Galway Advertiser 1998/1998_04_09/GA_09041998_E1_052.pdf 

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The Secret Child, a collection of Roisin Dubh this personal poems from Seamus week features the legendary Scullion Ruttledge
here is so much poetry being currently published, not just in Ireland - where it sometimes seems every second person you meet is a poet, and the other one is a novel ist - but all over the world, that there is a real danger of choking on a surfeit *af the stuff. For all of these reasons, it was with real pleasure that a copy of The Secret Child by Galway poet Seamus Ruttledge was handed in by the poet himself, along with a couple of excellent reviews his collection has already received. The first thing to say is that there are some fine poems within these pages, an opinion I am not alone in expressing. Hear what Phill Mottram Brown, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, has to say: "Poetry must come from the soul and can transcend all rules of grammar...Seamus writes from the heart with a strong thread of mysticism running through most of his creations. He feels, and manages to convey this depth of feeling to us...Seamus Ruttledge, in my opinion, is fast heading for that gallery of promising Irish poets which is making its mark throughout the literary world." What immediately strikes this reader about RutUedge's poetry is its reliance on simplicity of diction; rarely does he employ a word of more than three sylla bles, while the vast majority are of two. And he very perceptively exploits the rich potential of what could be called 'primal' words like child, flesh, blood,

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sleep, sea, mother, death, words that carry both a literal and a symbolic charge as old as language. With this simplicity goes a spareness, an economy when it comes to making metaphors, and this, which is similar to his intro duction of more complex words in a line - complex in both form and content engenders a spark that swings the eye and the sensibility of the reader into that other dimension which is not simple at all. For if Ruttledge's poems inhabit sim plicity in their use of language, they touch on the complexities of our com mon life with confidence and strength. In poems like 'I Believe', 'Dawn Run', 'A Place of Pilgrimage', and 'Mourning', the poet explores the vari eties of joy and sorrow and mysterious consolation with a delicate gracefulness. The dangers of simplicity in diction and style are considerable, and it would be surprising if Ruttledge did not occa sionally fall victim to them. Simplicity and an almost chaste attitude to the exu berant elaborations of metaphor some times betray him into mere prosiness. Too much reliance on those 'primal' words, unless galvinised by a more robust concreteness of natural, sensuous imagery, sometimes produces mere abstractions, while the attempt to sum mon up their symbolic resonances falls flat in poems like 'Melting of the Crown'. But Ruttledge should take heart from the fact that even William Blake sometimes hit dud notes when he tried this.

At their best, however, Ruttledge combines strong feeling with taut con trol, and he is capable of authentic witchery, in which mystery and manner weave a spell of words that entices and enchants: this is the authentic note of poetry.

Solstice Bewitchery Solstice bewitchery the com weeps, across my face Hallowe'en mists sweep. From the wisdom stone the shut eyed keep. The moon shines through tight clouds knit. Spirits float over ringed fires lit, The circle dancers to a bodhran drum keep rhythm to a banshee hum. Charred hazel nuts, aromatic bliss, swarm the hearth, shell split. Mummers call all to wind through villages to bonfire spit. The howling witch eyes wild in moonstruck trance lotus sit.

