‘Where it all Began’ play tells story of Comhaltas origins

An “imaginative recreation staying loyal to the historical facts” is what is involved in the play ‘Where it all Began’ being staged for the Westmeath Comhaltas weekend celebrating the 75th anniversary of the organisation.

Tom Hunt, the historian who wrote the book ‘70 Seachtó Bliain ag Fás’, has done the research on the meetings that led to the foundation of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann and has worked with Paul Curley, producer and director “who has whipped it all into shape and was helpful in writing the script”.

Those were Tom’s words in a chat with the Westmeath Examiner about the play, which is just one of part of busy three days of traditional music and culture on Friday August 28, Saturday 29 and Sunday 30.

As well as ‘Where it all Began’, highlights include a concert by the Kilfenora Céilí Band at St Paul’s Church on the evening of Saturday August 29, and the unveiling of a plaque on the Market Square acknowledging Mullingar as the town where Comhaltas have their origins (see list of events in panel below).

“I was asked to reconstruct the history of that meeting and what happened by the committee,” said Tom. “Starting from a relative lack of knowledge, to being able to reconstruct the various meetings was challenging enough, because three or four meetings took place, and two of them in Mullingar.”

There are no surviving minutes of the meetings, so Tom worked from contemporary newspaper reports and books, including one by Willie Reynolds, the piper, and documents owned by Cáit Uí Mhuimhneacháin. He also referred back to his own book, ‘70 Seachtó Bliain ag Fás’, published when the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann was in Mullingar.

Tom is an accomplished author but he “had never dreamed of” writing a drama. He says it’s a fairly short script, and takes the form of a narrator giving the background while the cast play out the proceedings.

This is the beginning of the piece: “Venue: Midland Hotel, Mount Street, Mullingar. Narrator: ‘The journey to the Midland Hotel in Mount Street, Mullingar began in 1950 when Superintendent Philip O’Sullivan and Tom Rowsome met in Tom’s drapery shop in Thomas Street in Dublin and discussed the idea of spreading the ideals of the Pipers Club across Ireland and of staging a traditional music festival.’

Narrator (2): ‘Later the Piper’s Club adopted a motion approving of these two ideals.’

Narrator (3): ‘In January 1951, members of the Pipers Club travelled to Mullingar and met with Eamonn and Caitlin Bean Uí Mhuimhneacháin and Superintendent O’Sullivan.’

As the script outlines, the plan was to encourage Eamonn and Caitlin and the Superintendent to form a Pipers Club in Mullingar; but ‘our Mullingar friends were much more ambitious than that’, Tom Rowsome says in the play.

As Caitlin Bean Uí Mhuimhneacháin in the play, they made the case that it was important to encourage all forms of Irish traditional music, not just the pipes and the harp. She adds: ‘We also talked about having a festival of Irish music in Mullingar and now we need to make plans for this festival.’

They agreed that Whit weekend would be a perfect time for an Irish music festival, staged in conjunction with Feis Lar na hÉireann, and from there the drama continues with the foundation story of Comhaltas.

The play is being staged at Áras an Mhuilinn on Saturday August 29 at 3pm.

Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann 75th Anniversary Celebration Weekend

Friday 28 August

• Ox Mountain Quartet and Westmeath’s elite musicians, singers, and dancers, Mullingar Arts Centre, 7.30pm

Saturday 29 August

• Inclusive céilí, Bandhall, 2-3pm

• ‘Where It All Began’, Áras An Mhuilinn, 3pm

• Westmeath CCÉ, youth performance, Mullingar Arts Centre, 3.30-4.30pm

• Plaque unveiling ceremony, Market Square, 5pm

• Pub sessions, from 5.30pm

• Kilfenora Céilí Band, St Paul’s Church, 8pm

Sunday 30 August

• Mass, Cathedral of Christ The King, 12.30pm

• Moate CCÉ Marching Band, Cathedral of Christ The King, 1.15pm

• Mullingar Town Band, Market Square, 1.30pm

• Historical lecture, Market Square, 1.45pm

• Westmeath céilí bands, and Grupaí Cheoil, Market Square, 2pm

• Open session, Market Square, 4pm

• Céilí with Rise The Dust, Áras An Mhuilinn, 7pm