Festival Artists
Aneta Dortová is a dance artist, choreographer, and musician based in Galway, Limerick, and Pilsen. She holds an MA in Contemporary Dance Performance from the Irish World Academy, University of Limerick. Her artistic practice centres on the relationship between live music and dance and the intersection of traditional and contemporary dance. Aneta finds joy in collaborating with artists of all disciplines, firmly believing in the transformative power of dance and its potential to create connections within and between communities.
William Troy is a guitarist and composer residing in Maynooth. He trained in classical guitar in the Laois School of Music and has completed a Masters degree in Composition and Creative Music Practice at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance in the University of Limerick. His compositions focus mainly on creating soundscapes which combine real-world and artificial elements.
Sibéal Davitt is a dance artist, performer and teacher from Dublin. Her style of dance is influenced by contemporary, classical and Irish traditional sean-nós dance, having trained in all styles from an early age. In 2019 Sibéal was one of five recipients of An Chomhairle Ealaíon’s inaugural Markievicz award. She was Dance Ireland’s Associate Artist in 2020 and used these supports to develop new works. Her acclaimed solo dance show Minseach (she-goat) premiered at Dublin Fringe Festival in 2021 and is currently touring venues around Ireland. In May 2024 she was commissioned by CoisCéim Dance Theatre and Waterways Ireland to make a short site specific work entitled Bench#3 which premiered at Dublin Dance Festival.
Úna Monaghan is a harper, composer, researcher and sound artist. She collaborates, improvises and performs with poets, visual artists, computers, writers, musicians, and others. Úna has held artist residencies at the Centre Culturel Irlandais Paris, the Institute for the Public Life of Arts and Ideas Montréal, and Atlantic Music Festival, Maine, USA. She performs solo with harp and electronics and with new sextet Stone Drawn Circles. She has released two albums of her compositions, most recently Aonaracht, for solo traditional musicians and electronics. Úna received the inaugural Liam O’Flynn Award from the Arts Council of Ireland and the National Concert Hall Dublin, and held the Rosamund Harding Research Fellowship in Music at NewnhamCollege, University of Cambridge from 2016-2019. She is a lecturer in Sound and Music at Queen’s University Belfast, where her research examines the intersections between Irish traditional music, experimental music practices, improvisation and interactive technologies.
Orla Shannon is 21 and has been dancing since she was three years old. Now set to enter her final year of college at the Irish World Academy in the University of Limerick, she is thrilled to showcase the skills she has acquired over the last 3 years. Orla is delighted to be performing at the festival this year and hopes everyone enjoys her presentation.
Orielle O'Donnell, age 19, has been dancing since the age of 3. Born and raised in the heart of Limerick City, she decided to pursue her passion for Irish dance further at university and is currently a BA student at the Irish World Academy. Orielle has had the opportunity to perform numerous times throughout her career and is excited to share some of the pieces she has been working on.
Aisha Assad 20 year old Aisha was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She has been dancing for eight years and decided to pursue her love for performing into third level education. She is now a student at the Irish World Academy doing a BA in Irish Dance, getting the opportunity to participate in numerous events such as 'Tradition and Beyond', providing the audience with a glimpse of her personality through her dancing.
Mary McGuiggan is a traditional step dancer from Bellaghy, a rural community, on the banks of the river Bann. She has been dancing since she was 4 years old. She has danced competitively at local, national and All Ireland level and has had a career as a dance teacher at primary, secondary and competition level. Her greatest love is to encourage everyone to dance for joy and fun, building confidence as well as learning a new skill.
Joe McGuiggan was born and reared in County Derry. He now resides in County Donegal. He has been dancing since the age of five years in the old traditional style of the region. In his adult years he has been influenced and inspired by the old style Irish step dancers from the area and elsewhere in Ireland. He has also been inspired by the traditional step dancing of Scotland. He has performed at Festivals in Ireland including Fleadh Cheoil na h'Eireann, and the North Atlantic Fiddle Convention in Derry. In 2016 he performed at the Celtic Colours Festival in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.
Anne MacRury hails from South Uist. She enjoyed Highland dancing as a child and always loved ceilidhs and traditional music. She moved to Strabane after becoming a Vet and years later it was in Derry she discovered Scottish Step Dance at the Imbolc Festival! She also met Joe and Mary there and joined Joe's dance classes in Culturlan. She became a regular attendee at the Ceolas Summer School in South Uist where Frank was her first tutor. Anne appreciates the social cultural and health aspects of music and dance and now enjoys Set dancing and learning the accordion.
