Mother Tongues Festival – Civic Theatre hosts arts festival
By Tara McCoy
SINCE their founding in 2017, the Mother Tongues organisation has involved more than 1,000 people in their mission to spread a positive message about the beauty of a multilingual society.
This weekend the organisation will be bringing their message to South Dublin with their second annual festival - which aims to celebrate the benefits of bilingualism while offering advice and support for parents, education professionals, healthcare professionals, businesses and anyone else who may be struggling with some of the challenges associated with it.
The festival will explore and celebrate Irelands rich artistic and cultural depth through a series of events and arts programmes that will be taking place on Saturday, March 2 and Sunday, March 3 at The Civic Theatre, RuaRed and the County Library in Tallaght, incorporating elements of contemporary theatre, performance, dance, music, literature and visual arts.
With the second edition of the festival promising to be even bigger and better than last years, the goal of the weekend is to immerse attendees in the world of language through a series of colourful and diverse performances as well as interactive activities in over 20 different languages.
The weekends activities are open to all ages and will include craft making, scavenger hunts, rap writing workshops and a wide range of multi-lingual interactive sessions from a variety of hosts including the Irish Architecture Foundation and the Chester Beatty Library.
The festival, which is funded by the Arts Council, will also include the world premiere of a composition from Irish musician Séan MacErlaine that will accompany an interactive reading and illustration of Eoin Colfer’s graphic novel ‘Illegal’. The award-winning ensemble Yurodny will also be taking part, putting a contemporary twist on traditional music from around the world.
The Mother Tongues Organization takes part in various year-round efforts encouraging others to look at language as a way to connect and celebrate our diversity instead of seeing it as a barrier.
More information on Mother Tongues as well as a complete list of free workshops, talks and screenings being featured in the festival this weekend can be found HERE.
