Podcasts from Baboró's 2024 Festival

If you missed our industry talk series at the 2024 festival, five audio recordings are now available to listen to you on your favourite podcast app.

This is our third season which includes a talk from Laureate na nÓg Patricia Forde, a discussion with innovative Flemish theatre makers and a panel conversion with artists developing inclusive arts practices.

Listen through the links below or subscribe to the Baboró podcast on Spotify, Apple or your preferred app.

S3 Ep1: Laureate na nÓg, Patricia Forde, Inaugural Lecture

Patricia Forde, Laureate na nÓg 2023 - 2026, delivered her inaugural laureate lecture at Baboró 2024, inspired by the theme she has chosen for her laureate, “Making It Up As We Go Along”. Patricia discussed the importance of reading in a child’s creative development and the importance of immersive play in fostering the skills required to read and write creatively.

Patricia writes in English and in Irish. She has had more than twenty books published to date. Her ambition as Laureate na nÓg is to encourage wild creativity – bringing children, writers and illustrators together to inspire one another to imagine new worlds. Baboró was thrilled to celebrate Patricia as Ireland's seventh Laureate na nÓg. Patricia has been at the forefront of the development of the arts in Galway and a co-founder, with Jean Parkinson, of Baboró in 1996.

Recorded on Friday, 18 October 2024 during Baboró International Arts Festival for Children, Galway.

Patricia Forde

Patricia writes in English and in Irish, with work ranging from picture books to speculative middle-grade fiction. She has written more than twenty books, along with plays, television series and, most recently, a film. Her ambition as Laureate na nÓg is to encourage wild creativity – bringing children, writers and illustrators together to inspire one another to imagine new worlds, and most of all to have fun along the way. Patricia Forde was announced as Ireland’s seventh Laureate na nÓg in May 2023, and will be in the role until 2026.

Laureate na nÓg

Laureate na nÓg is an initiative of the Arts Council. It is managed and delivered on Council’s behalf by Children’s Books Ireland, and also supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.

S3 Ep2: Space for All: Making Time for Inclusive Arts Practice

A truly inclusive development process takes time - one of our most precious commodities. While we are seeing positive steps towards the development of more inclusive arts practice, there are still many challenges and obstacles in the way of truly inclusive development, presentation and touring practices.

This panel of creatives discuss this practice, sharing the continuing challenges as well as learnings and small wins along the way.

Chaired by Dr Charlotte McIvor, University of Galway.

Eleanor Walsh

Eleanor Walsh (she/her) is a performer and an autism and disability advocate. She graduated from DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama with a BA in Drama (Performance). Recent credits include Yellow (Jody O’Neill), Daughter of God (Asylum Productions), What I (Don't) Know About Autism (Abbey Theatre), Home: Part One (Abbey Theatre) and Dear Ireland: Part One, These Four Walls by Sinéad Burke (Abbey Theatre). She also consults on Relaxed Performance and autistic representation and inclusion. Eleanor is a Youth Ambassador for AsIAm and is featured in Be Inspired! Young Irish People Changing the World by Sarah Webb, published by O'Brien Press.

Gráinne Pollak (Safe to Create)

Gráinne Pollak is Project Manager for Safe to Create, a Dignity at Work programme looking to transform workplace culture and practices, and to provide safe and respectful working conditions for those working in the Irish arts and creative sectors. A multilingual arts producer and project manager from Dublin, she holds an MA in Arts Administration and Cultural Policy from Goldsmiths, University of London and has produced new work and international tours for organisations, companies and festivals across Ireland and the UK, including ANU, Landmark Productions, MoLI, Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Rambert, the Gate Theatre, LIFT (London International Festival of Theatre) and Dublin Fringe Festival. She has worked in arts administration roles in venues across Dublin including Science Gallery International, Dublin Theatre Festival, the Abbey Theatre, the Ark and the National Concert Hall.

Jody O'Neill

Jody O'Neill is an autistic writer, performer and disability advocate. She was Theatre Artist-in-Residence at UCC and Cork Opera House from 2022-24. She is actively engaged in artist development, offering dramaturgical input, mentorship and practical support in developing work to other artists. Jody advises various organisations on accessibility and relaxed performance. She recently founded The Working Group, an online work and peer support space for neurodivergent artists. In 2024, Jody was a key partner in the inaugural Neuroconvergence event. In 2023, Jody co-produced Neurofestivity, a festival of neurodivergent art as part of her residency at UCC and Cork Opera House.

