Tipperary festival comes to a close with a great sense of renewed community

The 7th edition of Clonmel Applefest has come to a close and one can’t but feel that Clonmel is stronger and happier for having lived through four days of vibrant community events, participative activities and captivating entertainment, all rooted around the theme of FOOD.

This year, the festival featured a selection of exciting events and many opportunities for locals and visitors to immerse themselves in the essence of Harvest, the highlight of which was the annual flagship Harvest Fair which took place for the first time at Kickham Plaza. Under a kind sun, the fair brought out large swathe of families and friends to sample the assortment of quality food trucks, arts and crafts stalls, community booths, and sculptural exhibits including Gerardine Wisdom’s lovely rush figures and Con Traas’s vintage Massey Ferguson. Central to the day, the North Tipp Instant Dissidence Dance Company presented an original dance performance under the title ‘dancing in the Orchard’, which featured a humorous and energetic version of apple pressing performed by four joyous young dancers under the eyes of an entranced multigenerational audience. The popular Bake-off was back with chef Barbara Russell and cooking instructor Carmel Phillips adjudicating 15 entrants for taste, flavour, presentation and consistency. Three winners under junior and senior categories were announced and presented with prizes.

Continuing on the food theme, the demonstration workshop by Antje Huth from Cahir’s Ballybrado Farm was booked to full capacity with every participants bringing home a Sourdough starter and equipped with the determination to bake their own bread.

Other highlights of the week-end include the much-anticipated book launch of The Elders of Clonmel Part II, hosted by Clonmel’s Mayor, Michael Murphy, celebrating the life stories of key older citizens of Clonmel and which will be serialised in this paper later in the year.

Storytelling and Spoken Word enthusiasts were treated to two special events at Baker’s Bar: the Clonmel Story Slam, hosted by Joe Whelan, was once again at full capacity featuring novice and experienced storytellers captivating the audience with surprising personal tales. The Burning Cave Spoken Word Cabaret had its second outing as closing event of the festival with a curated first half and an open second half, blending spoken word with soundscapes by Eoin Hally and featuring personal writing by local artists, performers and writers..

The festival’s commitment to environmental stewardship was best demonstrated by a poignant illustrated talk by ornithologist and environmental activist Seán Ronayne of RTE’s ‘Birdsong’, who shared his journeys amongst birds at Clonmel’s Main Guard. Unfortunately the complementary Birdwatch Ireland walk which was to take place on Sunday 29th September had to be cancelled due to an unfavourable weather warning.

Following on last year’s band-in-residence experiment and adding an international flavour to the festival, Applefest hosted the Johanna-Adele Jüssi trio from Norway for 4 full days. Hailing originally from Estonia, Jüssi’s unique musical style on the fiddle and poised delivery were heard in full action with seven interventions at various locations over the four days. This included a soaring performance as part of a World Music Double Bill at O’Keeffe’s Bar in conjunction with local band Sun Merchant leaving the audience spellbound. Jüssi’s band also performed at the first ever Food, Wine & Music Soirée at The Hub on O’Connell where attendees and staff enjoyed a delightful evening of conviviality compered by local woman Marie-Claire Heffernan.

SUCCESSFUL YEAR
All in all a very successful year for the Clonmel Applefest whose director Theresia Guschlbauer would like to acknowledge funding from the Arts Council of Ireland, Tipperary Council, the HSE/National Lottery fund, Creative Ireland, and the ETB Reach scheme. “The Festival would not exist without funding and the vital contribution of our local sponsors Camida, Artisan Frames, Clonmel Credit Union, Scott Ryan Solicitors and Westgate Dental. The generous in-kind support and trust of host venues Bakers Bar, The Hub, The OPW, The Apple Farm, O’Keeffe’s Bar and Raheen College without whom we could not do this is also crucial, as well as the ongoing enthusiastic support of the Applefest committee, board, support team and volunteers who give of their time above the call of duty and make Applefest into a vibrant and sustainable event that can be enjoyed by the communities of Clonmel and further afield.”