What a pleasure and privilege to have shared an evening with the staff and members of Luton Irish Forum in their gleaming new building. A first class welcome, practical support and boundless enthusiasm for the project, all rooted in carefully prepared ground: a preliminary meeting, plenty of time to clarify each other's needs and constraints, officers easy to contact. Thanks in particular to Nicola and Noelette.
Donal had delivered a warmly received 'taster' of the show, targeted at members with an existing interest in Irish writing - who became ambassadors for the project and set about communicating the production to their friends and contacts. Word of mouth at its powerful best!
We played to a full hall. Some had come from beyond Northampton for the evening, others were quick to point out they were Italian, not Irish! Others again were local people who had never before had any connection with the Forum, but whose verdict was 'I didn't know what to expect...More of the same please!'
Chairman Frank Horan has a vision for raising the profile of cultural activities within the Forum's span of work, and inspiring new events are scheduled for the coming months. With their Journey to the Fifth Province under way we sense a future of arts, culture and immense vitality for the Forum and for the people of Luton no matter what their heritage.
'We have all had our spirits uplifted this evening...' Frank Horan, Chairman, Luton Irish Forum