Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival, 13-22 Oct

Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival In Solidarity: An International Celebration of Arts and Human Rights 13-22 October 2023

“In a world where human rightscontinue to be under attack,Dublin Arts and Human RightsFestival sets out to celebrate the people who have stood up for them around the world and throughout history, and highlight the role artists can play in promoting a more just society.”

– Kevin Courtney,Irish Times

We are thrilled to announce that the programme for the fifth annual Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival has been launched. Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality and Front Line Defenders, alongside a rangeof partners, presentthe international DublinArts and Human Rights Festival from 13 to 22 October, 2023. The festivalfeatures exciting and innovative eventsthat promote equality, human rights, and diversity through the arts. It takes place in Dublin, Kerry, Donegal, and Cork, with artists and speakers in attendance from Ireland, Finland,Sweden, Italy, Spain,Portugal, the Netherlands, Greece, Belgium, Cyprus, Romania, Bulgaria, and Ukraine. The aim of the festival is to showcase and highlight the extraordinary work of human rights defenders in Ireland and around the world, past and present, and the role of the arts and artists in promoting human rights today.

The artistic curator for the festival is Mary Moynihan, Artistic Director, Smashing Times, and the human rights curator is Laura O’Leary, International Events and Promotions Coordinator, Front Line Defenders. The festival is supported by The Arts Council of Ireland and is a hybrid programme delivered over 10 days. It hosts an exciting blend of events happening in personand online, reaching audiences locally, nationally, and internationally. The festival comprises 21 live performances, six exhibitions, nine talks or panel discussions, four installations, three workshops, three film screenings, two partner exchanges, one podcast, and one radio documentary. Events are taking place across 17 different venues, involving 29 different organisations nationwide. There is something for everyone interested in the arts for equality, human rights, and diversity. Join us to illuminate stories of courage and inspiration and to share stories of ordinary people who stand up for human rights. We bear witness to and remember the past, explore the present, and celebrate the future, linking with equality, human rights, and diversity.

Key live performances include States of Independence, a live multidisciplinary performance featuring indoor and outdoor elements inspired by the Decade of Centenaries to today, with pieces written by Mary Moynihanand Féilim James;Memorial Monologues, a monologueshow featuring the stories of human rights defenders who are commemorated at the Memorial to Human Rights Defenders in the Iveagh Gardens, written by Mary Moynihan; and Theatre in Palm Changemaker Festival within a Festival, a seriesof talks, workshops and live performances featuring presentations and work by artists in the Theatre in Palm project.

Key exhibitions include Eternal Rebels, a multidisciplinary, by artists Mary Moynihan, Amna Walayat and Hina Khan featuring visual art, film, photography and poetry and is a visual and poetic reflection on the stories of change-makers in Irish history from the Decadeof Centenaries to today; Remember the Defenders: A Photo Exhibition, highlighting 10 Human Rights Defenders around the world who have done courageous work protecting human rights;and The Art of Change, featuring photography and poetry artworks and portraits of Human Rights Defenders around the world.

Included below is a selectionof events from the festival, with links to read more and book.Click here for the full programme of events on the official web page of the Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival 2023.

Eternal Rebels Changemakers Exhibition

The Pumphouse, DublinPort, 13 October– 22 October, 2023, @10am – 6pm, Mon – Sun

A multidisciplinary exhibition by artists Mary Moynihan, Amna Walayat, and Hina Khan.The exhibition features visual art, film, photography, and poetry, and is a visual and poetic reflection on the storiesof changemakers in Irish history from the Decade of Centenaries to today. Changemaker stories include Eva Gore-Booth, poet and trade unionist; Hanna Sheehy Skeffington, feminist, pacifist, and one of Ireland’s foremost suffragettes; and James Connolly, Irish revolutionary and trade union leader. The exhibition takes place daily in The Pumphouse, Dublin Port for the entire duration of the Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival(13-22 October), from 10am-6pm. No booking necessary. Full detailshere.

