2020 is the year of Galway

GALWAY - An ancient port center perched on the west coast of Ireland, Galway is a bohemian city devoted to traditional music, poetry and good food.
It is a fun and vibrant destination, not to be missed according to the Lonely Planet guide. But this year it is above all the European capital of culture: from February 2 it will host almost two thousand events along the streets, theaters, pubs and squares including concerts, shows, readings, conferences, exhibitions and artistic installations. The events, almost all free of charge, will range from art to theater, from music to sport, from literature to cinema, from dance to gastronomy and all performances will have the theme of landscape, language and migration.
"Galway, with its ancient landscapes and its ancient stories, its diversity of people and its many languages" commented Helen Marriage, artistic director of the project "is an extraordinary place, where artists have always played a role guide. In this time of challenges in which Ireland has been projected at the center of the debate on what it means to be European "continues the director" Galway 2020 invites a community of artists - the prophets of the future - to show us the reality of things and to help us make sense of our world ». All scheduled events are a tribute to Irish traditions, the Gaelic language and the extraordinary landscape of Galway, a city surrounded by the seductive beauty of Connemara and where the coast designed by the strength of the Atlantic is made of jagged cliffs, islets off the beaches sandy and unspoiled, deep estuaries and sheltered inlets where there are marinas and delightful towns. Here the wind blows strongly on the cliffs of the Wild Atlantic Way, a fascinating and romantic scenic road that winds along the coast loved by the poet Yeats and which Oscar Wilde called "of wild beauty".
The official opening ceremony is impressive: it starts on 2 February from Clifden, a village in Connemara about seventy kilometers from Galway, and animates 6 towns on the coast for a week with shows related to Celtic traditions and culture, ending in Galway on February 8. Then until April the first phase of this special year takes place under the name of Imbolc, the ancient Irish festival that marks the transition from winter to spring. Each season will open with a spectacular fire festival, an element used in the Irish tradition to celebrate the arrival of each new cycle. Among the most anticipated shows the "Savage Beauty", a performance with light effects by the Finnish artist Kari Kola, which on March 17, the day of Saint Patrick patron of Ireland, will illuminate the mountains of Connemara, behind Galway. From April 25 to May 3, the Music for Galway organization will propose the first edition of "Cellissimo", the cello festival with a rich and diverse program. There is also anticipation for the shows of the Galway Druid Theater Company, which will perform in the villages of Connemara and in the beautiful and rugged Aran islands. The tour will end in July and culminate with the shows in the Mick Lally Theater in Galway. Also in July, streets and squares will be invaded by the Arts Festival with theatrical and musical events, with dances and exhibitions; on August 8 "Wires Crossed" will gather 400 tightrope walkers who will cross the Corrib River on a steel rope.
Throughout the year, the Irish city, deeply linked to its Celtic past, also displays its artistic treasures: the collegiate church of San Nicola, built in 1320; the Lynch Castle, a fortified building dating back to the sixteenth century; the Galway City Museum with ancient sculptures and a collection of historical boats; and the Spanish Arch which recalls the ancient fortifications in Claddagh, where the Corrib river plunges into the Atlantic.
For information on all events: www.galway2020.ie and irlanda.com