Seamus Heaney HomePlace

Description

• Seamus Heaney Exhibition

  Seamus Heaney’s deep connections with the place and its people are explored in an exhibition across two floors, featuring dozens of personal stories, photographs and artefacts – from his school desk to his school satchel – as well as the voice of the poet himself reading his own work.

  A representation of his attic study, which includes items from the original room in Dublin and original manuscripts, transports visitors back to 1995 when Seamus Heaney, on holiday in Greece, remained unaware that he had been awarded the highest of all literary accolades – the Nobel Prize in Literature – while messages of congratulations flooded in from around the world.

  In this space, a film of reactions to the award, including from the man himself, his wife and children and leading cultural figures, recalls the significance of the announcement and the ceremony.

  As visitors make their journey through his life and literature, they’ll encounter the objects, events, people, words, landscapes which sparked his imagination, and receive an insight into the building blocks, tools and methods Heaney employed as he embarked on the poetic process.

  There’s also the opportunity to get creative. Make a paper kite, play with words, pick up a pen and write, draw or colour. Dress up like a blacksmith or a Boston Fireman, or simply sit down with a book.

• Helicon Performance Space

  An intimate 190-seater performance space, the Helicon, provides the venue for music, song, drama, poetry and readings in an events programme which takes Seamus Heaney and his work as its inspiration. With music, readings, drama and much more in this dedicated performance space, there’s something to inspire everyone at Seamus Heaney HomePlace.