States of Independence: Live Multidisciplinary Performance

The Pumphouse, DublinPort, 13, 14, 18, 20, 21, 22 October, 2023 @ 7:30pm– 9pm

This multidisciplinary performance by Mary Moynihan, Féilim James, and Michael McCabe, is inspired by stories of changemaker activists and artists from the Decade of Centenaries, combining theatre, film screenings, poetry, film projections, and live music.A key part of the performance is the premiere of the play Sole Flower, Spidered Soul by up-and-coming writer Féilim James, inspired by the life stories of Lucia Joyce, a dancer, and her father, the writer James Joyce. This event takes place in The Pumphouse, DublinPort on 13, 14, 18, 20, 21, 22 October,2023, at 7:30pm.For more information and booking, please click the date of your choosing here.

Love Story

Rua Red, South Dublin Arts Centre, Runninguntil 11 November,2023 @ 10am – 6pm, Mon – Sat

A seven-channel video installation by Candice Breitz,interrogating the mechanicsof identification and the conditions under which empathy is produced. The work is basedon the personal narratives of six individuals who have fled theircountries in responseto a range of oppressive conditions, and features Alec Baldwin and JulianneMoore. The video installation is currently being held in Rua Red, South

Dublin Arts Centre, from 10am-6pm, Mondayto Saturday, until November 11, 2023. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Paradise Lost and Found

Old Barracks Heritage Centre,Cahersiveen, Co Kerry,1 August – 31 October2023, @ 10am – 4pm, Mon – Sun

Paradise Lost and Found is a visual art, film, photography, and poetry exhibition presented for States of Independence: A Celebration of Changemakers. The exhibition by three artists, Mary Moynihan, Hina Khan, and Amna Walayat, reflects on a search for peace and ways to hold on to the courage to carry on and let ourselves shine. The exhibition runs daily in the Old Barracks Heritage Centre, Cahersiveen, Co Kerry, from 10am-4pm, Monday to Sunday, until 31 October, 2023. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Courageous Women: A Celebration of Changemakers

The Tearooms, Glebe House, Co Donegal, 1 August – 31 October,2023, @ 11am – 4pm, Mon – Sun

This film installation by Mary Moynihanis on display in The Tearooms, Glebe House, Co Donegal,

from Mondayto Sunday at 11am-4pm. It runs between1 August and 31 October,2023. The film is an imagined re-creation of moments from the lives of women in Irish history from 1916 to 1923. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Human RightsDefenders Changemakers Exhibition

DLR Mill Theatre, Dublin,3 October – 11 November, 2023, @ 11am – 4pm (closed 1.30-2.30pm), Tues – Sat

This multidisciplinary exhibition, featuring photography, poetry, and story, is a visual and poetical reflection on the stories of changemaker human rights defenders today. The exhibition runs from 3 October – 11 November, 2023, Tuesday to Saturday only, 11am-4pm (closed 1.30-2.30pm) at the DLR Mill Theatre, Dundrum. The exhibition is a collaboration between Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality and Front Line Defenders. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Courageous Women: A Celebration of Changemakers

Rathfarnham Castle,Dublin, 4 October– 5 November, 2023, @ 10am – 4.30pm, Mon – Sun

Courageous Women is a film installation by Mary Moynihanon display in Rathfarnham Castle,Dublin, from 4 October to 5 November 2023, shown Monday to Sunday from 10am-4:30pm. The film is an imagined re-creation of moments from the lives of women in Irish history from 1916 to 1923. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Mary Moynihan in Conversation with Sally Hayden

Online, 13 – 22 October,2023

Writer and theatre and film-maker Mary Moynihan interviews journalist and authorSally Hayden on her new book, My Fourth Time, We Drowned. View online between from 12pm on 13 October until 5pm on 22 October, 2023. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival Launch: In Solidarity – An International Celebration of Arts and Rights

The Pumphouse, DublinPort, 13 October,2023 @ 6pm – 9pm

Launch of the 2023 Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival and the flagship Eternal Rebels Exhibition, followed by a premiere performance of States of Independence, taking place on Friday 13 October, 2023, 6pm, at the Pumphouse, Dublin Port. Guest speakers are Olive Moore, Interim Director, Front Line Defenders; Mary Moynihan, writer, poet, theatre and film-maker, and Artistic Director of Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality, with guest artist performances. More details and free booking here.

