MONSTERS and minions gathered at Merchant’s Quay on Saturday evening for the rising of the Bishop’s Lady as part of Limerick’s inaugural Samhain Festival.
Hundreds of people took to the streets of Limerick, many in costume, on Saturday, October 28, where a parade of lanterns guided the Bishop’s Lady from Merchant’s Quay to Clancy’s Strand.
“The Bishop’s Lady is from the Bard of Thomond’s poem, The Drunken Thady and the Bishop’s Lady,” Martin Shannon, Artistic Director Lumen Street Theatre explains.
“She’s a notorious ghost that haunts Castle Street, and tonight she’s going to roam the medieval streets of Limerick once more,” he added.
The parade made it’s way from Merchant’s Quay just after sundown, passing St Mary’s Cathedral, King John’s Castle and Thomond Bridge while meeting stilt-walkers and fire performers along the way who lit up the trail to Clancy’s Strand.
Preparation for the parade was ongoing for a month getting the detailed lanterns to what they were on the evening; Martin explained the group was still working on lanterns on the day of the parade, making final adjustments.
“The idea would be that we are able to store these, and then build on the population of the lanterns for next year,” Shannon concluded.
