Dylan’s Magic On Tour
“Poetic madness, intoxication, call it what you will, is something that I wish every young person could have a chance to experience. It is a real form of magic, of bewitchment. Being mastered by it was one of the great experiences of my life – it changed my life. It’s a rite of passage. Once you’ve gone through it, you’re never the same again.” Philip Pullman
Part of the official Dylan Thomas 100 Festival celebrations and supported by the Department Skills, Developing Dylan will use the magic of Dylan Thomas’s words to inspire the people of Wales. As well as encouraging confidence in reading and writing, Developing Dylan will motivate generation to appreciate and interpret Dylan Thomas’s work in new and innovative ways, whether that’s through rap, film, poetry or even social media.
Developing Dylan is supported by a range of high profile writers and cultural figures such as Philip Pullman, Owen Sheers, National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke, Joe Dunthorne, Bethan Gwanas, Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, Young People’s Laureate Martin Daws, DJ Huw Stephens and Dylan Thomas’s granddaughter Hannah Ellis.
This website will host films and resource packs from the workshops as well as selected footage from the events. Whether through prose, verse, music or visual art, Developing Dylan will celebrate the diverse ways in which Dylan Thomas’s poetry can be appreciated, shared and enjoyed.
“The work of Dylan Thomas inspires on a global scale, and it is essential that all parts of Wales can have a chance to appreciate his work in a fun and inventive way. This project is going to enable those who might not naturally take an interest in his work to do so, and to come to appreciate this national treasure.”
Radio 1 and Radio Cymru DJ, Huw Stephens.
Literature Wale
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Literature Wales is the national organisation responsible for developing and promoting literature. It is made up of Yr Academi Gymreig / The Welsh Academy, which is the Society of Writers in Wales, and Tŷ Newydd Writers’ Centre.
Its many projects and activities include Wales Book of the Year, the National Poet of Wales, literary tourism, the Writers on Tour funding scheme, writing courses at Tŷ Newydd, Translators’ House Wales, funding and advice for writers, the Dinefwr and Tŷ Newydd festivals, Young People’s Writing Squads, fieldworkers in the south Wales valleys and north Wales.
Literature Wales works with the support of the Arts Council of Wales and the Welsh Assembly Government. It is one of the resident organisations of the Wales Millennium Centre, where it runs the Glyn Jones Centre.
Dylan Thomas 100 – www.dylanthomas100.org
Dylan Thomas 100 is an emergent community of many organisations, individuals and events brought together via social networks and this site (as well as, the old fashioned way, in person)
Telesgop – www.rockandrollpoet.co.uk
This web-platform is an educational resource that includes specific text related lessons and a wealth of resources and anyone interested in knowing more about one of Wales’s most famous literary figures – Dylan Thomas.
Into Film – www.intofilm.org
Developing Dylan will be working with Into Film on the International Competition award ceremony. Watch this space for more information.