An Afternoon with the Changemaker: Theatre in Palm Festival Within a Festival

The Pumphouse, DublinPort, 15 October,2023 @ 2pm – 5pm

This event features a talk, workshop, and live performances hosted by Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality and presented by a range of creative arts organisations from the European project Theatre in Palm. Come along to The Pumphouse, Dublin Port, at 2pm on 15 October. More details and booking here.

An Evening with the Changemaker: Theatre in Palm Festival Within a Festival

The Pumphouse, DublinPort, 15 October,2023 @ 7pm – 10pm

With two live performances and a post-show panel discussion, An Evening with the Changemaker: Theatre in Palm Festivalwithin a Festivalis hosted by Smashing Times International Centrefor the Arts andEquality and presented by creative arts organisations from the Europeanproject Theatre in Palm. Join us at The Pumphouse, Dublin Port, at 7pm on 15 October. More details and booking here.

Love the Earth: Changemakers Storytelling for Ages 5 to 12

DLR Lexicon Black Box Studio,16 October, 2023 @ 12pm – 1:30pm

Live performance of Love the Earth by Mary Moynihan, a changemaker storytelling performance for ages 5 to 12, adapted from GOAL’s Global Citizenship Education Resource. Presented by GOAL NextGen and Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equalityin the DLR Lexicon Black Box Studio at 12 noon on 16 October. More details and booking here.

Voices From Ukraine: War, Film, and Human Rights

The Pumphouse, Dublin Port, October17, 2023 @ 7pm – 9pm

A panel discussion with the organisers of Docudays UA, a UkrainianInternational Human Rights Documentary Film Festival, on presenting a festival while at war. Tribute will be paid to Ukrainian writer

Victoria Amelina, who spoke passionately at the 2022 Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival about bringing the war in Ukraine to a close, but who sadly passed away earlier this year as a result of a missile strike in Ukraine. This event occurs in The Pumphouse, Dublin Port, on October 17 at 7pm. More details and free booking here.

Remember the Defenders: A Photo Exhibition

EPIC Irish Emigration Museum, Dublin 1, 18 – 21 October,2023

This exhibition takes place from 18-21 October,10am-5pm each day, in EPIC Irish Emigration Museum, Dublin 1. It highlights 10 Human RightsDefenders around the world who have done courageous work protecting human rights. Presented by Front Line Defenders. No booking necessary. Full details here.

Memorial Monologues

Iveagh Gardens, Dublin,19 – 22 October, 2023 @1pm

A live performance taking place at 1pm on 19, 20, 21, and 22 October, in the Iveagh Gardens, Dublin, featuring the stories of human rights defenders who are commemorated at the Memorial to Human Rights Defenders in the gardens. Presented by Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality and Front Line Defenders. More details and booking here.

Open Mic Night

Crowbar Terrace, Temple Bar, 20 October,2023 @ 7pm – 11pm

Open Mic Night takes place in Crowbar Terrace,Temple Bar on 20 October,7-11pm. This

event featurespoetry and music relating to themes of social issues,human rights, social justice, and solidarity. Presented by Front Line Defenders. No booking necessary. Full details here.

The Curious Case of Albert Cashier:Lincoln’s ‘Lady’ Soldier

DLR Mill Theatre, Dundrum, 28 October,2023 @ 8pm – 10:30 pm

Quintessence Theatrepresent their thrilling new historical play titled The CuriousCase of Albert Cashier: Lincoln’s ‘Lady’ Soldier, based on the extraordinary true story of the Irish Transgender American War Hero, Albert D.J. Cashier. The performance takes place in the DLR Mill Theatre, Dundrum, on 28 October, 2023 at 8pm. More details and booking here.