Organising Committee

Event Directors:  Marion Cox, Melissa Sihra, Ella Swift Redding
Family Liaisons:  Ben Kennedy, Jane Murray Brown, Robin Murray Brown

The Lady Gregory-Yeats Autumn Gathering celebrates the remarkable influence of Augusta, Lady Gregory on the development of Irish theatre, literature, culture and national identity.

Our annual programme includes lectures, discussions, readings, theatre in Coole Park and Thoor Ballylee, social events, and when possible a guided walk through Coole Park woods and visits of local interest (e.g. Kiltartan Museum, Flaggy Shore). 

Key speakers have included poets (Seamus Heaney, Moya Cannon), authors (Jennifer Johnston, John Banville, Colm Toibin, Joseph Hassett), playwrights (Marina Carr, Tom Kilroy), academics (Angela Bourke, James Pethica, Nicholas Grene, Melissa Sihra, Lucy McDiarmid, Marc Conner, Adrian Paterson), biographers (James Pethica, Brenda Maddox), historians and archivists (Catriona Crowe, Barry Houlihan), Abbey Theatre Directors (Tomas MacAnna, Caitríona McLaughlin), actors (Marie Mullen, Barry McGovern), journalists (Bruce Arnold), drama educators (Cecily O’Neill), producers (Lelia Doolan, John Quinn, Garry Hynes), broadcasters (Joe Duffy), publishers and literary agents (Colin Smythe), etc.

Each has celebrated the many artistic areas in which Lady Gregory was active, along with her longtime collaborator and dear friend, W.B. Yeats.