Author Archives: Fearghus
← Older posts Newer posts →‘The renaissance has begun’ – Arts and Culture in Waltham Forest
November 20, 2013Earlier this month, I took part in a networking evening for ‘creatives’ in Waltham Forest where I’ve lived since moving to London 20 years ago, having fallen in love with dance and with Pete. Hosted at the William Morris Gallery (deservedly and delightfully Art Fund Prize for Museum of the Year 2013), the event was a great opportunity to meet some of the many people in Waltham Forest who are involved in the cultural sector both locally and in (mostly London-based) national cultural institutions like the Royal Opera House and the Barbica read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentPorous
October 17, 2013Porous is a 20 minute piece I’ve been invited to make for Maiden Voyage as part of their Dance Exposed series that brings dance into public spaces. It will premiere officially in the Belfast Festival this weekend, with three performances on Saturday in the gallery space at the MAC and three further performances on Sunday in the foyer of the Ulster Museum.
I don’t often do commissions and I was curious to know what prompted Nicola Curry, Artistic Director of Maiden Voyage to invite me to make a piece for the company. read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentCure: Remembering discussion, food and flow at the Dublin Dance Festival
October 16, 2013As I continue to tour Cure, and try to extend the choreography in a way that invites people in to the work from different angles, it’s great to have this video reminder of the the supper we held at Fire Station Artist’s Studios before the premiere in the Dublin Dance Festival last May. read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentCure: Autumn tour – Ennis and Tralee
October 7, 2013I am always happy that the right people find their way to the performances (I don’t expect that it’s for everyone) but I do believe there are more people that could be the right people if only I could let them know that it will be ok. The challenge is that some of what people appreciate is exactly what would have put them off coming if they’d known it in advance. That post-show discussion reassured me that Cure had a resonance in Tralee, as it did in Ennis. And it’s that reassurance that makes the investment of time, resources and energy worthwhile, for however many people see it. read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentCure: performances in London and Cork
August 20, 2013I’ve wanted to write about my continuing experiences of performing Cure but it’s been difficult to think about resuming those experiences in a coherent blog post when they feel like they are still unfolding on many different levels. I performed … read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentCure: Things I’ve learned
August 20, 2013That I’m not alone
To ask for help
To trust instinct
To practice
To be disciplined
To work hard
To listen to when it’s time to ease off
To take a risk
To soften
To enjoy the power I can muster in my body
To access and harness the emotional energies, such as anger, that I usually avoid as negative
To keep learning
To honour what I’ve already learned read more…
Cure – Final rehearsals before the premiere
June 12, 2013It’s been an effort to make myself write about the final rehearsals and first public performances of Cure. It’s not that writing and reflection isn’t important but I, with the help of others, have put much energy, focus and attention into the embodiment of the work, particularly in the concentrated form of a performance, and writing about it doesn’t have the compelling necessity that dancing it does. Maybe the difference is obvious from that last phrase – to write about it (outside it, around it, at a remove) and to dance it (do it, be it, no space between). That doesn’t mean that I’m not happy that Cure might stimulate others to respond in a variety of ways that include talking and writing. read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentThe naked truth about dance
May 22, 2013The physical nakedness in parts of Cure might be related to a willingness to be bare, to be open, to show things as they are rather than hide. I think the choreographers who’ve contributed to the making of Cure all have that impulse to honesty and openness that makes them great performers and artists and they’ve each found ways to reveal and lay bare what they think matters about cure. And in some instances, that laying bare is literal, not because they required it of me, but that their idea was best expressed by being naked. read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentCure – Dublin Dance Festival – first reviews
May 17, 2013‘The lighting design is subtle and effective, and the soundtrack, which is occasionally unsettling, provides the perfect accompaniment to this performance. Fearghus Ó Conchúir is exceptional, a very talented performer….The piece was choreographed by a team of six, and there is a sense of the collaborative effort here. It is profoundly emotional, hopeful and thought-provoking, and is highly recommended.’ Una McMahon, entertainment.ie
‘A sequence of abstract meditations on the theme of recovery, bound together through the still centre that is Ó’Conchúir’s presence on stage, ‘Cure’ is not about the sum of its parts; rather, it’s about bringing attention to how necessary each of those individual, underlying parts are in the construction of a whole.’ Rachel Donnelly, DDF read more…
Posted in Blog | Leave a commentModul Dance: An interview about Tabernacle
April 27, 2013‘It’s about how you share power? How do I give [the performers] power to be able to make something great? How do I give people who are interested to do some movement, in dance, who want to move so that they understand my idea and take it and go in their own direction? It doesn’t have to all come back to me. And it’s the same with an audience, how do I give them some potential so that they see and respect what I offer but also they feel like they can go somewhere with that? read more…
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