Holy show promises an emotional embrace and feng shui
THERE’S no show like a holy show.
That’s essentially the promise from those working behind the scenes to create a 12-hour programme for pilgrims in the Phoenix Park next week. Global event specialist Arcana have been brought in to put together a series of performances that will be “the complete opposition of rock ’n’ roll”.
Former Saw Doctors drummer Johnny Donnelly has led the team who have based their staging for the event on the Claddagh Ring.
“At the end of the day, there’s an event on here and a show has to be created for that,” he said, adding that the Mass with Pope Francis will be just one element.
Mr Donnelly explained that their concept is based on the teachings of the Pope and his idea that families are connected to the vine.
“A bit like a fine wine that grows as time progresses. A family does the same type of thing. Being from Galway, we connected that to the Claddagh Ring. It’s all about putting your arms around somebody,” he said.
“When we started thinking about these different elements, then we very quickly realised that the altar will be circular. Normally a lot of stages you see around the world are rectangle shapes.
“We knew then that we wanted to have that warming, feng shui-type of a thing.
“Life isn’t about how many breaths you take, it’s about how many times life takes your breath away.
“We want to bring different emotions into people. For us, the visual of this is really, really important.”