Baboró 2024

This installation of bright, bold, colourful textile tapestries and 3D shapes explores success and failure, as well as the need for approval and love in an increasingly digital world.

Using a range of techniques including tapestry, embroidery, crochet and manipulated machine knitting, Laura Angell invites us into a world of symbols, omens and lucky charms that she calls on to quell the anxieties of this world that can become like Little Monsters roaming inside our heads.

The exhibition will also feature bargello tapestries created by Galway children. Thanks to a Creative Ireland's Creative Communities grant, Baboró’s Outreach Projects Manager and artist Laura Angelo hosted bargello stitching workshops for children aged 10+ years in Ballybane, Westside and Galway City libraries as well as in ARD Resource Centre (Doughiska). The childrens’ stunning work will enhance this exhibition.

Mon - Sat Opening Hours 10am - 17pm / Closed Wed 16 October
Sun Opening Hours 12pm - 17pm
Sun 20 11am October Audio Described Touch Tour

For more details please see: Little Monsters

A mountain of discarded wrapping. A lonely child with an active imagination. It's often the cardboard boxes, not the gifts inside, that provide the most fun. Is the true gift the joy that can come from the imagination?

This story reverses the idea that it is the wrapping paper, cardboard boxes and ribbons that should be discarded and reveals that playfulness, creativity and imagination are the best gifts.

The Gift celebrates the art of play, taking ordinary objects and making them extraordinary and magical.

Grace, written by Jody O'Neill, tells the story of a girl who has a relationship with her father where no words are needed. In fact, Grace doesn't use words to speak at all. When her father dies suddenly, Grace needs to find a new way to communicate. This exciting new production explores the universal themes of grief and communication as Grace and her father invite you into the multisensory landscape of Grace's world.

Produced in association with Cork Opera House.

Supported by Baboró and The Abbey Theatre.All performances are relaxed and contain creatively-embedded access including captions.

What do a toddler and your average world leader have in common? Do some presidents throw fits in supermarket aisles? Or scream furiously until they get their own way?

In BullyBully two world leaders meet in no man's land. What follows is an awkward encounter between two childish yet powerful adults who gradually get used to each other and eventually learn to meet in the middle.

This is a madcap musical about childish grown-up men featuring funny quarrels, songs, a bit of bickering and, eventually, a happy ending.

Grown-ups work. And children play. Or they go to school. Or they sleep. While grown-ups have to continue working. In the living room. On their computers. Once they've cleaned the kitchen.

Yet what do grown-ups really do while the children are at school? Do they put the world to rights? Do they have a nap? Or do they mess things up? Do they really have everything under control? Or is it up to the children to clean up later?

An absurd, tragic horror-comedy about the ups and downs of being a grown-up.

Chotto Desh, meaning 'small homeland', draws on Akram Khan's unique quality of cross-cultural storytelling. Creating a compelling tale of a boy's dreams and memories from Britain to Bangladesh and back again, it celebrates the resilience of the human spirit in the modern world. Blending Kathak and contemporary dance with an exquisite mix of spoken text, dreamlike animation, visuals and specially composed music, Chotto Desh is an enchanting and poignant dance theatre experience.

'An absolute triumph.' The Scotsman ★★★★★

Kish Kush traces the journey of two characters as they progress from solitude to connectedness, facing the universal theme of cultural and linguistic differences. At the outset they are separated by a paper wall, giving us two different perspectives as they gradually discover and get to know each other through the manipulation of objects, shadows, vocal sounds and different languages. Will they find a way to communicate and navigate a shared space?

At turns humorous yet profound, challenging yet hopeful, Kish Kush offers a unique and eloquent portrayal of diversity.

The Pale Baron is the great leader of the underwater state. He dislikes poets very much - their poetry can have all sorts of double meanings and that makes him feel very uncomfortable. Luckily, Felix and Felka are not poets. They are singers….

A new musical fable about a great friendship between two musicians during a repressive regime that hunts down anything or anyone deemed to be superfluous or different. A story full of heart and conviction that celebrates the power of friendship, words and music, told with gentle humour by the makers of The Queen Has Vanished.