Kieran Coppinger (Blue Teapot)

Kieran Coppinger has been working on stage and screen for over 15 years. He was the lead in Sanctuary an award winning play and film that travelled the world. He credits include Lysander from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Deagan from Into The Badlands on TV. and He is currently in rehearsal with a new children’s play and will be leading inclusive theatre workshops in schools across Galway City and County

Niall Cleary (Graffiti Theatre)

Niall Cleary is the Artistic Director and CEO of Graffiti Theatre in Cork. For Graffiti he has recently directed: Grace by Jody O’Neill, Humans: A Robot Musical by John McCarthy, The Sleep that Ceased to Settle and This Girl Laughs, This Girl Cries, This Girl Does Nothing by Finegan Kruckemeyer. Niall has directed numerous productions for Youth Theatres including The National Youth Theatre 2023 (YTI/The Abbey). He has presented work at festivals including; Cork Midsummer, GIAF, Baboró, Origins NYC and Connections (National Theatre, London). He is Chair of TYAI and former chair of YTI. He is a founding board member of the Cork Theatre Collective.

Petal Pilley (Blue Teapot)

Petal Pilley has a lifetime of experience in theatre having grown up in a travelling theatre company touring extensively throughout Europe. In her role as Blue Teapot’s Artistic Director, she has extensive experience of commissioning new plays, theatre direction, selecting creative projects and people. Petal has clear vision, determination and flexibility in achieving goals and enjoys working in a collaborative team environment.

Dr Charlotte McIvor (Chair)

Dr Charlotte McIvor is a Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor in Drama and Theatre Studies at the University of Galway and a co-founder of Active* Consent, Ireland’s most recognized providers of consent education in secondary, third-level, further education, and professional training contexts nationally and internationally. Recent publications include Contemporary Irish Theatre: Histories and Theories (with Ian R. Walsh, 2024) as well as The Methuen Drama Handbook of Interculturalism and Performance (co-edited with Daphne P. Lei, 2020) and Interculturalism and Performance Now: New Directions? (co-edited with Jason King, 2018). Her wider research is focused on inclusive arts practices and theatre/performance for social change in Irish and international contexts.

S3 Ep3: Let's Talk About Theatre in Flanders

Baboró was delighted to present the work of two companies from the Flanders area of Belgium during the 2024 festival: Grown Ups by Compagnie Barbarie/BRONKS and The Pale Baron by Kopergietery. Performances for children made in Flanders are world renowned for their ambition, sophistication and innovation. They don’t shy away from difficult topics, they don’t patronise.

What makes Flemish work so unique? What can we in Ireland learn from this innovative approach? Hear about the rich theatre for young audiences scene in this area of Belgium from some of the leading makers.

With the generous support of Galway Culture Company, Creative Europe Desk Ireland and The Delegation of Flanders (Embassy of Belgium) to the UK and Ireland.

Amber Goethals (Compagnie Barbarie)

Amber is a founding member of Compagnie Barbarie, a Belgian theatre company known for its innovative and thought-provoking theatre productions. The company was founded in 2003 by a group of young theatre-makers who set out together in search of an idiosyncratic and uncompromising theatre language. Compagnie Barbarie creates performances that often combine humour and social issues. They are not afraid to tackle topics that are sometimes considered uncomfortable or controversial, and they often do so in a visually strong and sometimes absurd way. Their work targets both young audiences and adults, and their performances are characterised by a mixture of physical expression, text and image. Furthermore, Amber has been active as a drama teacher for more than 15 years. She taught at the DKO for several years, and is associated with Studio BRONKS, the educational wing of BRONKS. She gives workshops and creates performances with young people. Since 2020, Amber has been working at RITSC as a guest lecturer in the educational arts programme.

Geert Vandyck (BRONKS)

Geert began his career as a theatre-maker, working in both acting and directing. Over time, the organizational side of the arts became more prominent in his path and he managed both aspects for several years across various companies. This combination of skills eventually brought him to BRONKS, where as a member of the artistic team working closely with the artistic director Veerle Kerckhoven, he focuses on policy and vision development. Alongside this, he provides dramaturgical advice in BRONKS productions, coordinates artistic projects and workshops, and facilitates youth engagement in the arts.

Aoife Tunney (Creative Europe Desk Ireland)

Aoife is the Head of the Culture Office, Creative Europe Desk Ireland. Aoife has over 16 years’ experience as a Visual Arts Curator and Public Arts programmer & manager with in-depth knowledge of the Irish arts and culture sector. The Creative Europe Ireland Desk team work to make the Creative Europe programme more accessible to the Irish creative and cultural sectors. Through the Culture and MEDIA Offices they give advice, support and information on Creative Europe funding calls to the Irish audiovisual and cultural sectors.

Marilyn Gaughan Reddan (Galway Culture Company) Chair

Marilyn is an experienced cultural manager with over 20 years leadership experience in cultural and European programmes. She is currently the CEO of the Galway Culture Company and serves as a member of the panel of experts on European Capitals of Culture at the European Commission as well as a member of the European Urban Initiative pool of experts. Throughout her career, she has dedicated herself to ensuring the onward development of the cultural sector and developing projects and programmes that intertwine with sectors like research, tourism, education, science, business, technology, environmental sustainability, and both rural and urban development, as well as climate and health initiatives.

