Wexford students invited to follow in Colm Tóibín's footsteps and enter revived opera festival essay competition
Wexford People
Today at 23:00
After a hiatus of over 50 years, the students of Wexford are once again being offered the chance to share their thoughts on the Wexford Festival Opera, and to win a generous cash prize of €250 plus publication in the Festival Supplement of the Wexford People.
Wexford Festival Opera is running an essay competition for its 74th anniversary. Inspired by the theme for this year's event, Myths & Legends, the subject of the essay is: 'Wexford Festival Opera – A Myth or a Legend?' All senior cycle (TY, 5th and 6th year) students in County Wexford are invited to participate.
The Festival last held an essay competition in 1972 which makes a revival more than overdue. Back then, the title was 'Wexford Festival Opera – Vanity or Prestige?' There were four prizes and a young Colm Tóibín was among the winners. Where are the remaining three winners? Or, indeed, the other entrants? WFO would love to hear from anyone who knows anyone who entered, or was placed in, that competition. Best of all would be to find copies of those essays!
A long list of writers hail from Wexford, a tradition celebrated every September since 2016 at the Write by the Sea Festival in Kilmore Quay. Whether it is due to the sea air or the extra dose of sunshine that lights up the 'sunny south east', music and words seem to flourish in this corner of the island. It is also an area rich in history and folklore which could feed into ideas for this year's essay title. How to separate myth from legend and where to place WFO on that scale is an interesting question. Does the Festival impinge in any meaningful way on the lives of younger members of the community, acquiring legendary status for them, or is that a cosy myth?
The organisers of WFO are eager to learn how the senior cycle cohort views the Festival and whether, or how, it might be made more meaningful to that generation. For teachers this could be a rewarding and very worthwhile class project, especially in transition year, when several students will have the opportunity to work with the Festival. Other students may have family members who have been, or are still, involved at some level.
There are many dimensions to the Festival, from the opening night fireworks to the general buzz around town, from themed window displays to the sometimes outlandish glamour of opera goers, exhibitions, fringe and community events, each offering a different angle on, or line of approach to, the subject. I rarely wish I was sixteen again but this is one occasion when I wouldn't mind reversing the years, just to have a crack at such an exciting competition.
Competition Details:
Wexford Festival Opera – A Myth or a Legend?
All students in Senior Cycle (TY, 5th Year and 6th Year) in County Wexford secondary schools are eligible to participate.
Prize: €250
Rules and Conditions 1. Entries must be the original work of the entrant and should not have been previously published in any format, online or print, self-published or paid. 2. Entries must be typed, double-spaced in Microsoft Word, 12 point, Times New Roman font. 3. All entries must be in English and submitted by email to essay@wexfordopera.com. Closing date for receipt of entries is Monday September 22 at 5.00pm. 4. The decision of the judges is final, no correspondence/contact will be entered into, and no feedback will be given to individual entrants. 5. Entrants can submit only one entry. Entries must not exceed 2,000 words.
6. Wexford Festival Opera reserves the right to publish any of the entries as full essays, or extracts thereof, to promote Wexford Festival Opera on its website and in other media.
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