FOR TWO nights only, Monday, April 13 and Tuesday, April 14, the legendary music masters of Scullion - Sonny Condell, Philip King, Greg Boland and Robbie Overson - are set to take the stage in a reunion of historic dimensions. It's a great opportunity for old fans to hear again Scullion's unique blend of Irish folk, pop, rock and even the blues, while those who know the band only by reputation will have a chance to compare what they've heard with the real thing.
While Scullion has been around in some form or other for donkey's years, and still command a loyal following, what gives them a real spark is their genuine desire to play music in small, intimate venues such as Roisin Dubh, where their performances - always excellent - take on a special buzz, and that's for both performers and apprecia tive audiences. From the band's first album release back in 1978, through numerous changes of line-up, from world tours and grand concert stages, Scullion has earned its perma nent place in the halls of Irish music history. The core of the group, Sonny Condell and Philip King, now each have successful and distinctive solo careers - Sonny's brilliant solo release, 'Someone to Dance With', is proof positive that the creative fire still burns bright, while Philip King's ground-breaking music documentary, 'Bringing It All Back Home', is one of the finest showcases of Irish music and its links with world music ever produced. Finally, as with all Scullion gigs, friends have a habit of turning up. At least one of them already announced is the great sax player, Richie Buckley, but other big names are also being bandied about. Whatever you're doing next week, make sure you catch one of Scullion's shows, on either April 13 or 14. It's a bit of musical history in the making. Meanwhilc.Tonight, April 9, the 24 piece Black Magic Orchestra returns, with Garth Philips on vocals. The Sunday Session (April 12) has special guest, the renowned box player, Paddy Gannon. Finally, next Thursday, April 16, sees the brilliant - and we're not kidding - FrenchCanadian fiddle player Pierre Schryer and his band take the stage.

Review
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Barry Levinson. whose timely political satire on a US president with a 'smoking bimbo' problem, 'Wag the Dog', does a complete flip-flop with his latest offering, Michael Crichton's intriguing science fiction novel, Sphere. At first glance, there is evidence of| some obvious influences on Levinson's film, notably The Abyss and Event Horizon (two very under-rated films, just as 'Blade Runner' was the first time round). However, the plotting is very weak, and the whole thing is only salvaged by a frequently witty script and a strong cast. As for the cast, it's not one that I would have thought of assembling - Dustin Hoffman and Sharon Stone, and Samuel L Jackson? But surprisingly it does work. What 'Sphere' does lack - and this is pretty fatal in a genre that depends on frequent suspensions of disbelief - is any real sense of mounting tension. It is punctuated by spurts of horror, but the result is a morse code of a film: too many dashes and very few dots. The plot, such as it is,revolvesaround a group of scientific boffins who have been assembled from all over to have a look at a strange object that's been discovered at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean Hoffman plays the psychologist who, years before, drew up proposals for dealing with humanity's first encounter with aliens, regarding the whole thing as a bit of a joke at the time. Now hefindsthat his procedures have been acted upon and the team he suggested setting up is the one that includes biologist Sharon Stone and mathematician Samuel L Jackson. There's also an astrophysicist but we lose him pretty early in the film. It's not bad; it's just that it could have been much better - as the book is. But there's enough going on to certainly pass an evening, and there are a few good twists. Watch, for example, for the moment when the crew discover the craft they're examining has a very different origin from the one they ini daily imagined. Flnbber is a remake of 'The Absent Minded Professor', with Robin Williams stepping into the shoes of the great Jerry Lewis. It lacks the spark of the original - Lewis is perhaps the only physicial comedian who makes Williams look lethargic by comparison. The jokes swing wildly from those aimed at the very young and those that have a more adult feel to them. However, probably everybody will get a kick out of the robot Wcebo. the Busby Berkeley dance sequence with the excitiblc flubber, the flying car and even maybe the toilet humour at the end (ooh! sorry!). Finally, a pop quiz (no prize - what? you think we're made of money?): Spot the connection between 'Sphere' and 'Flubber'. Michele Vinev

Auditions for new Brink play
Brink New Play productions are currently casting for their May productions, Between Two Circuses. Set in Belfast before the ceasefire, it is a surreal thriller of political intrigue where all seems routine until events take an unexpected twistMale actors aged between 14 and 40 are needed. There will be open auditions on Tuesday April 14 between 2.00pm and 5.00pm at the Town Hall Theatre.

Bowie at The Quays?
WELL, THE next best thing anyway! Sunday April 19 sees one of the best tribute bands in the world. Jean Genie do a two-hour tribute to the music of David Bowie. Featuring the Bowie lookalike John Mainwaring, an original member of Bowie's Spiders from Mars band, this Rroup is so good that they wowed Bowie himself. You can get your tickets for the show in advance at Zhivago, and all proceeds go the National Council for the Blind.