Ireland’s endangered birds will be the focus of a unique intergenerational performance taking place at DLR Mill Theatre Dundrum from May 15th to 16th.
The Conference of Birds will feature birds on the brink of extinction taking to the stage in the hope that humans will cherish their songs before it is too late. A powerful performance merging theatre, music, and visual art, this innovative project is by The Elders, a Dublin-based participatory arts group for older people, in collaboration with the National Concert Hall’s youth choir, Cór na Nóg.
Speaking ahead of the event, the show’s director, Andrea Scott of Floating World Productions, invited audiences to come and be inspired. “The public are invited to a unique gathering of wings, voices, and stories rooted in the lives of birds from Ireland’s Red List. We’ve created a multimedia show where theatre, movement, animation, and live performance are woven together with an important message, giving a voice to birds and their fragile futures. Each bird will be represented on stage.”
The show is by The Elders, a theatre group for those over 65 founded by Scott who co-created the show with professional artists.
“We’ve had an incredible response since establishing the group in 2018,” explains Scott. The focus is on honouring the Elder in society, raising their creative voices, and often creating work that intersects with ecology and climate. Many of the group members intended to be part of the creative industries when they were younger but got caught up in life, jobs, and family and never got around to it. Now they have an opportunity to create important and meaningful work in collaboration with professional artists”.
This performance will run alongside an exhibition of Ireland’s critically endangered birds by Gerard O’Brien. “The images will also be projected and integrated into the stage performance. It will be quite the spectacle, and having the Cór na Nóg youth choir perform on stage alongside the elders will make it a deeply moving and poignant display.”
The Conference of Birds will take place at DLR Mill Theatre Dundrum from May 15 to 16. Tickets are priced at €20. See milltheatre.ie.
The Conference of Birds is funded by the Arts Council of Ireland with support from the Mill Theatre.
Featured Image: Leon Farrell
