We’re on the road again! Misleór is heading to Ballinasloe Fair with our installation of wooden horses made from recycled materials. Get creative with paper flower-making, beady pockets, horseshoe painting and more!

11am-1pm: Tinsmithing

Live demonstrations and discussions with traditional tinsmith Tom McDonnell and friends.

12-3pm: Traveller Shorts (Misleór Outdoor Cinema)

Special selection of short films celebrating custodianship, diversity and resilience within the Traveller community. 

2-5pm: Live Music

Come down to the Misleór stage to enjoy a very special line-up of singers and musicians. Hosted by the local talent and rising star PJ Mongan. 

2pm: Paddy Keenan
Born in Trim, Co. Meath, Paddy Keenan hails from a musical Traveller family with deep uilleann piping roots.His flowing, open-fingered technique was influenced by his father’s and grandfather’s style.

3pm: Kathleen Keenan

Coming from a family of musicians, Kathleen Keenan is an accomplished singer-songwriter who has been performing from an early age, and recently released her first album ‘Beautiful Angels’.

3.45pm: Janos Lang + Marius Otves

Experience the vibrant spirit of Roma music with fiddle players Janos Lang and Marius Otves. Together, they offer a dynamic showcase of the rich fiddle styles from Hungary, Romania, and Transylvania, taking you on a captivating journey into the heart of Roma culture.  

4.15pm: Francis Ward

Francis Ward is a talented young singer and guitarist from the local Traveller community, who recently won the Music Award at the National Traveller Pride Awards alongside fellow musician PJ Mongan.

4.40pm: Margaret Carr

Margaret Carr is a talented singer from the local Traveller community in Ballinasloe. Last year Margaret was one of four Traveller women singers who collaborated with Australian Aboriginal artist Jessie Lloyd as part of the project ‘Chant Yil Lull’.

Would you like to learn how to make your own beady pocket? Join one of our interactive workshops led by textile artists Nora Mongan and Annemarie McDonagh. Materials provided, but feel free to bring your own decorations and adornments! 

Spaces limited - booking recommended!

Fiddle players - step into the heart of Roma music culture with Janos Lang and Marius Otves, two Roma fiddle players from Hungary and Romania. Based in Glasgow, Janos is the creative director of Ando Glaso ("In Tune"), a cultural organisation dedicated to preserving and promoting Roma heritage. He has toured the world, fusing the fiery traditions of his Hungarian roots with Scottish and Irish influences. Marius, a master from Romania’s Bihar region, brings the raw authenticity of traditional Gypsy music, perfected through a lifetime of playing at weddings, burials, parties and other community events. 

Other instruments welcome, however the workshop will be focused on fiddle styles and techniques.

Places limited - booking recommended!

Oein DeBhairduin and Nora Corcoran weave storytelling and ancient wisdom into an interactive talk and workshop on traditional Traveller herbalism and healing. Learn about foraging, gathering and healthy custodianship of the land, and get creative with traditional dyes and cording - all materials provided!

Places limited - booking essential!

Would you like to learn how to make your own beady pocket? Join one of our interactive workshops led by textile artists Nora Mongan and Annemarie McDonagh. Materials provided, but feel free to bring your own decorations and adornments! 

Spaces limited - booking recommended!

How do we ensure that indigenous, nomadic and minority filmmakers are empowered to tell their own stories on screen? And how do we ensure that those filmmakers and their communities maintain ownership of these stories? 

In a special presentation from Liisa Holmberg, we hear the story of the International Sámi Film Institute (ISFI) and the role it has played in building a new generation of Sámi filmmakers.

Liisa Holmberg, a former film commissioner at the ISFI, is currently the Managing Director of the Arctic Indigenous Film Fund (AIFF). Established in 2018, AIFF supports Indigenous filmmakers in Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Sápmi, and Russia through funding, networking and capacity-building programs. Holmberg is a Sámi filmmaker who originally comes from the Finnish side of Sámiland. Since 1994, she has worked in the film business as a producer, production manager and film consultant. 

This session will be chaired by Catherine Joyce, with contributions from special guest speakers Dr Rosaleen McDonagh, Joshua Donoghue and Ethan Donoghue. Supported by the National Talent Academy for Film & Television

Online workshop and dialogue space exploring this year’s festival theme - Custodians: Keepers of Culture. Facilitated by Catherine Joyce, this event is reserved exclusively for members of nomadic communities.

This space is created to increase participation and input from nomadic voices. Facilitated by Catherine Joyce, a Traveller woman and advocate for Traveller Human Rights, this event is exclusively for members of nomadic communities. Your contributions will also feed into our Friday event, “Custodianship of our Stories on Screen.”

This year’s theme, “Custodians - Keepers of Culture,” celebrates the guardians of music, song, dance, stories, skills, and knowledge within the nomadic tradition. We will explore cultural rights, repatriation of cultural materials, and reclaiming narratives.

We value your contribution.

RSVP online here.

Email events@gtmtrav.ie for more information.