Storytelling Festival

                                                                                                                     Winter Storms at the Hostel

The festival is an annual event scheduled for the first weekend in September each year.

The hostel has self-catering accommodation for 42 guests but we actually set a maximum occupancy of around 36 guests for the festival -  Our aim is to make your stay at the hostel as comfortable as we can. 

Last year's festival was a true delight as usual and many of our guests will be returning again this year.

A number of our guests also book to attend Chuck & Nell's October Storytelling workshop each year. 

It is wise to book early for both events as spaces are always limited.

A recent press release from the Storytelling Festival Organiser, Anne Murray is as follows:

"A storytelling festival with a difference, set on the beautiful island of Cape Clear off the South West Coast

of Ireland. Blending the old with the new, each year five international storytellers perform in a weekend of

music song and guaranteed fun.

Now in its 16th year, the Cape Clear Storytelling Festival has a deserved renown in the world storytelling community. Besides introducing to Ireland the most accomplished tellers of several continents, Cape has also presented the best of Irish representatives of this most ancient of art forms to a world audience.

This year’s festival brings to our island shore a widely acclaimed line-up:

Edinburgh-born David Campbell is an internationally acclaimed performer. His repertoire and skills have been gathered from the story and ballad-rich North-East of Scotland, his career in BBC Radio, his friendship with the great traveller Storyteller Duncan Williamson and his immersion in the powerful poetry and tales of the Celtic pantheon. His most recently published collection of stories is Out of the Mouth of the Morning: Tales of the Celt: http://www.storytellerscotland.co.uk/

The superb Philadelphia-based Charlotte Blake Alston breathes life into traditional and contemporary stories from the African and African-American oral traditions. Her performances include stories, songs, raps, and poetry. She accompanies herself on a variety of traditional African instruments, including the kora,, which is most identified with the rich storytelling traditions of West Africa: http://www.charlotteblakealston.com/

Award-winning Suse Weisse lives in Potsdam near Berlin where she also works as a theatre director and actor. A much-loved performer, for the past ten years she has performed in many European countries, including Ireland, which she regularly visits under the auspices of the Goethe Institut. Her unique explorations of the classic European folktales proved a highlight of last year’s Farmleigh Festival of Story and Song: http://www.susseweisse.de/

This year’s featured Irish teller is Pat Speight. A firm Cape Clear favourite, Pat is one of Ireland’s best known storytellers. He mines a humorous vein in the Irish folklore tradition. A founder- member of the Cork Yarnspinners and Storytellers of Ireland/Aos Scéal Éireann, Pat has told in England, Scotland, Australia, Canada and the U.S. www.patspeight.com

Finally, our featured musician this year is County Down singer-songwriter Rosemary Woods. A winner of the West Cork International Song Contest (1996) and the Letterkenny International Song Contest (1991), Rosemary has recently performed at the Lincoln Centre in New York. Her crystal melodies underpin highly atmospheric and romantic narratives. She last played Cape Clear in 2003 and we are delighted to welcome her back.

Basking in the natural beauty of this island off the South west coast of Ireland, the festival celebrates the richness of local and international folklore, while drawing attention to the uniqueness of Cape’s Flora and fauna.

This year’s packed programme offers: Performances, workshops and story-swaps throughout the island.

The ever-popular guided Heritage Walk.

Special children’s events

Set dancing

Live music, Tall Tales and craic into the early hours

A selection of accolades:

“One mighty concoction! A crowd that the Islanders tell me filled every bed on the island, as well as dotting the campsite with 88 tents. The gathering gives standing ovations every evening and at the Final Sunday afternoon concert.” (Connections – the magazine of The American Ireland Fund –Summer 2001)

“Storytelling is a revitalised art form… and has adapted into a more modern interactive form of entertainment… this festival is about dispelling stereotypes, absorbing different points of view, and, above all, listening in rapture.” (The Examiner, August 2007)

In his book, “A Whole New Mind, Why Right-Brainers will Rule the World” (Riverhead Books), Daniel Pink rates Cape Clear in the top six storytelling festivals in the world. “Cape Clear Island International Storytelling Festival – held in Ireland’s southernmost island, this festival attracts an eclectic mix of storytellers from all over the world. Most of the stories are in English, but some are in Irish. 

Contact us: Festival Reservation Enquiries - Click here. 

Telephone:  National: 028 41968 ;  International: 00 353 28 41968