Seamus Heaney receives a standing ovation at the National Concert Hall
Going to an event such as a reading by Seamus Heaney, you know you’re in for something wonderful. Yet I wasn’t quite prepared for the array of emotions that would be stirred, or the scope of poetry that would be shared.
The first lady of political broadcasting in Ireland Olivia O’Leary led with a heartfelt introduction to “Seamus Heaney, who has written the music of my time.” Her memories from the 1970´s brought to life the colourful past of a poet intrigued by and respectful of journalism, news and politics; a poet whose life has been dedicated to measuring and addressing the life, love, loss, wit and ambiguity of Ireland and Irish identity.
Seamus opened with a reading from his Beowulf translation which he described as befitting the surroundings and “should be able to bounce to the back of the hall and then to the other back of the hall, where we have an audience also, I realise.” We were plummeted into Hrothgar´s hall, enjoying the song of the minstrel while implicit danger surrounds the castle walls. We were jolted back with “Now go read it. It’s still available”.
After the crowd stopped laughing, Seamus explained “Imagination has the strength to push back against the reality. There’s no real need to address the gloom. We just need to be aware of what’s out there; it’s awareness that shapes our poetry.” Evocative words in any era.
Seamus continued with Mossborn: Sunlight and then Oysters, which conveyed “that halfway house between freedom and obligation.” The next poem showed the “pleasure, resistance and fortification” of music even in troubled times, while one of my favourites, Harvest Bow, cajoled tears from the audience. Seamus described the format of a sestina for Two Lorries, before adding “you’ll not notice it, all being well, but I assure you it’s there”.
Before reading the mystical Seeing Things, Part Three, Seamus declared a love for how something solid and credible can have a hallucinatory quality about it. Staring into the pipes of the organ in the National Concert Hall while listening to his poetry, I understood exactly what he meant. Other poems included The Lift, Midnight Anvil, The Skunk, St Kevin and the Blackbird, Miracle and Tate’s Avenue.
Throughout his performance, Seamus´s voice was tranquil and firm and his stage presence mesmerizing. He remained lively, witty and engaging. But most inspiring was Seamus´s honesty, affection and humility. He admitted after at one point “Sorry, I’m very nervous here” and another time he turned his back on the audience at the front to read to the crowds behind him, eventually finishing the night in a sideways stance “to fit you all in.” He even thanked the crowd “for listening so intently.” Unsurprisingly, Seamus Heaney received a standing ovation from the crowd. Not one person in the packed out auditorium remained seated.
A touching dedication ended the evening with the Lord Mayor´s address, thanking Seamus for being “a weaver of words and a dreamer of dreams”. He accepted a limited edition WB Yeats book with gratitude and a parting shot; “It’s called Last Poems and Two Plays. I hope it’s not ominous.”
I hope, however, that the attendance and audience reaction is a sign of things to come for the rest of Dublin Writers Festival.
Special thanks to Laughlin McKee for all photographs used in this post.
Labels: seamus heaney
posted by Elizabeth Murray at
23:45
3 Comments:
Nice write up. Yes, it was an unforgetable performance. Heaney was in top form - as usual he had a great rapport with his audience, he always manages to minimise the distance between the poet and the listener. At the beginning O'Leary mentioned a remark by Heaney that poetry helps people not only to enjot life but to endure it. I certainly find that sustenance in Heaney's work. There's a steadiness in it. (And a steadiness in the man, a man how comes across as at peace with life). In poems like 'St Kevin and the Blackbird' and 'Keeping Going' there's a bearing up, a way to face the strain. Heaney also talked about the Ghosts that come more frequently into our mental lives as we grow older. I find Heaney's poetry takes me to a place where it is easier to cope with the burden that is placed on us by our cruelly limited understanding of the mystery of life. And that place is all the more rewarding and fuller when the poet brings you there himself. An amazing evening.
@Tomaltach SEamus certainly had a way of pulling us close and letting us see into the mysteries of his own life. I thought O´Leary´s address was very appropriate. I was struck by how humble Seamus was.It was definitely an honour to listen to him. I´m glad you enjoyed the evening.
As I read about this evening I can't help thinking of how valuable a first hand account will be to future readers who would have loved to have been there--to people reading this record 10 years or 100 years from now. This beautifully written account is all the more valuable as an historical record of the event, but also for its personal comments from attendees.
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