I'm awake I think… But what was it that woke me?

So begins a music filled story of one child's day that turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. Live music composed by Tom Lane is performed by the ConTempo Quartet with vibrant storytelling and vivid animation by children’s author Mary Murphy.

Ceapaim go bhfuil mé i mo dhúiseacht... Ach céard a dhúisigh mé?

Mar sin a thosaíonn scéal láncheol faoi lá pháiste amháin, a dhéanann iontach an gnáthrud. Le ceol beo ón ConTempo Quartet cumtha ag Tom Lane agus scéalaíocht bhríomhar is beochan spleodrach ón údar do pháistí Mary Murphy.

A playful dance performance that immerses you and your baby in a world of wonder, affection and love. Embark on a sensory experience like no other when you step into a serene and intimate space, where every moment is an invitation to relax and lose yourselves in a captivating blend of dance, music and interactive visuals.

Fields of Tender caters to all of the senses and embraces every individual and behaviour, inviting you and your baby to savour the performance on your own terms.

Come and go as you please during the 90 minute performance.

Once a celebrated conductor, the Maestro now lives alone, haunted by dreams of past glory and tortured nightly by the visitations of a blood-hungry mosquita. His tiny nemesis destroys the Maestro’s dream of a magnificent comeback and plunges him into a war he can't win. Not until he recognises in his enemy the same need for love and life as in himself.

A timeless musical comedy written by Carmel Winters with an original score by Academy Award winner Stephen Warbeck. This big-hearted show follows an artist’s journey from innocence to corruption, delight to downfall - and back again.

This work premiered at Dublin Fringe Festival.

Enter an open-ended art and crafting space where you are invited to add your art to a series of collaborative installations, co-created by children. Lindsay Deely will guide you in making your unique mark on these large-scale artworks that will grow over the course of the festival. The installations, built using eco-friendly materials and based on themes of birds, flight and migration, will transform the space over time, culminating in a temporary exhibition on Sunday 20 October 14.00 to 16.30.

Enter an open-ended art and crafting space where you are invited to add your art to a series of collaborative installations, co-created by children. Lindsay Deely will guide you in making your unique mark on these large-scale artworks that will grow over the course of the festival. The installations, built using eco-friendly materials and based on themes of birds, flight and migration, will transform the space over time, culminating in a temporary exhibition on Sunday 20 October 14.00 to 16.30.

In this hands-on workshop by Laura Angell, participants will have a chance to explore their feelings while moulding models from fimo clay. It's important to recognise and articulate our feelings, opinions and protests through words and art. It doesn't have to be a grand gesture - small can be powerful!

In this hands-on workshop by Laura Angell, participants will have a chance to explore their feelings while moulding models from fimo clay. It's important to recognise and articulate our feelings, opinions and protests through words and art. It doesn't have to be a grand gesture - small can be powerful!

A community music workshop by Hala Jaber specifically for children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. The workshop aims to provide a space for children to explore and feel various rhythms. The children will have the opportunity to compose a rhythmic musical piece together

Join experts from Galway Atlantaquaria and CÚRAM on a seashore sensory scavenger hunt as we discover animals that make glue, drill holes and shoot stinging cells. Dress for the weather!

Attendees receive a 25% discounted entry to the aquariumimmediately after the workshop

Join experts from Galway Atlantaquaria and CÚRAM on a seashore sensory scavenger hunt as we discover animals that make glue, drill holes and shoot stinging cells. Dress for the weather!

Attendees receive a 25% discounted entry to the aquariumimmediately after the workshop

Taking mythology and fairytales as their inspiration, young writers will be shown how to create their own incredible realm and fill it with characters and challenges by Into the Witchwood author Méabh McDonnell. They will learn how to take a small idea and weave it into a fully fledged story, setting budding authors off on their storytelling journey.

Hala Jaber hosts a family-friendly gathering of music making and song sharings. You will experience songs and music games from all over the world. This event is relaxed in nature, and focuses on social bonding and celebrating Galway’s rich cultural diversity.

Free tea and coffee. All welcome.

