Date: 15 Oct 2025
Vital Voices: An Evening of Intercultural Expression Through Word, Story & Song
A Creative Ireland project supported by Donegal County Council & ChangeMakers Donegal
Tues 21st Oct 8pm // Buncrana Cinema, Inishowen. Admission: FREE tickets required via Buncrana Cinema
Vital Voices is bringing together groundbreaking artists from across Ireland and beyond poets, playwrights, performers, and storytellers, who are shaping culture and conversation through their work. This unique gathering creates an intimate space where diverse voices, disciplines, and lived experiences collide to offer fresh perspectives on identity, belonging, and the world we’re building together.
Audiences can expect powerful poetry, musical depth, bold storytelling, and a celebration of intercultural creativity. Rooted in community and shaped by movement, memory, and myth, Vital Voices is a shared moment of connection, listening and transformation.
This project has been facilitated by the Donegal County Council Arts Office, ChangeMakers Donegal supported by Creative Ireland/Éire Ildánach.
Featuring:
Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin – A Dubliner brought up speaking Irish, he’s a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist whose melodies are deeply rooted in the sean-nós tradition. His debut solo album The Deepest Breath was released in November 2022 to widespread critical acclaim. He won two 2023 RTÉ Folk Awards for Best Folk Singer and Best Original Folk Track. A highly skilled musician, Sean Nos singer and also a political activist, the People Before Profit Candidate for Dublin North Inner City. For ten years Eoghan has been a social activist building campaigns on housing, environmental issues, fighting racism, championing those in Direct Provision, workers’ rights and Palestine solidarity.
Aziz Abushark is a Palestinian/Irish musician whose work blends traditional Palestinian influences with contemporary sounds, creating music that resonates with both heritage and modern styles. Similar to his father Asad, Aziz weaves his passion for storytelling through sound.
Dr Asad Abushark - is a Palestinian academic, writer, poet and human rights advocate. A professor of Translation and Linguistics at Gaza University and spokesperson for the University Teachers’ Association in Palestine, he has long been active in international campaigns for justice and the right of return. Now based in Ireland, Dr. Abushark lectures, writes, and speaks widely on Palestinian history, culture, and human rights.
Denise Blake is a poet, writer, and creative writing facilitator, with two poetry collections published by Summer Palace Press (Take a Deep Breath and How to Spin Without Getting Dizzy). She regularly facilitates workshops in schools and with adults, and has read at venues such as the Irish Writers’ Centre, O’Bhéal, and Over the Edge. A popular contributor to RTÉ Radio 1’s Sunday Miscellany, her work features in five of its anthologies.She holds an MA in Creative Writing and has been published widely, including in This Landscape’s Fierce Embrace. Her translation work appears in Selected Poems Seán Ó Ríordáin. Denise is also the literary curator of the Donegal Bay and Bluestacks Festival.
Keith Corcoran – A Donegal native seanchaí (traditional storyteller), author, and international tour guide. He collects and shares Irish legends, folklore, and stories, which are featured in his books such as Mysteries and Legends of Donegal and Finding Fairy Mysteries in Donegal. Corcoran also leads authentic small-group tours in Ireland and promotes sustainable tourism through his work with local schools and a temperate rainforest project.
Anne Omodara – An emerging poet from Nigeria based in Donegal. Anne has performed her work across Donegal including the Donegal Mela 2024 and the Intercultural Cabaret at An Grianán Theatre in Letterkenny.
EMBRACE project - a cross-border cultural collaboration developed by the North West Cultural Partnership, in partnership with Inishowen Development Partnership, and funded by the International Fund for Ireland.The project focuses on building lasting, meaningful connections between communities across the border through creativity and shared cultural experiences.
