Niall de Burca made his annual appearance at Clongowes’ James Joyce Library on the evening of Wednesday the 13th of November. Niall is one of Ireland’s foremost performance storytellers with a huge following due to his uncanny ability to mesmerize his audience with his energetic portrayals of ghosts and ghouls, heroes and heroines. Niall’s busy schedule includes frequent visits to schools and theatres where he shares his unique gift and he has been an annual visitor to Clongowes since 2017. It is impossible to predict what fantastic tale Niall de Burca will weave, his curious and colourful stories tend to be set in some faraway, exotic places inspired by his world travels. Niall is very passionate about the art of storytelling which comes across very strongly during his powerful performances. He is incredible to watch in action and the boys are always at the edge of their seats.
During his visit last week, Niall told a tale of the time he was invited to perform at a jail in Hawaii. He leapt from one side of the room to the other acting out the protagonist’s journey whilst the boys were drawn into the story, captivated by his theatrics. Niall’s energetic improvisation and spontaneity make the experience even more special for his audience. He followed on with the story of Cú Chulainn, a mythical Irish hero and warrior. At one point he crouched down to re-enact a part of the story, the room became very quiet, Niall suddenly leapt up into the air startling the boys who roared with laughter at the dramatics of it all!
Overall, the evening was a great success and the Elements group departed the library happily chatting between themselves. We can’t wait to hear what fantastical tales Niall will tell us next time he comes to visit.
