Organising a festival with others is like any relationship, an emotional roller coaster full of ups and down, fear and excitement. Each day I wonder what tidings await when I open my mail. Will there be new collaborators within the community or a death in the midsummer dream?

It's dealing with the reality of these everyday issues that reflected upon in tranquility is part and parcel of the festival journey. I do become anxious at times waiting to hear back from potential participants and festival funders.

Samuel Beckett summed it up what it’s like for us all at time: I can't go on, I must go on, I'll go on. We really have no choice but to go on struggling for what we believe to be right despite the resistance we often feel within ourselves to take responsiblilty not only for our own actions but those of our family, friends, etc who all play a part in shaping our culture and community.

We all have our own agenda and ways of getting what we want but when it's a question of necessity we discover within ourselves the strength to go beyond our comfort zone in order to satisfy those needs. Depending on whether or not others share our agenda and feel a similar need to be involved it can be hard to motivate other individuals or groups within a community even if it seems to you to be for the greater good of the community.

Fortunately for The Non Prophet Festival there are groups within the community like 'The Men's Shed' with whom we're preparing a float for the St. Patrick day parade as ‘the mechanicals’ in A Midsummer Night's Dream that they show will go on. to promote the forthcoming festival. Members of The Claremorris Musical Society are also lending a helping hand and we'll soon be banging on the drums supplied to us for the performance by Mayo Arts Council. The Clare lake committee is providing the main venue and The Chamber of Commerce their support.

Frame Productions our local audio-visual production company if technology permits will stream the event so loved ones abroad who can’t make it home can at least stream it.

And The Claremorris Film Society who usually shows films in our local library are going out into the open air with the hosting of Hair: Let the Sun shine in

We have other local artists and businesses serving on steering committee and advisory board who will be meeting after the St. Patrick’s Day Parade to get the show on the road.