James Flannery 2004

James W. Flannery (born Nov 8, 1936 in Hartford, CT) is a producer, stage director, singer, scholar, critic and Professor Emeritus at Emory College of Arts and Sciences in Atlanta.[1][2] He is a specialist in the dramatic work of W.B. Yeats and is one of the leading interpreters of the art songs of Thomas Moore.[3]

Early life

In 1958 Flannery completed his undergraduate studies in music and English at Trinity College located in Hartford, CT, graduating Phi Beta Kappa.[4] He pursued a Master of Fine Arts in acting and directing at the Yale School of Drama, graduating in 1961. He then obtained a Doctorate in English and Anglo-Irish Literature from Trinity College Dublin in 1970.[3]

Career

Between 1989 and 1993, Flannery held the position of executive director at the famous Abbey Theatre in Dublin, where he organized the Yeats International Theatre Festival.[4] During each of the five years, he produced three plays by Yeats, accompanied by original music composed by Bill Whelan, who later achieved success as the composer of Riverdance.[5] In his 2022 autobiography, The Road To Riverdance, Whelan mentions that "some members of the company found Flannery's dictatorial style curious, but nobody could deny his deep knowledge (and zeal) for Yeats as a playwright."[5][6]

In 1988 Flannery founded the W.B. Yeats Foundation at Emory University.[4] He has garnered critical acclaim for his staging and directing of the plays of Yeats in America, Canada and Ireland.[3]

Flannery maintains that Yeat's plays sought to inspire people to live "creative and abundant lives".[7]

He is a talented tenor and is one of the foremost interpreters of the art songs of Thomas Moore[8] and in 1997 published a book and recording titled, Dear Harp of My Country: The Irish Melodies of Thomas Moore.[9]

He was a visiting professor at the University of Ulster, Northern Ireland in 2000 and 2001.[3]

In 2010 he was named an International Associate Artist at the Abbey Theatre.[10]

Personal life

He married Ildiko Elizabeth Pokoly in 1964.[11]

Honors

He has been Winship Professor Emeritus of the Arts and Humanities at Emory University Emeritus College since 2016.[12] He received honorary doctorates from Trinity College (Hartford) in 1991 and from the University of Ulster (Derry) in 2001.[11][3] In 2010 he was honored as a visiting professor at the University College, Dublin.[4]

In 2012 he won the Southeastern Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Arts and Entertainment for his film A Southern Celtic Christmas Concert on PBS. It has since been broadcast regularly as a Christmas special on PBS stations across the country.[13] In the same year, for his many contributions to the Irish-American community, he was named the “Irishman of the Year” by the Hibernian Benevolent Society in Atlanta.[4]

In 2020 he got a 2020 Presidential Distinguished Service Awards from the Global Irish Network.[1][14]

Irish America Magazine has listed him among the one hundred most distinguished Irish-Americans five times.[4]

Books

  • 1997: Dear Harp of My Country: The Irish Melodies of Thomas Moore[9] [book and recording]
  • 1976: W. B. Yeats and the Idea of a Theatre: The Early Abbey Theatre in Theory and in Practice[15]
  • 1970: Miss Horniman and the Abbey Theatre[16]

References

  1. 1 2 Irish President to Honor Emory’s Flannery for Cultural Contributions by Trevor Williams, Nov 17, 2020, Global Atlanta
  2. ↑ James W Flannery: PhD Professor Emeritus ECAS: W B Yeats Program at Emory College
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Executive Director: James W. Flannery W.B. Yeats Foundation
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 James W. Flannery: Biography Emery College of Arts and Sciences
  5. 1 2 Meagher, John (22 October 2022). "Composer Bill Whelan reveals Riverdance rows and the joy of working with Kate Bush". Independent.ie.
  6. ↑ Demolder, Kate (24 September 2022). "'I still get such a buzz': Bill Whelan remembers Riverdance glory days two decades on". Irish Examiner.
  7. ↑ The ‘Total Theatre’ of W.B. Yeats Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies, University of Notre Dame, Oct 26, 2022
  8. ↑ TraditionalTuath: Reels & Rondo by Mic Moroney, Irish Times, Nov 6 1999
  9. 1 2 Dear Harp of My Country: The Irish Melodies of Thomas Moore by James Flannery, Pub: J.S. Sanders (1997), ISBN 9781879941366
  10. ↑ A Southern Celtic Christmas Concert American Public Television
  11. 1 2 Professor James W. Flannery: website eircom.net
  12. ↑ Emory University Emeritus College Newsletter, vol 2, #11
  13. ↑ A Southern Celtic Christmas Explores Christmas Traditions by Mandy Wilson, Georgia Public Broadcasting, Dec 19, 2022
  14. ↑ Min Coveney announces recipients of Presidential Distinguished Service Awards Global Irish Economic Forum, 06 November 2020
  15. ↑ Review of "W. B. Yeats and the Idea of a Theatre" by A. Norman Jeffares, Theatre Research International, Vol 4 #1, Oct 1978, pp. 68 - 69
  16. ↑ Miss Horniman and the Abbey Theatre
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