Three days of invigorating discussions and ideas at Other Voices Cardigan festival
26-28 October 2023
Mwldan 2 (Main Auditorium), Mwldan, Aberteifi/Cardigan
- Wales’ First Minister to open the festival and join in the discussion
- A compelling line-up of artists, policymakers, writers and educators consider current challenges and new prospects
Other Voices Cardigan presents Clebran - Flowing Tides, a series of discussions and performances at Mwldan 26-28 October 2023.
Clebran's exciting third edition brings together a variety of compelling voices across different disciplines to consider the flowing tides of past, present, and future to ask how our communities can address unprecedented challenges, from the local to the global.
Curated in partnership with the Irish event and podcast Ireland’s Edge, Clebran grows from the friendship between the two small coastal towns of Dingle - the hometown of Other Voices - and Cardigan, places that share a deep appreciation for culture and community, and show how things look different from the edge.
On Thursday 26 October, special guest, First Minister of Wales Mark Drakeford, returns to Cardigan for a second year to open the festival ahead of the first Clebran sessions, followed by a very special performance from ‘master of the Welsh triple harp’ Cerys Hafana.
Writer and broadcaster Jon Gower will begin the programme with words on the relationship between Ireland and Wales, echoing his latest book The Turning Tide, which offered a ‘biography of the Irish Sea’. Acclaimed triple harpist Cerys Hafana, language historian Dr John Gallagher, and former Welsh teacher Wayne Howard, who recently featured in the S4C docu-series, Teulu, Dad a Fi (Family, Dad and Me), will then join Jon to discuss their ‘Language Journeys’, sharing stories of learning and speaking Irish and Welsh, and how these languages have enriched their lives.
First Minister Mark Drakeford and Deirdre de Bhailís, an expert in sustainable rural development and General Manager of the Dingle Hub in West Kerry, Ireland will join Christopher Kissane for ‘Small Places, Big Ideas’, exploring how seemingly remote places can become powerful examples of progressive change.
On Friday 27 October, journalist and broadcaster Damian Kerlin hosts ‘Creating Space: Queer Voices in the Creative Sector’, speaking with writer-director Tracy Spottiswoode and award-winning playwright and screenwriter Daf James, whose drama ‘Lost Boys and Fairies’ is coming soon to BBC1, about telling compelling queer stories, the far ranging impact and influence of the LGBTQIA+ community on the creative industries, and the increasing importance of the arts and arts spaces to society.
On Saturday 28 October ‘Don't Stop (Thinking About Tomorrow)’ will explore the perils of short-term thinking, and ask what can be done to protect the interests of future generations. Christopher Kissane will be joined by BBC Future’s Richard Fisher – author of The Long View: Why We Need to Transform How the World Sees Times – and psychologist Dr Sharon Lambert from University College Cork, a participant in Ireland’s ‘Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use’.
This year’s Clebran draws to a close on Saturday afternoon with ‘The Stories We Tell’, a panel of acclaimed writers from Wales and Ireland who will discuss our storytelling traditions and the stories we choose to tell. Booker-nominated Sophie Mackintosh, author of The Water Cure and Cursed Bread is joined by playwright CN Smith and National Poet of Wales Hanan Issa in a discussion hosted by Christopher Kissane.
First Minister Mark Drakeford said:
“We’re delighted to be hosting the Other Voices festival again in West Wales this year. It’s a celebration of age-old connections and deep cultural understandings between Wales and Ireland, as we seek to further strengthen our relationship through the Wales-Ireland Shared Statement.
“Our two countries have produced some of the world’s most talented performers and if last year’s line-up was anything to go by, then we’re in for a spine-tingling, awe inspiring treat once again this year.”
The full Clebran schedule will be announced in the coming weeks.
An Other Voices Cardigan wristband grants you unlimited access to ALL Clebran discussions. Earlybird Other Voices Cardigan wristbands are now on sale at the exceptional value of £25. Entrance to all Other Voices Cardigan events are on a first come first served basis so please arrive early to avoid disappointment.
Please see: www.othervoices.ie/events/other-voices-cardigan-2023 for tickets and further information.
Other Voices Cardigan is produced by South Wind Blows in partnership with Mwldan and Triongl and made possible thanks to the support and investment of Welsh Government and The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.
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Editors notes:
Please contact Helena Turgel at helena@mwldan.co.uk +44 (0)1239 622 403 for further details.
CLEBRAN SPEAKER BIOS AND PHOTOS
Mwldan:
Mwldan is an independent Arts Centre and cinema based in Cardigan. The venue presents a multi-artform live programme and screens around 3000 films and live broadcasts annually. A major producing venue, Mwldan is behind collaborations such as Catrin Finch and Seckou Keita, and also produces the Cardigan Castle Summer Events in partnership with Cardigan Castle. In 2017 Mwldan started the record label bendigedig in partnership with ARC music productions, operating a 360-degree model of artist management, agenting, producing, releasing, PR and marketing. A not-for-profit registered charity and social enterprise, the organisation has an annual turnover of £1.7 million (pre-Covid) and employs a staff team of 19.
@TheatrMwldan
Triongl:
Triongl is a TV and Film production company established in 2017 by Nora Ostler and Alec Spiteri and joined by Gethin Scourfield in 2018. All three are experienced producers with a track record of producing high quality, award-winning content. They will be documenting ‘Other Voices/Lleisiau Eraill’ for an hour's special edition for later broadcast on S4C and RTÉ.
@triongl_tv
Ireland’s Edge:
Ireland’s Edge began in 2015 evolving from an ambition to explore Ireland's future in a changing global landscape from a unique vantage point in Dingle, at the very western tip of Ireland. Ireland’s Edge promotes the idea that collaboration, discussion, lending and borrowing can build on our collective knowledge, placing culture, creativity and community at the very heart of what we do.
Listen: Ireland’s Edge - The Podcast
Watch: YouTube
Twitter: @irelandsedge