Cork has never Celt better
To mark the arrival of Bealtaine, the first days of summer as celebrated by our Celtic ancestors, an East Cork village is hosting a very special festival this year.
Running from 3-6 May, the May Sunday Festival 2024 is a unique weekend full of creativity and wonder taking place in the picturesque village of Killeagh and its surrounding woods.
The festival comprises a schedule of creative and fun events, workshops, and activities for all ages, inspired by Ireland’s Celtic roots.
Embracing nature, creativity, and local history, free and subsidised events include dawn chorus walks in the woods, Here comes the Sun! morning yoga, Cré Clay workshops, Dogsercise adventure trails for dogs, Imagination Station, children’s art workshops, wreathmaking, music and dancing, photo exhibits, and lots more fun for all the family.
“Bealtaine means the return of the light, and true to our Celtic roots, the May Sunday Festival kicks off with a procession led by stilt walkers from Greywoods Arts to Glenbower Woods for the fire-flame show,” says Jessica Bonenfant, Festival Organiser & Artistic Director at Greywood Arts in Killeagh.
Included in this year’s festival line-up, art installation On the Forest Floor will see Annie Tull’s multi-layered textile work with haunting depth and mystical whimsy exhibited in the woods, where the work was initially conceived.
The piece has just returned from exhibit in New York, and visitors to Glenbower Woods are invited to interact with the piece, pinning their experiences of the wood to the unique fabric.
Guided by Seanchaí Noelle Ni Ríagáin, an intergenerational storytelling workshop called When I was your Age will see older adults sharing their memories of childhood, while also learning from young children about their experiences today and hopes for the future, as part of the Age & Opportunity Bealtaine Hero Award.
Other events include a Meet the Maker fair, picnics and dancing in the woods, Seanchaí Yoga with children’s storytelling, live music in the village, and the GAA Healthy Clubs Family Fun Day.
Ms Bonenfant added: “The community of Killeagh welcomes everyone to visit and experience a super schedule of events in the woods to welcome the arrival of summer.”