The Other Bloomsday 2009 - Press Release
The Wild Geese Players of Seattle will perform a staged reading of Circe,
chapter 15 of James Joyce’s Ulysses, on Saturday, June 13th, 2009, 1:00-3:45pm,
at the University Bookstore,
4326 University Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105.
Donations towards costs of posters and props are welcome.
It is late on the night of June 16th, 1904, and Leopold Bloom has
followed Stephen Dedalus into Dublin’s red-light district. Bloom has a
paternal concern for Stephen’s welfare and knows that Stephen is now
very drunk. In the Circe chapter of Homer’s Odyssey, the
witch-goddess Circe transforms Odysseus’ crew into swine. In Joyce’s
version, Bloom will have hallucinatory encounters with the denizens of
Nighttown and confront some of his deepest fantasies and fears, before
emerging victorious. This chapter is extraordinarily long. We will
perform the first half this year and read the second half in 2010.
The Wild Geese have been staging readings of Ulysses and other Irish
literature in Seattle since 1998. We are a diverse group of people with
an interest in Irish literature, and most of us are either Irish-born or
have Irish connections. More generally, Wild Geese refers to the Irish
diaspora, after the
original Wild
Geese, exiled
Irish soldiers and their descendants who served in European armies in
the 16th–18th centuries.
www.WildGeeseSeattle.org
Click to read and post comments
James Joyce’s novel Ulysses takes place on June 16th, 1904.
It follows the wanderings of Leopold Bloom, a Jewish everyman,
and Stephen Dedalus, a young writer and Joyce’s alter ego,
as they wander the streets of Dublin.
The centenary of Bloomsday,
June 16th, 2004, was celebrated
worldwide.
The Wild Geese Players of Seattle will present a staged reading of
chapter 14, “Oxen of the Sun”,
adapted from the 1922 edition of Ulysses.
The reading will take place at the
Elliott Bay Bookstore, 101 S. Main St,
on Sat 14th June 2008 at 4:00pm.
The wandering Leopold Bloom visits a maternity hospital,
where poor Mina Purefoy is entering her 3rd day of labor.
Bloom encounters a group of drunken medical students,
who carry on wildly
while discussing poor Mrs. Purefoy’s fate.
In this chapter, Joyce’s incomparable narrative
celebrates the history of the English language
through elaborate parodies and structures.
At the same time, he reveals much about contemporary attitudes surrounding pregnancy and birth.
Download the
Oxen of the Sun poster
(PDF, 45KB) and post it around town.
Entrance is free, but donations are appreciated.
Further background information on the Oxen of the Sun chapter can be
found at the
Kennesaw guide to Ulysses
and the Joyce portal.
Or read the text of the chapter here.
2005 Rehearsal
Back: Joe Martin, Bill Barnes, Joseph Ryan, Ciaran O’Mahony.
Front: Niall McDonnell, Jim McDermott, Scott McKinstry.
Other Events
See our archives for details of our previous readings.
Click to read and post comments
The Other Bloomsday 2008 - Press Release
Now that the excitement of the Joycean Bloomsday Centenary has passed,
the Wild Geese Players of Seattle still continue their Joycean journey
(as ever kindly supported by the Irish Heritage Club).
This is the eleventh year that they are presenting staged readings of James Joyce’s Ulysses.
In this year we find the story at Chapter 14, Oxen of the Sun.
It is 9pm on a mid-June evening.
Leopold Bloom attempts to visit an old friend at a maternity hospital,
and somehow manages to make a tour through every English literary style
before the twentieth century.
SATURDAY JUNE 14TH
Location TBD
DONATIONS AT THE DOOR
Further Information:
www.wildgeeseseattle.org
Click to read and post comments
![[James Joyce]](https://www.WildGeeseSeattle.org/images/jj2.jpg)
A small selection of some of the better Joyce-related websites.
Joycean Resources
Joycean Organizations
Ulysses
Bloomsday Centenary
Festivals commemorating the centenary of Bloomsday, on June 16th, 2004.
eTexts
Free online copies of Joyce’s writings.
Click to read and post comments