Cohen Brings Poetry Back to Yeats Country
01 August 2010
It started with a first edition of WB Yeats, but could end up becoming a lucrative business opportunity for the owners of Lissadell House.
When legendary song-writer and musician Leonard Cohen was in Ireland last year doing a series of concerts for John Reynolds’ Pod Concerts, the promoter gave Cohen a first edition of Yeats’s poetry. Cohen, himself a poet, is an admirer of Sligo’s literary giant who, in 1933, wrote:
The light of evening, Lissadell,
Great windows open to the south,
Two girls in silk kimonos, both
Beautiful, one a gazelle.
It gave Reynolds the idea of Cohen playing at Lissadell House in Sligo, where Yeats spent much time with the Gore-Booth family, particularly the two girls of the poem, sisters Eva and Constance. Constance went on to become the only female member of the first Dáil [and the first woman government minister in Europe] under her married name, Countess Markiewicz.
Reynolds then went on to cajole the owners of Lissadell, Constance Cassidy and Eddie Walsh, into opening the house up to its first music concert ever.
Cohen will take to the stage tonight for his second of two concerts at the house, following a ‘homecoming’ concert by Westlife which took place on Friday night.
‘‘When John spoke to us, we were closed and were not considering anything like this, but when it was Leonard Cohen, who is such a Yeats fan and such a great poet himself, it would have been dreadful to say no," said Isobel Cassidy, manager of Lissadell Estate and sister of Constance.
‘‘We were not sure if such a production was even possible but John said it would be.
We said, ‘Okay, it’s difficult, but we are going to make it happen’ and then everyone just got on board to make it come together."
Cassidy said that all those involved in organising the event were extremely conscious of what Lissadell was and of its surroundings.
‘‘A great deal of care went into all the decisions made - we were aware that this could not be just treated like a concert. It is an intimate event, which is a word that would normally never be used about an outdoor concert.
The concerts are taking place right beside the house and in a natural amphitheatre." As of last Friday, there were still some of the 10,000 tickets, which ranged in price from€80 to €115, left for tonight’s concert, but they were expected to be sold out by today.
‘‘Whether or not they sell out, we are extremely happy with the sales and feel it’s been a success," said Cassidy. She said that the location had thrown up a great number of challenges along the way, but that there was a general air of excitement in the town about the €3 million financial boost the concerts would give to the area.
‘‘There has been this feeling that the town has been in a bubble of excitement about something so unique.
Everyone is talking about it and we really feel it will give a good boost to the local economy," said Cassidy. ‘‘When Sligo lost the stage of the rally [World Rally Championships] last year, it really was a huge kick for the county, but we hope this will help in some way. There is not a bed available for 30 miles this weekend and that’s great for the town and the county."
Local businesses, mainly from the Sligo and Donegal regions, are also involved in the event and have set up food and drink stalls on the grounds of Lissadell.
Cassidy also said the concerts would have a longer-term boost for the local economy.
‘‘To bring 30,000 people into the area and show them what we have to offer has a huge long-lasting effect. When people see Sligo, and particularly the views from the concert venue, they will want to come back again," she said.
‘‘As well as the house, from your seats, people will be able to see the majestic table-top mountain of Ben Bulben behind the stage, Knocknarea to the right and Sligo Bay to the left. People will look around and think, we are going to have to come back here again."
Whether or not they will be coming back to Lissadell for concerts in the future is still undecided. Concerts at the stately home could become a lucrative business proposition for the family.
‘‘We really don’t know yet," said Cassidy. ‘‘It wasn’t our intention to have concerts here in the first place. We are just taking it on a day-by-day basis.
‘‘We are delighted that this has brought the place alive and it’s all very positive, but it’s impossible to say any more at this stage apart from that it has been a fantastic opportunity to get involved in."
