Art, music, theatre, lectures, readings, walking tours and food events make up the packed programme that invites Joyce fans to see his famous novel Ulysses through a multitude of lenses.
Bloomsday (11–16 June) recalls 16 June 1904, the day immortalised in the novel, which follows the footsteps of Leopold Bloom around Dublin.
Highlights of this year’s events include performances of Joyce’s story Grace in Bewley’s Café and a musical celebration of Ulysses in the National Concert Hall. The bellringers of Christ Church Taney will ring the actual bells referenced in the novel and at Dalkey Castle actors will perform enlightening and entertaining extracts from Ulysses, Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
A number of walking tours will visit the places mentioned in Ulysses or explore the aspects of Dublin that influenced Joyce’s work. Exhibitions include a celebration of the art and creativity of Lucia Joyce, James Joyce’s daughter, who was a dancer and artist in 1920s Paris.
Several of the programmed events focus on the food and drink enjoyed by Leopold Bloom and his friends in the novel. The annual Bloomsday Breakfast will be hosted In Belvedere College, where Joyce studied, and will include readings and songs as well as hearty plates of food. At the Delahunt restaurant there will be a menu of food and light bites inspired by Ulysses, while many cafes and restaurants will offer the gorgonzola sandwich and glass of burgundy that Bloom enjoyed so much