The first virtual Imagine Arts Festival has drawn to a close with the team describing the results as 'phenomenal'.
‘Virtual festivalgoers’ from as far away as Japan tuned in to enjoy the 40 events, which were all showcased on www.imagineartsfestival.com with the festival reaching a total of 126,147 people.
The festival encompassed the John Dwyer Trad Weekend and Waterford Writers Weekend and ranged from poetry to art exhibitions, to music, author interviews, creative discussions, children’s author events, history and heritage, workshops and more.
As part of the Writers Weekend, Molly Twomey, from Lismore, was awarded the Waterford poetry prize with her heart-wrenching poem Ceres.
Absolutely over the moon 🌝 with all of the support and good wishes for winning the Waterford Poetry Prize today as part of @Wwritersweekend This is the written form of the poem if anyone wants to see it ❤️ with huge thanks again to @Colm_Keegan for his generous words 🌻 pic.twitter.com/eHbnUtgRrC
— Molly Twomey (@mollytwomey1) October 23, 2020
While acclaimed poet, playwright and performer Colm Keegan was commissioned to collaborate with local writers to write This is Waterford, a vibrant and contemporary literary work.
After a series of workshops with a wide range of Waterford residents, Keegan created the piece which consists of six long stanzas, one for each standing tower of the medieval walls.
It's described as a rousing review of Waterford old and new that speaks of us, and to us. It's performed here by Joe Meagher
Festival Manager Nora Boland said they had pre-recorded as much of the festival as possible:
“I have to say the interest levels, the engagement and the results have been incredible. Our online analytics show us that 70% of our audience was from all across Ireland, 16% from the US followed closely by the UK with the festival events also popular in France, Australia, Germany, Japan, Finland and Italy.
"In many ways, our festival has never been more successful in terms of audience reach. However, we also feel that the arts are best consumed in-person and we are looking forward to returning to in-person events in the future. ”
The videos of these events can be enjoyed online at www.imagineartsfestival.com for free until November 30th 2020.
