Despite being separated by the great Atlantic Ocean and by more than 8500 kilometers, Brazil and Ireland nurture relations that date back to the 16th century. From the migration of Irish people to Latin American countries during the 16th and 19th centuries to the development of diplomatic ties between both countries from the 1970s onwards, their mutual improvement is notable — due to the exchange of knowledge and experiences — influencing the historical, social and cultural dimensions of both nations.
Thereby, the Núcleo de Estudos Irlandeses (NEI) follows a similar premise by proposing activities and events in order to explore Brazil’s relations with Irish literature, theatre, and culture. The Irish Studies at the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) was founded in 2016 under the coordination of Professors Alinne Balduino Pires Fernandes and Maria Rita Drumond Vianna, with the collaboration of Professors Beatriz Kopschitz Bastos and José Roberto O’Shea, students, researchers and alumni from both UFSC and other national and international institutions.
Currently, NEI’s activities and events are financially supported by both the University itself and other institutions related to Ireland and with similar goals — as the Embassy and Consulate General of Ireland in Brazil and the theatrical company Cia Ludens, for instance. NEI’s research, projects, and events are based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and aim to intersect them with other areas of knowledge — such as fields of Sociology, History, Psychology, Philosophy, Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Health, Technology, Engineering, and Environmental Studies, for example.
Our academic events & activities
Jornadas do Núcleo de Estudos Irlandeses
• