ACR to broadcast epic poem based on Famine history
Athlone Community Radio presents the radio premiere broadcast of 'An Gorta Mór Bis/The Great Hunger' by Thomas Milan on Sunday, October 9th at 6pm (Irish time).
The narrative poem based on Irish experience of the Great Famine is brought to life by members of Athlone Little Theatre, who performed a staged reading of the work in June and again on Culture Night to great acclaim.
The broadcast can be heard, via Athlone Community Radio’s website, throughout Ireland, North America and beyond so the Irish diaspora and the descendants of the Famine in the United States, Canada and elsewhere will be able to listen together to the work live on Sunday, October 9 at 6pm.
This broadcast will also be streamed online by various Irish radio stations, as well as by Global Irish Radio in Chicago.
Members of Athlone Little Theatre brought the epic narrative poem to the stage for the first time on June 25th in the theatre where the author was in attendance. The 45-minute recording of this performance will be presented as part of the 90-minute broadcast.
The poem’s author is Thomas James Milan, a fourth generation Irish-American raised in Tacoma, Washington. The poem is a testimonial to those Irish who survived the Famine, to the estimated one million Irish who died, and to the more than a million who emigrated.
Also, the work is the result of Tom Milan’s search for the reasons for his great grandparents’ decision to leave Ireland for the United States in 1851.
Athlone Community Radio considers this a very unique and important work as it presents the Famine experience in an epic, narrative poetic form.
It is composed of 20 original poems, having 650 text lines presented in a rhymed structure. Listening to the poems, the audience will be able to accompany their ancestors through those long years to learn about the immense suffering endured during the Famine.
The poems relate the British Penal Laws imposed on the Irish, the potato blight, the countless evictions ordered during the long Famine - even in winter, the Irish mass emigration with its tragic consequences on family and Celtic culture, and the dangers of the months long Atlantic ship crossings.
It also looks at the English political leaders, the elite in Ireland and England, and the efforts to get the Irish to take the soup and change their religion.
After the poem’s performance there will be a discussion with Tom Milan, who is flying in from his home in Paris especially for the broadcast. He and presenter Philomena Murphy will also be joined by members of Athlone Little Theatre who performed the poem, and by local musician Liam Winnette, who will play the uilleann pipes live in the studio.
An audio contribution, concerning the famine evictions, from Dr Ciaran Reilly, a well-known Famine historian at Maynooth University, will also form part of this varied special broadcast.
Dr Reilly, commenting on the poem from a historical perspective, said: “The work has great imagery of place and experience.”
There will be an opportunity for audience participation. If listeners have a question or comment on the night, or in advance of the broadcast, they can text 087 99 55 884 or email philomenaacr@gmail.com.