Become a Friend of the Festival
13 June 2018
The artist and Galway-native will also perform in Irish National Opera’s Orfeo ed Euridice
Stephanie Dufresne is a dancer, actor and singer from Galway who is now based in Dublin. In 2017 Stephanie appeared on the cover of the GIAF programme.
We’re delighted that this year not only does Stephanie once again feature on our programme cover, but she will also be appearing at the Festival as one of the dancers in Irish National Opera’s production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice from 23-29 July.
Q. What’s it like to see your image on the programme cover, on posters, on buses … everywhere really?!
Terrifying! No, honestly it’s brilliant. I love the images and my favourite part of last year was receiving daily selfies from my mates around Ireland leaping up and down in front of the posters recreating them for me. Keep ‘em coming guys!
Q. How does the experience differ to last year?
I think I knew more about how omnipresent the images would be this year. Last year it was just a fun gig and this year I’m like, ok, this is the part of the Summer where I have to get used to seeing my face everywhere. I’m always thrilled to work with Paul, Colm, Val and Triona though.
Q. What are you most looking forward to about performing in this year’s Festival?
As a Galwegian who hasn’t performed in the festival in six years, I’m super excited to be in Galway for the summer and to have an opportunity to perform on home ground. I grew up in the festival and I have a lot of cheeky memories in the festival club after shows so I’m looking forward to that as well! The Arts Festival is my favourite time of year to be in Galway.
Q. What else are you up to right now?
I’ve just finished 'In Clouds', a commissioned performance for the Cork Midsummer Festival, which I choreographed and also performed in as a dancer. At the end of the summer, we’ll take Emma Martin’s ‘Girl Song’ to Groningen in the Netherlands which will be deadly because I got my BA in Dance in Rotterdam and still have a lot of mates there.
Q. And now for the difficult question … do you have a favourite cover?
I love all of Colm Hogan’s work but I have to say my favourite from this year’s batch is the full body shot in front of the orange/red. I’d say that’s the one that will make it into me grandmother’s nursing home in Meath this year (she’s got last year’s poster of me up at the moment). We get great fun out of these posters in my family! I love the idea of having works like these framed so that one day I can be like, ‘Look kids, Mammy was a dancer once!'
