DAY 1 - THE EMBASSY IN ROME

Our day 1 report comes from Liz McManus:

Wednesday the 4th June 2014

5am, Dublin airport, Here we are bleary-eyed and decidedly not bushy-tailed: six writers and Valerie, our intrepid guide, setting out on our great adventure.  Bill is arriving separately via Amsterdam. Three hours later we are negotiating a taxi, gathering up our bags and discussing the burning question as we travel to our hotel : to rehearse or not to rehearse.  In the end some do and others are already word perfect and don’t need to but we all scrub up well for our big night at the Irish embassy.

Ambassador Bobby McDonagh

Our Italian sister, Federica Sgaggio

And what a night it is!  The embassy is housed in a stunningly beautiful building, the Villa Spada, which used to be the Irish embassy to the Vatican but has been put to good use as the Irish embassy to Italy. The Ambassador and his wife overwhelm us with hospitality. The guests are a mixture of academics, arts practitioners, business people and old friends like John McCourt who runs the excellent James Joyce School in Trieste.

Sarah Cooney, Second Secretary, William Wall, writer, Valerie Bistany, Director of the Irish Writers' Centre

We all read magnificently as the only the Magnificent Seven can, The audience clap. Valerie opens proceedings with a neat explanation of what the IILE is all about,  Federica - looking like a film star from La Dolce Vita – gives an emotionally charged speech and then we all retire happily onto the terrace to drink and talk into the night.

Writer Mia Gallagher in the Villa Spada

Liz McManus, reading at the Villa Spada

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE IWC ON THE ITALY TRIP

Fourth year of Italo Irish Literature Exchange is celebrated by three publications

Next week (4–10 June) marks the fourth year of the Italo Irish Literature Exchange (IILE). Organised by the Irish Writers’ Centre and its Italian counterpart, ònoma, the IILE enables Irish and Italian writers to take part in readings, workshops, discussions, educational visits and other cultural events in both countries. This fourth year is significant in that it is the first time that publications will emerge as a result of the exchange:
30 May, marks the launch of Inkroci, a new online magazine that showcases works by the participating Irish authors
Ugo Guanda Editore will publish an Italian version of the works of Irish and Italian participants in book form (2015)
New Island Books will publish an English language version of the works of Irish and Italian participants in book form (2015)

The make-up of both the Irish and Italian groups is designed to showcase a mix of emergent and established writers in a range of genres, including novels, short stories, poetry, drama, screenplay, non-fiction and political satire. Among the themes to be discussed with Italian IILE writers and audiences will be the importance of place and identity; migration; the role of writers and writing in responding to the political and economic crises facing Italy and Ireland; the challenges and opportunities facing publishers and writers in both countries in the digital age; and the establishment of further cultural links between Ireland and Italy.

This year’s group includes: - Mia Gallagher - Fabio Bussotti - Sean Hardie - Gaja Cenciarelli - Afric McGlinchey - Francesca Melandri - Liz McManus - Giulio Mozzi - Noel Monahan - Ivano Porpora - Nuala Ní Chonchúir - Federica Sgaggio - William Wall - Gianpaolo Trevisi - Fabio Viola
There have been three visits to date under the IILE banner, two by Italian authors to Dublin (in 2011 and 2012) and one return visit by Irish authors to Verona (in 2012) with the support of Culture Ireland and the Istituto Italiano di Cultura – Dublino. The 2014 trip to Italy represents the return journey of the second incarnation of the IILE, a venture which was spearheaded by writer and former board member of the Irish Writers’ Centre, Catherine Dunne.

The itinerary begins in Rome with a welcome reception and readings in the Irish Embassy, then moves onto the town of Sant’Agata de’ Goti (Campagnia) to meet and exchange with the ònoma writers under the IILE banner. Then, the Irish writers will move onto Lugo and Bologna for events and cultural interchange with translators and other members of the literary society. We are truly delighted to take part in this year’s Italo Irish Literature Exchange (IILE) and are grateful to all of our funders, particularly Culture Ireland, for this opportunity.