2017 Manannan’s Choice of the Year: The Michael Players RBV
Channel: Culture Vannin
Date: 12/04/2017

The Isle of Man’s most prestigious cultural award is presented for the Island’s leading group of Manx dialect theatre performers, the Michael Players.

Presented immediately after their brilliant performance of a key Manx dialect theatre play, the award of the Reih Bleeaney Vanannan ("Manannan’s Choice of the Year") award to the Michael Players recognises over 60 years of community cultural contribution in their presenting, preserving and promoting Manx dialect theatre.
Revived after the Second World War by Miss Mary Cannell, the Players have been performing Manx dialect theatre for over 60 years, and today stand as the only remaining group who continue to regularly perform these traditional plays of the Isle of Man.
In addition to keeping the performance of Manx theatre alive, the Michael Players are also the sole guardians of the most important collection of Manx dialect play manuscripts anywhere in the world. With over 60 plays currently being transcribed, their collection is larger than any other archive.

‘Manannan’s Choice of the Year’ or the ‘Reih Bleeaney Vanannan’ is an annual cultural award from Culture Vannin made to an individual or group who has made the greatest contribution to the Island’s cultural heritage. The nominees come from a wide variety of backgrounds, working to promote and support language, literature, art, music, dance, history, education and the environment, and many more.

More about the award can be found here: http://www.culturevannin.im/rbv_entry_463682.html

Information about future performances by the Michael Players RBV will be found on the Michael Heritage Trust website: https://www.facebook.com/michaelheritagetrust/?fref=ts
The Manx dialect plays of the Michael Players’ Collection are in the process of being transcribed. The completed plays can be found here: http://manxliterature.com/the-michael-players-collection/

This award came at the end of the “Manks Concert” marking the anniversary of the death of Sophia Morrison. Held at the Peel Centenary Centre on the 14th of January 2017, it marked the 100th anniversary of the death of this great figure of Manx cultural history.
The event was organised by: The Manx Branch of the Celtic Congress; The Mannin Branch of the Celtic League; and Mec Vannin.

Film produced by Culture Vannin, 2017.
Culture Vannin exists to promote and support all aspects of culture in the Isle of Man.
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