whimsical, imaginative, playful world of clowns to life in this spectacle that is sure to delight audiences of all ages.

The Enchanted

Not your usual theatre experience, The Enchanted invites its audience on a walking tour around Galway to discover the mythical disappearing island of Hy-Brasil. Described as a “playful, immersive experience [in which] the merfolk sip seaweed tea inside eerie underwater buildings, Seagull-John cooks white birds over trash fires, and dreams from the future explore loss, rainbows, and sorrow in a liminal space gone awry with climate chaos,” The Enchanted is sure to be a unique and memorable performance.

What are you waiting for? Get moving!