Civic Theatre celebrates contemporary black voices

Our focus is on contemporary work – a celebration in recognition that what we do today becomes part of the history,” explains Esosa Ighodaro, curator of the Civic Theatre’s Black History Month programme.

The Civic celebrates Black History Month with ‘Roots and Routes’ this October.

The programme brings together black artists and creatives from across Ireland to present their work over five days.

As Esosa explains, the programme is about exploring “how we make home for ourselves, the path and journey we take to get there, and once there, how do we settle and begin to build roots and a sense of belonging?”

‘Roots and Routes’ launches with ‘Home is What We Brought Along’, created by Aesha Tandy and Belema Art House on October 21, a fashion and poetry event inspired by

the journeys, memories and cultural inheritances carried across borders.

On October 22, the programme will be presenting a rehearsed reading of a new play, ‘Home Bittersweet Home’, written by Esosa herself and devised with Gabriel Adewusi, Leah Minto, Emmanuel Okoye and Tierra Porter.

This is a darkly comic new play about housing, belonging and survival in contemporary Ireland.

October 23 will see a double bill: a dance piece, ‘Rooted and Rising: A Dance of Two Selves’, by Favour Odusola, and ‘AfroLatIndierican’, by Tierra Porter, an immersive ritual and a theatrical performance.

October 24 brings together a range of artists for a multidisciplinary showcase of film, music, theatre comedy and spoken word in ‘Creating a Home’.

The closing event on October 25, ‘Open Table Presents What the Table Knows’, is an intimate participatory experience inviting audiences to gather through food, sound, conversation and the senses.

Esosa sent out a call to black Irish artists who may be interested in showcasing some of their work for the programme to respond to the theme of ‘Roots and Routes’ and put the programme together based on the submissions received.

For her, the best part is “being able to say yes to artists” and “seeing the work come together”.

She also enjoys the early planning stages, as she begins to see the work of artists start to come in.

Challenges would usually include editing and having to change plans, but “in everything, you learn and make a plan for next time.”

Esosa has recently premiered a new play, ‘Let Me In’, at the Dublin Theatre Festival, and is planning to take a break after the Black History Month celebrations to be ready for new adventures in 2027.

She would like to thank the Civic Theatre, particularly Donal Shiels and Niamh Honer, as well as Arts Council Ireland for their support.

‘Roots and Routes’ runs in the Civic Theatre from October 21 to 25; each event starts at 7pm.

For booking information, visit civictheatre.ie.