Paraig O’Brien is both a traditional and classically trained violin player. As a TTCT qualified music teacher he taught fiddle for many years in Creggan in Derry with all age groups. He has worked with award winning music groups, dance teams and choirs at local, National and International levels. As an Occupational Therapist, he has witnessed the transformative power of music and the arts in rebuilding people’s lives and forging new friendships. He loves sailing around Derry, Donegal and the Scottish Isles, countryside which is steeped in the evidence and stories of Colmcille’s rich life.
Connie McKelvey and Ann Connaghan are acclaimed tutors and performers of the Donegal Two Hand Dances. They are from the Glenties and Ardara areas of South West Donegal. They have been dancing from an early age, and Connie learned some of the dances from his mother. They have taught and performed at festivals and events on a regular basis and were part of the Heel to Toe project showcasing music, song, and dance from various regions of Ireland. They both appeared recently on TG4’s Ceol ón Earagail, a tribute to Donegal Fiddle Players Jimmy and Vincent Campbell.
Fin Moore is a piper, born & bred. He plays the Highland pipes, Border pipes and Scottish Small Pipes. He also makes pipes alongside his father, Hamish. They have hand made over 1100 sets of pipes which are played all over the world and appear on dozens of recordings. Fin has gained a great reputation as a teacher, and has been involved in many teaching events in Scotland, North America and Europe. He has performed with many groups, including The Vale of Atholl Juvenile Band, Dannsa, a traditional dance group based in the Highlands, The Highland Pipe Quartet Seudan quartet featuring Smallpipes and Uilleann pipes in the key of B and A Border Pipe, and Fiddle duo with Sarah Hoy. He also enjoys step dancing and can often be seen giving a step or two.
Tara Ní Chonacháin is a highly regarded fiddle player from Glenties in South West Donegal and has been playing in the traditional music scene for over 25 years. She tours and plays regularly as a freelance musician and has featured in TV, radio, and CD recordings. She is a founding member of the all female fiddle group SíFiddlers. In 2011, Tara released a highly acclaimed album with fellow Donegal fiddler Derek McGinley, named The Far Side of the Glen. It focused on the fiddle style and repertoire of South West Donegal. She has a Masters Degree in Irish Traditional Music Performance at the University of Limerick.
Frank McConnell was born and brought up in Glasgow of a family with strong Hebridean ties. He originally trained with the choreographer Royston Maldoom at the Arts in Fife, cultivating his deep interest in creativity and the arts. He later went onto found three of Scotland’s significant dance companies – Scottish Dance Theatre, Dannsa and plan B. He has regularly performed and collaborated with Communicado Theatre Co but it is principally known as a choreographer, having created work for Northern Stage (England), Le Groupe de la Place Royale (Canada), and the National Opera in Holland. In 1994 he became dancer-in-residence for Ross and Cromarty District Council and today is a highly respected artist throughout the UK. Frank has an international reputation for his expertise in traditional Scottish Step-Dancing, Old Scotch Reels and Scotland’s earlier dance heritage.
Brenda O’Callaghan, originally from Co. Roscommon, has a background in traditional Irish dance both as a dancer and a teacher. Now based in Co. Sligo, she has been involved in the teaching of old-style step dancing for many years both locally and at summer schools and festivals throughout Ireland. As a founder member of the Cos Cos Dance Group in 2000, Brenda has performed at numerous events and is the cornerstone of the Cos Cos Sean Nós Dance Festival held in May each year.
Rikki van den Berg's expressionistic landscapes capture the raw, emotional essence of nature. These, mostly small works, distil the beauty and intensity of the environment into vibrant, dynamic brushstrokes. Focusing on expressive interpretations rather than precise details, she invites the viewer to deeply connect with the mood and atmosphere of each scene, experiencing the landscape in a more personal and evocative way.
Harry McMahon’s work is underlined by a masterly knowledge of form and colour which translates the landscape as visual poetry. In his own words, “Always there was the Foyle, the stillness of Inishowen on the horizon and the rushing, fleeting glimpses of nearby shoreline”. In this series of paintings, Harry investigates and observes the Foyle from the eastern shore, travelling by train, capturing the moment and then the next. His approach to painting is sculptural on a delicate level. His work morphs between impressionistic, abstract and realistic form, tuning into his experience and memory, and always from a playful, curious perspective.