Have you a scare for Samhain?
Katie O'Keeffe
Do you have a story scary enough to wake the Dragon of Shandon from her slumber in time for Halloween? Is there a story that has been passed down to you that you re visit every spooky season?
Cork Community Art Link are calling out for members of the public from Cork or further afield to send an audio recording of them telling a ghost story. The stories can be ones they have heard, read, or made up.
The stories will be part of a sound piece to be heard around the city on Halloween. All ages are encouraged to submit and continue the aural tradition of scéalaíocht (storytelling) as part of the Samhain Stories project.
Cork Community Art Link have continued to work and create as much as possible throughout the pandemic and its restrictions, largely operating and communicating remotely.
The group have missed working directly with communities, as that is the foundation of their work, but they have nonetheless worked on some fantastic projects during the period, such as the Dragon of Shandon 2021, a mural for Traveller Visibility Group's HQ, and an installation in Bishop Lucey Park, the latter of which we collected approximately 40 voice notes to create an audio piece, which has inspired the Samhain Stories project.
Last year with many treasured Halloween traditions unable to take place as a result of the Covid restrictions, including the much-loved Dragon of Shandon street parade. The group along with Meitheal Mara, created a river installation between Popes Quay and Kyrl's Quay by the Shandon footbridge of a skeleton boat installation which garnered much attention throughout the Halloween season in Cork.
Audio Submissions with a maximum length of three minutes should be sent through Facebook Messenger (@CCArtLink), by email to info@corkcommunityartlink.com, or by WhatsApp to 087-3435494. All languages are welcome. The deadline for submissions is 10 October.
Cork Community Art Link are also part of Cork Culture Night and will be hosting visitors to their Lido workshop to enjoy the creations from parades and projects from years gone by.
Stay tuned by visiting our social media and website in the lead up to Culture Night 2021! It takes place at The Lido, 71 Watercourse Road, Blackpool from 5-7pm on Culture Night on 17 September.
View the full Cork City Culture Night programme on www.culturenightcork.ie in advance, and keeping up with latest news via @corkcityarts on Facebook and Twitter, and on instagram.com/culturenightcorkcity, particularly as new guidelines may lead to changes. Join in the conversation online with #CorkCultureNight and #ComeTogetherAgain.
Cork City Culture Night is brought to you by the Arts Council in partnership with Cork City Council and proudly supported by media partners the Cork Independent, CorkBeo.ie and Cork’s Red FM.