The 150th anniversary of the birth of William Butler Yeats on RT
As Ireland prepares to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Nobel Prize-winning poet William Butler Yeats on June 13th, RT has announced a range of programming to mark the birth of one of Ireland's greatest artists.
Noel Curran, Director-General, RT , says: The 150th anniversary of the birth of William Butler Yeats provides an opportunity to celebrate the man and his work, but also to put a renewed spotlight on Ireland as a creative nation. In considering Yeats' legacy, RT will provide a platform to look at the role of culture and the arts in Ireland historically and contemporarily. The programming across radio, and on television and online, along with specially selected content on @rte on Twitter, will provide a meaningful and discursive backdrop to this important celebration. Of course, it's not just about next week, and I look forward to additional Yeats-themed radio and television commissions in the autumn and into 2016.
The Yeats 2015 initiative will present a local, national and international series of exhibitions, performances, educational events, festivals, concerts, readings, talks and screenings. Find out more: www.yeats2015.com
RADIO
RT Radio 1
Arena, RT Radio 1's nightly arts programme, will feature Yeats across the week. On Wednesday 10th of June sisters Deirdre (soprano) and Fionnuala (piano) Moynihan will perform the music of WB Yeats ahead of their appearance at this year's KBC Great Music in Irish Houses Festival. The final day of this year's festival will celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of WB Yeats with vocal and instrumental works from the classical music tradition inspired by the poet.
On the Arena/Yeats 2015 Special (Friday 12th of June) Sean Rocks will be joined by three of Ireland's most celebrated poets the current Irish Chair of Poetry Paula Meehan, and Michael Longley and Harry Clifton, who have both previously held the post. They will discuss how Yeats has influenced not only their own work, but many different parts of Irish culture. With a package from Sligo, the programme will also feature new musical settings of the poetry of Yeats composed by Michael Scott and performed by Yvonne Brennan (soprano) and Anthony Norton (tenor) with a traditional Irish Orchestra.
On Saturday 13th of June, Arena will record the Yeats 2015 celebrations in Sligo at the Knocknarea Arena at the Institute of Technology. Arena will also be featuring essays and poems related to Yeats in the week leading up to June 13th the 150th birthday anniversary.
Today with Sean O'Rourke will be talking to poetry expert Niall MacMonagle on Friday 12th June, and students will read some of the poet's best-known works. The Marian Finucane Show will cover the celebrations on the 150th anniversary of the birthday itself (Saturday June 13th).
Meanwhile, the award-winning Drama on One will feature a range of new commissions, starting this Sunday at 8pm. WB and Me - A Poet s Choice of Yeats Poems will run for the month of June. Four poets will offer their personal responses and reflections on favourite poems by the Great Man of Irish Letters. In the programme this Sunday, poet and publisher Pat Boran offers a personal reflection on Yeats' The Lake Isle of Inisfree , The Long Legged Fly and High Talk . Paula Meehan, Michael Longley and Rita Ann Higgins will feature for the remaining Sundays in June.
RT Radio 1 will also air a specially commissioned four-part series on Yeats in the autumn.
RT lyric fm
The Lyric Concert with Paul Herriott (Monday 17th August) will celebrate WB Yeats in music, with pieces including James Wilson Upon Silence (WB Yeats), Donnacha Dennehy: Two Yeats Songs, Michael Tippett: Byzantium, Lawrence Gilman: Three Poems by Yeats, Andreja Malir: Yeats Three Settings, Anuna: Innisfree
WB Yeats: Words for Music Perhaps, a two-part RT lyric fm Lyric Feature to be aired in the autumn, explores the poets relationship with music. What was he said by many to be tone deaf - hearing in his inner ear? Riverdance composer Bill Whelan and director Jim Flannery Contributors include Ron Schuchard, Meg Harper, Donnacha Dennehy, Conor Linehan, Olwen Fouere, Harry White, and Declan Kiberd.
TELEVISION
RT One
On Wednesday 10th June at 7pm, Eileen Magnier will present a special Nationwide programme from Sligo. Eileen joins the people of the North West as they commemorate the life and times of one of Ireland's greatest writers, visits the sights associated with WB Yeats and hears of the plans to keep his legacy alive in Sligo and surrounding counties.
RT News across television, radio, online and mobile will report on the Yeats 2015 celebrations.
On RT One, a second look at the documentary WB Yeats: No Country for Old Men (Monday, 11.15pm) sees award-winning director Maurice Sweeney concentrate on the later work of the great poet and the themes that inspired him as an ageing man. In looking at Yeats later life and work, the film reveals a very different Yeats to the poet we learnt about in school.
ONLINE/MOBILE
All programmes will be available on the RT Player.
RT Archives will mark the 150th anniversary of the poet's birth with some special features at www.rte.ie/archives.
Meanwhile, the joint RT / Boston College project Century Ireland (www.rte.ie/centuryireland) will publish a range of specially commissioned long-read Yeats features and audio.
@rte on Twitter will feature content links and additional content on the #yeats2015 hashtag.
ENDS
05/06/2015 joseph.hoban@rte.ie, 086 8128662
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The 150th anniversary of the birth of William Butler Yeats on RT 
