Expect magical, otherworldly sights as this year’s Macnas Halloween parade falls ‘Out of the Wild Sky’.
With its signature giant creations and sculptural images, pyrotechnics, bespoke costumes, and epic performances to live and original music, this year’s parade looks to tell the story of a city in the midst of great transformation.
Through fantastical imagery they’ll create a world that is hypnotic and intoxicating, glittering, mysterious and filled with shadow and nobility.
Between the white fire of the stars and the whispering woods you can hear the breath of small kingdoms rising and falling,dreams floating light as moths among the branches of the trees, where sweetness and tangibility flickers amongst the dark hug of time.
Macnas bring “Out of the Wild Sky” to the streets of Galway, packed full of love and magic, as they sculpt a new cosmos into being, where the language of birds and the stars take flight, bells ring out stitches of lightning burst forth as a new horizon lights up the deep and the wondrous and lifts up the sky.
Always a massive undertaking the Macnas parade involves the efforts of hundreds of performers from the Macnas Young Ensemble, Youth Ballet West, the Macnas Youth Drummers, the Public participation programme, The Hit Machine and many more.
Its sculptures and other creations are the work of 45 professional artists and 300 volunteers under the direction of CEO/Artistic Director Noeline Kavanagh.
The mad geniuses decorating this year’s offerings include Orla Clogher and Dave Young on design, Saileog O’Halloran on costume, Alma Kelleher on sound design.
The Face hairdressers are handling the hair, and Michelle Ruane is the makeup artist responsible for getting the performers to look as otherworldly as can be.
Eimhin Craddock will head up the Macnas Youth Drummers and Miquel Barcelo is once again at the helm with the Young Ensemble.
“We are very grateful to be supported by the Arts Council of Ireland and Galway City Council for our year long programme of creative work,” said Noeline Kavanagh.
“We are delighted to have the support of our partners Latin Quarter who will co-present this iconic event for the sixth year in a row with Macnas.”
The Halloween Macnas parade will make its way through the streets Galway on Sunday October 28.
The parade will set out from its home in NUIG at 5:30pm and make its way through the heart if Galway to the viewing delight of more than 54,000 people.
Afterwards it’ll head cross country to Dublin where it will close out the Bram Stoker Festival on Monday, October 29.
Other partners helping with the Halloween parade include O’Connells Bar, Acorn Life, and Galway Clinic.
This year the Connacht Hospitality Group have joined in for a four year partnership supporting the Macnas Youth Ensemble.
