StAnza, Scotland’s International Poetry Festival, is celebrating the Gaelic language through a number of events and readings at this year’s annual festival.
StAnza’s 2020 programme includes a Gaelic Writers Showcase, with readings from Deborah Moffatt, Eòghan Stiùbhart, Sandy NicDhomhnaill Jones and Niall O’Gallagher, celebrating the breadth of talent writing in Gaelic today.
The Green Plain is a collection of Gaelic sea poetry to mark 2020 as the Year of Coasts and Waters, which StAnza is proud to showcase as a digital installation. The festival has commissioned a poem from Marion F Morrison (Marion F NicIlleMhoire) which will appear in Gaelic and English in the Coast Lines installation and Marcas Mac an Tuairneir is reading in the Wigtown Showcase, as the Gaelic poem runner up for last year’s Wigtown Poetry Prize.
StAnza will also welcome Edinburgh based poet and songwriter Robbie MacLeòid, who writes in English and Gaelic as this year’s poet in residence.
The festival takes place from 4-8 March in St Andrews.
Sandy (Sandaidh) NicDhòmhnaill Jones is a prizewinning Gaelic poet, and was appointed Bàrd a’ Chomainn Ghàidhealaich (Gaelic Crowned Bard) for 2019-2020 at the Royal National Mòd Glasgow in October 2019. Her collection of Gaelic poetry and songs Crotal Ruadh—Red Lichen (Acair, 2016) won second prize in the Donald Meek Award for Gaelic Literature. She previously won the Wigtown Gaelic Poetry Prize in 2013, and the Irish/Scots Gaelic Poetry Prize Choirnéil Uí Néill in 2014. She is at work on her second poetry collection. Sandy is a long-standing supporter of the Royal National Mòd, and was awarded the Oban Times Gold Medal in 2017. She has won various Mòd competitions for singing, clàrsach, composing and choral arrangements, and is a former conductor of the London Gaelic Choir.
Eòghan Stiùbhart is a teacher, broadcaster and shinty player. A Gaelic speaker proud of his Lewis and Skye roots, he was brought up in various manses in Cumbernauld, Strathmore and Inverness, giving him a wide experience of Scotland, Scots and Gaelic. In recent years he has become an advocate and campaigner for Mental Health awareness amongst men and young people. As a poet he has received prizes and various commendations for his work, which is both traditional and modern in style, mixing nature imagery and decolonisation with love and death. He was the runner up at the Dòmhnall Meek Award in 2017 for his as yet unpublished debut collection Beum-sgeithe.
Reviewing Niall O’Gallagher’s first collection in the Herald, Aonghas MacNeacail wrote: ‘Gaelic poetry welcomes an exciting new (this time essentially urban) voice’. Completed with the help of a New Writers Award from the Scottish Book Trust / Gaelic Books Council, Beatha Ùr (Clàr, 2013) was followed by Suain nan Trì Latha (Clàr, 2016), which was acclaimed in Scotland and Ireland for its use of classical Gaelic metres to write modern love poems. Writing in Comhar, Alan Titley remarked, ‘I don’t know if any other poet in our lifetime has crossed the causeway between the old and the new so ably and so honestly’. In 2019 Niall was named Bàrd Baile Ghlaschu, the city of Glasgow’s first Gaelic laureate.
Deborah Moffatt is from Vermont and settled in Fife in 1982, after several years of working in Latin America. She writes in Gaelic and English, and has published collections of poetry in both languages, including Eating Thistles (Smokestack Books, 2018) and Dàin nan Dùil (CLÀR, 2018). Her poems have been widely published in journals and anthologies, including Poems of the Decade (2011, Faber). She has won a number of prizes for her poetry, and has twice won both the Wigtown Poetry Competition (Gaelic section) and the MacDonald of Sleat Poetry Prize. She has also worked as a journalist, a dancer and a musician.
Marion F Morrison (Marion F NicIlleMhoire) was born in Barra and raised in Glasgow. She earned an MA and an MLitt at Glasgow University and was a teacher in Glasgow, Daliburgh, South Uist and Benbecula. In 2017 she won the New Writers Award from the Scottish Book Trust and Gaelic Books Council. Her collection Cause of Our Joy, Adhbhar ar Sòlais, gained second prize for the Donald Meek Award in 2018.
Marcas Mac an Tuairneir works in Gaelic and English and is an award-winning writer across genres, including poetry, prose, songwriting and journalism. He has published two poetry collections, Deò (Gracenote, 2013) and Lus na Tùise’ (Bradan, 2016), as well as the pamphlet beul-fo-bhonn / heelster-gowdie, co-authored with Stuart A. Paterson (Tapsalteerie, 2017). He was the recipient of the Wigtown Gaelic Poetry Prize in 2017 and his two full-length plays won the Stornoway Gazette Trophy at the Royal National Mòd. His debut novel Cuairteagan will be published in 2020 by Acair, and his third collection Dùileach and an expanded version of beul-fo-bhonn / heelster-gowdie will appear with Evertype.
Robbie MacLeòid is a poet and songwriter living in Edinburgh, with strong ties to the Isle of Barra. He writes and performs in both Gaelic and English. In gaelic, his work tends to take the form of short lyric poetry, and songs; in English, he tends to write spoken word pieces. His work has appeared in publications such as 404 Ink and STEALL, and he has been a featured performer at events such as Inky Fingers and Loud Poets. He was recently commissioned for the Year of Young People as a songwriter by Fèisean nan Gàidheal; his song ‘Beò an Dòchas’ was the centrepiece of their 2018 Blas concert, where it was sung by over 700 school children. Robbie is currently finishing a PhD, specialising in medieval gaelic literature, at the University of Glasgow, where he also teaches 20th century gaelic poetry.
Festival Director Eleanor Livingstone said: ‘We’re delighted our 2020 programme includes such a fascinating focus on the Gaelic language and culture and we look forward to welcoming our Gaelic speaking poets to perform at StAnza. The festival traditionally has a strong international focus and this year’s programme is no different with a fantastic line-up of acclaimed poets from both here in Scotland and all around the world.’
Paul Bush OBE, director of events at VisitScotland, added: ‘We are delighted to be supporting StAnza as part of Year of Coasts and Waters 2020. Scotland offers the perfect stage to showcase our Gaelic language and heritage and this year’s festival in St Andrews will offer audiences a diverse range of voices to enjoy.’
Viccy Adams, literature officer, Creative Scotland said: ‘Bringing exciting voices from around the world to Fife’s doorstep to celebrate and explore poetry is at the heart of StAnza. StAnza presents fantastic opportunities for Scottish readers and writers to be strengthened and inspired by the work of award winning writers and translators from all over the world.’
StAnza is one of the top poetry festivals in the UK, famous for its friendly atmosphere and international focus. Over five days more than 100 readings, performances, discussions, poetry inspired installations and exhibitions and other cross-media performances will take place in a range of atmospheric venues in and around the historic and lively town of St Andrews, Scotland.
Tickets are on sale HERE, along with further details.
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