Actress Venetia Bowe has made a splash on the Irish stage in recent years with a number of high profile roles, notably her memorable starring turn in the stage version of Louise O'Neill's book Asking For It.
This month, she's part of the ensemble presenting the DruidGregory project, which tours six of Lady Gregory's one-act plays, performed by a company of 12 actors and musicians, and directed by Druid founder Garry Hynes, to fourteen outdoor venues across Galway.
We asked Venetia for her choice cultural picks...
MUSIC
Nina Simone. Any song. Any time. Growing up, my mother used to always play her in the house. During lockdown I would play Sinnerman almost every day and just ‘shake’ and thrash about the place – the best medicine! Her voice has such a magical quality, it really does have the power to ‘put a spell on you’ (!).
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GIG
I was lucky enough to go to a very special gig last Sunday at the Whale Theatre in Greystones – it was a beautifully intimate session of classical chamber music featuring pianist Svetlana Rudenko and the Belenus String Quartet. The programme included the premiere of Nocturne, a newly composed piece by the musical extraordinaire Tim Doyle who happens to be playing some of his many instruments in DruidGregory (the production I’m currently performing in).
TV
Michaela Coel’s I May Destroy You. All I will say is watch it.
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PLAY
My dad bought me a ticket to see Fiona Shaw in Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days in the Abbey (directed by Deborah Warner). It was one of the first pieces of professional theatre I went to and I’ll never forget it. You could say it marked a pivitol moment in my theatrical pursuit! Everything about the production was so powerful - its simplicity yet metciculous attention to detail, her utterly electrictrifying performance as Winnie and of course the play itself. It has that glorius balance of dark wry humour with pure devastion.
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PODCAST
A podcast that I’ve recently been recommending to everyone is Elizabeth Day’s How to Fail, in which she reframes the whole perception of ‘failure’ suggesting that ‘learning how to fail is actually learning how to succeed better’. It’s so uplifting, honest, raw and out right hilarious! She has an incredidle line-up of guests from Deborah Frances-White to Mo Gawdat to Gloria Steinhem. I’ve also just started reading her book ‘How to Fail’ (which she wrote subsequently) and it’s divine!
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BOOK
There’s an incredible Japanese writer called Banana Yoshimoto (her name makes me love her all the more). My favourite of hers being Kitchen. I love her quirky take on everyday life, unusual yet completely lovable characters and how she blurs banal reality with surreal dreamlike moments.
ART
Edward Hopper (the 20th Century American painter) is an artist I go back to time and time again. His paintings for me evoke a medative, reflective state in which I find a deep solace. So many of his paintings in particular ‘Morning Sun’ resonate strongly with specific moments in my life.
TECH
I have to admit I’m still very much in the dark when it comes to that whole world. I’m constantly being slagged for not having converted to a smartphone yet!
FILM
Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name. I’ve never seen a film that captures so beautifully and sensually first love, sexual curiosity and that tender age of being on the cusp of adulthood. Such moving performaces from all of the cast. I remember going to see it, alone, on a dreary Winter’s afternoon in the Lighthouse Cinema (Smithfield) and being utterly transported to Southern Italy - you can feel the heat of the sun and smell the ripe fruit hanging from the trees (it’s delicious!).
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THE NEXT BIG THING...
The magnificent, queenly Nigerian born, West Yorkshire based artist and fashion photographer, Ruth Ginika Ossai. I love her use of bold vibrant colours that are emblematic of her stunning portraits which are deeply rooted in her Nigerian heritage influenced by Nollywood -many of which feature members of her own family.
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Find out more about the DruidGregory project here.
