Well I know I have been featuring things that have been planned in Barmouth quite heavily, but I have to report that we’ve had a very stimulating and enjoyable 3 days now that they have all happened. Thanks must be made to Bernard Barnes, whose creative vision made it all happen.
On Monday 18th August the two poetry workshops at St Johns Hall Gallery, kindly funded by National Theatre Wales TEAM, went well and produced good work from some experienced writers and others that had never had a go at poetry before. That was followed by a very warm cosy ‘cakey’ evening in the Aber House cafe, which has relatively recently opened and is a very civilised place to have a refreshment break. Mary Howell read so well and put life into the dialogue with her different accents, from her novel Murielle’s Angel. My selection of poems seemed to go down well and even though an adult audience, I was pleased to get the audience participation to Ref Rap.
Tuesday was going to be a day of rest, but we ended up going up to the Gallery again to offer assistance with last minute preparations for the Open Day on the Wednesday and I found myself ironing on stage (fabric to make the clothes for giant puppets) and helping out with the tidy up. Followed in the evening by Music Night at the Last Inn, hosted so effectively by the talented Barry Lim (who also danced the Chinese Lion the following day).
Then Wednesday saw us tour through the town, in a magical procession and I got to take lots of photos of it.
That was followed by a very varied programme of entertainment, of which I was a part, at the Gallery from 1-6pm (first image) and then a musical evening. All in all a very enjoyable and stimulating few days.
Bernard Young Poet 