Zita Epenge (hetpaleis)

Zita is the Head of International Relations at hetpaleis.

Aislinn Ó hEocha (Baboró)

Aislinn is the Executive Artistic Director of Baboró. In this broad role she oversees all aspects of the organisation as well as curating the annual international festival in October - a multi-disciplinary festival of Irish and international theatre, dance, music and visual art in theatres, schools and galleries across Galway City and county. Baboró's year round arts in education and artist support programmes have expanded significantly under her stewardship. Aislinn is on the Committee of Theatre for Young Audiences Ireland (TYAI), a voluntary organisation which supports artists and advocates for the performance arts for children sector in Ireland.

S3 Ep4: Impact Report: Meitheal, a Branar Initiative

Across 2022 and 2023 Branar piloted Meitheal, a support initiative for artists and producers creating work for young audiences across performing arts disciplines.

Independent arts consultant, Janice McAdam, was engaged to evaluate the initiative from the beginning. This report distills the key findings of her evaluation, detailing the impact of the intervention of Meitheal in the performing arts for young audience sector across Ireland.

In this panel event, Janice presents the report and speaks with Meitheal alumni, theatre maker Miquel Barceló and producer Claire O’Neill about their experience of the initiative, with contributions from the Branar team.

Learn more about Meitheal here.

Janice McAdams

Janice McAdams has been helping individuals and organisations think strategically and engage meaningfully for over twenty years. Since qualifying as a coach in 2011, Janice also supports them to consider and manage change. Janice completed a Masters in Work and Organisational Behaviour at DCU in 2017, with a particular emphasis on change, and does research and stakeholder facilitation work and really enjoys using a simple but hugely effective method called World Café. Since starting her own business, Janice is proud to have worked with a range of clients across the public, private, not for profit and cultural sectors including most recently The Arts Council, Dublin Fringe Festival, Cork City Council, The Stinging Fly, Irish Writers Centre and The Ark. She also coaches individuals, supporting them to consider and advance their careers.

Miquel Barceló

Miquel Barceló is a theatre practitioner and musician with extensive experience in physical theatre, theatre for young audiences, street theatre, arts and disability and community arts. Trained at École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq, Paris, he works as a freelance artist and collaborates on an ongoing basis with Branar, Macnas and arts organisations for people with intellectual disabilities (ID) That’s Life. Miquel’s main focus is performing, composing music for theatre shows and researching new pedagogical approaches to theatre. He has worked extensively with youth ensembles and in the area of theatre for children in schools. Current work in development includes an immersive theatre experience exploring the legend of Captain George MacNamara.

Claire O'Neill

Claire has worked in a wide variety of managerial and production roles in the arts sector in the last 15 years. She spent five years as General Manager & Producer with THISISPOPBABY, working across a variety of dynamic projects & productions including producing Mark O'Halloran's award winning play Conversations After Sex (Dublin Theatre Festival 2021). Prior to this she was General Manager and Producer at Project Arts Centre from 2013 to 2017 where she produced Dublin Oldschool. She was Executive Producer on the first iteration of the Bram Stoker Festival as well as working closely with a variety of Project Artists including Brokentalkers, Junk Ensemble and Louise White. Claire was five years with Irish Theatre Institute from 2009 as General Manager and worked on a range of events including Information Toolbox, International Theatre Exchange as well as the Six in the Attic and Show in a Bag programmes.

S3 Ep5: Making Visual Art for Early Years

(This episode is best experienced while viewing Jane's presentation below)

Award-winning visual artist Jane Hayes discusses the challenges and opportunities of creating and presenting work for early years audiences. There are few exhibitions for this age group as the area of early years visual arts practice is developing in Ireland. Equally emergent is the inclusion of young children’s voices in the process.

Jane shares her innovative approaches to creating ambitious and playful visual art with and for early years children. Although Jane is a visual artist, she highlights how theatre for young audiences influences and drives her practice. Having recently toured her work, 'Sweet Home Sweet' (2023) nationally, Jane shares her experiences of touring and presenting visual art to a range of early years audiences in various contexts.

Jane Hayes is a visual artist making work with and for early years audiences. Working from Sample Studios, Cork, Jane uses digital imagery and installation to push the boundaries of non-participatory visual art for the very young. Inclusion of the child’s voice is central to her practice, and her approaches are greatly influenced by TYA. Jane holds a BA Honours in Painting from Edinburgh College of Art. and has received awards, including the Arts Council YPCE Artist Bursary (2023) and the Cork City Council Artist Bursary (2024). Her recent work, 'Sweet Home Sweet' (2023), commissioned by Sample Studios, toured nationally. She has been an Associate Artist with Baboró since 2023.