First Fortnight in association with Wexford Arts Centre presents So Say So / Therapy Sessions featuring Taqralik Partridge, Melissa Shaginoff, Leslie McCue, Basciville, & Anam Choir / Sinéad Furlong, compered by Stephen James Smith.
Join us for an uplifting evening of poems, stories and songs in an intimate, community-minded night of solidarity and good craic. Inuit and First Nations artists Taqralik Partridge, Melissa Shaginoff and Leslie Kachena McCue will travel from Canada to share the stage with Wexford’s own Basciville who will provide richly textured music to thread it all together. Expect candour, connection, and a room that sings back.
Wexford's Anam Choir, led by Sinead Furlong, will also perform Norah Walsh’s beautiful composition entitled ‘Out from Under the Overwhelm’ which was commissioned by First Fortnight for the 2025 Festival. Hosted by poet Stephen James Smith this will be a joy filled event celebrating the positive and empowering effects of artistic collaboration.
TAQRALIK PARTRIDGE
Taqralik Partridge is an Inuk and Scottish curator, artist, and writer originally from Kuujjuaq, Nunavik. She is the former director of the Nordic Lab at SAW Gallery in Ottawa and has worked as a curator for the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Art Gallery of Guelph, and independently for various galleries. Taqralik is the former editor-at-large for theInuit Art Quarterly. She has performed at festivals in Canada and internationally for more than 20 years, as both a spoken word poet and Inuit throat singer; and her visual and film work has been shown at exhibitions in North America, Australia, Norway, New Zealand, and the UK. She currently lives with her family in Ottawa.
MELISSA SHAGINOFF — @mshaginoff
Melissa Shaginoff is an Ahtna and Paiute citizen of the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council and the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, and a member of the Udzisyu (caribou) clan. She is an interdisciplinary artist, an independent curator, and the Alaska Specialist for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. Melissa lives and works on Dena’ina lands in Dghayitnu (Anchorage). Her practice centers on conversation for understanding, gifting for survival, and creating access points to cultural knowledge.
LESLIE KACHENA MCCUE — @itsmccue
Leslie Kachena McCue is a member of the Mississaugas of Curve Lake First Nation, who has fought for Indigenous rights by breaking stereotypes and raising cultural awareness. Her work is driven by her past, her passion to educate, and the motivation to empower others. Leslie is a Traditional dancer, an Indigenous Knowledge Resource Teacher, and the Coordinator for the Royal Ontario Museum Youth Cabinet. Leslie is a Resident Artist Educator for the 2017–2019 seasons and is part of the Drama School faculty at Young People’s Theatre. She has a strong passion for supporting and promoting Indigenous artists through freelance work in administration, tour management, fundraising, facilitation, and curation, with organizations such as Chocolate Woman Collective, Kaha:wi Dance Theatre, and the Indigenous Arts Festival. Leslie has been asked to perform and speak at many venues, including the Vancouver Olympics Athletes’ Village and pavilions, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and the Juno Beach Museum in France.
BASCIVILLE — @basciville
Equal parts band and production duo, Basciville have spent the past few years as quiet powerhouses in the Irish music scene, working as collaborators, writers, and producers with names including Susan O’Neill, Colm Mac Con Iomaire, The Ocelots, and Ailbhe Reddy. Their own output to date includes the EPsBlues in RedandFor All Lost Youth, as well as their acclaimed debut albumHymns to the Air. Known for blending folk, art rock, orchestral swells, and lyrical introspection, their sound moves between sparse minimalism and expansive arrangements, always led by a desire to soundtrack both the personal and political unrest of modern life.
ANAM CHOIR — @Anam__Choir
Anam Choir, a play onAnam Cara(which translates to “soul friend” from Irish), is a mixed-voice pop/rock choir based in Wexford, founded and led by Sinéad Furlong. Sinéad set out to bring people together through a love of singing — to have fun, meet new people, and perform to a high level. Anam Choir started with six singers in February 2022 and has grown over the years, welcoming singers from all walks of life. Through safeguarding policies, the choir has remained a safe and welcoming space for all. No matter how you show up to rehearsal each week, you are always welcome, and Sinéad aims for singers to leave each rehearsal feeling better — vocally and in themselves. With a focus on fun, Anam Choir delivers uplifting and engaging performances. Notable performances and projects include Wallis Bird’sHanding It OverEP; two sold-out summer showcases (in Crown Live in 2023 and in the National Opera House in 2025); and three very successful fundraisers for Medical Aid for Palestinians during the 2024 Fleadh andThe Sameer Projectin summer and autumn 2025.
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