Waterboys set Yeats poems to music

Mike Scott has put Yeats' poetry to music

The poetry of WB Yeats is to be set to music by The Waterboys for a series of concerts at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin.

Musician and Waterboys frontman Mike Scott has crafted the songs for a series of concerts at the theatre in March next year.

The Abbey said the "unique venture" by The Waterboys would be part of a season of "diverse and dynamic work" for its 2009-2010 season.

"Since setting WB Yeats' The Stolen Child to music on their classic Fisherman's Blues album, Waterboys frontman Mike Scott has been quietly crafting an astonishing collection of work which combines the poetry of Yeats with the passion of the Waterboys' music," a theatre spokesperson said.

"An Appointment with Mr Yeats is the result and audiences are now invited to join Scott, Irish fiddler extraordinaire Steve Wickham and an array of specially invited guest musicians for five exhilarating nights of song and sound on the Abbey stage."

The theatre's 2009-2010 programme also includes two world premieres from playwrights Tom Kilroy and Sebastian Barry, as well as a number of returning hit productions, and celebrations of significant Irish writers.

In September, the programme opens with 80th birthday celebrations for playwright Brian Friel, with whom the Abbey has had a long-standing creative partnership.