Hala Jaber hosts a family-friendly gathering of music making and song sharings. You will experience songs and music games from all over the world. This event is relaxed in nature, and focuses on social bonding and celebrating Galway’s rich cultural diversity.

Free tea and coffee. All welcome.

Hala Jaber hosts a family-friendly gathering of music making and song sharings. You will experience songs and music games from all over the world. This event is relaxed in nature, and focuses on social bonding and celebrating Galway’s rich cultural diversity.

Free tea and coffee. All welcome.

A dynamic, groovy, five-piece band led by two young Irish brothers with Mediterranean blood. The Barceló Brothers deliver an inspiring, soulful and energetic show full of socially-engaged musical poetry celebrating diversity. A Global Roots experience driven by the bluesy and punchy sounds of an accordion and infused by any modern sounds they come across: Modern R&B, Soul, Reggae, Ska, Hip-Hop, Pop, Rock, Cúmbia and Rumba. There are no musical barriers in the creativity of these two brothers!

Put on your dancing shoes and get ready to immerse yourself in a feast of new sounds, languages and good vibes!

Expect inspirational performances from young singer-songwriters, musicians and bands in this family-friendly showcase of Galway’s talented young artists.

Livefeed is a Music Generation Galway City project for young people interested in music performance, production and promotion. The project provides opportunities for young people to perform and enjoy live music in safe, family-friendly environments through workshops and live music events across Galway city and county.

Meet Explorers of the Imagination, Patricia Forde and Alan Nolan, as they go in search of the mysterious Storybird. All you need is your curiosity and your amazing imagination! Dress for the weather. 

Please allow 30 min to drive from Galway City.

Bí linn – TaiscéalaithenaSamhlaíochtaagusmuidarthóir an éinmhistéirigh, ÉannaScéalaíochta. Ní bheidhuait ach d'fhiosrachtagus do shamhlaíocht! Caith éadaíoiriúnach don aimsir. 

Please allow 30 min to drive from Galway City.

ChildVision Ireland will use the five senses to present a sensory storytime especially for visually impaired children and their families.

Expect research presentations, discussion panels and a keynote lecture by Professor Helen Nicholson, Royal Holloway University of London. Suitable for theatre makers, researchers, policy makers and teachers. Presented by Talking TYA Research Network. Includes lunch and evening reception.

Artist Laura Angell will teach you simple needlepoint embroidery techniques for use in primary or secondary school classrooms. Stitching can be surprisingly simple and mindful!

Dalija Acin Thelander introduces her academic practice-as-research on creating immersive performances for children with additional needs. The practice will be introduced from both a theoretical and a practical perspective.

Laureate na nÓg Patricia Forde will deliver her inaugural lecture inspired by the theme she has chosen for her laureate, Making It Up As We Go Along. Patricia will discuss the importance of reading in a child's creative development and how immersive play can foster the skills required to read and write creatively.

Patricia writes in English and Irish. She has had more than twenty books published to date. Her ambition as Laureate na nÓg is to encourage wild creativity – bringing children, writers and illustrators together to inspire one another to imagine new worlds.

Please join us for a reception after the lecture.

In this practical workshop, Dalija Acin Thelander shares her creative process in making inclusive, immersive and durational performances for children with additional needs. Suitable for professional performance artists, choregraphers, directors and designers. In partnership with TYAI. Dress comfortably.

Baboró invites industry professionals and creatives to experience the festival as a delegate by purchasing a Delegate Pass. This pass gives access to delegate-only events, including works- in-progress, networking opportunities and social evenings. You will also receive a Delegate Pack and Delegate List for networking purposes.

Performances and public events must be booked separately.

Baboró invites industry professionals and creatives to experience the festival as a delegate by purchasing a Delegate Pass. This pass gives access to delegate-only events, including works- in-progress, networking opportunities and social evenings. You will also receive a Delegate Pack and Delegate List for networking purposes.

With the Student/ Unwaged Delegate Pass you receive a 15% discount code to be applied when booking all public festival events. You will receive the code in your confirmation email.Performances and public events must be booked separately, using this code.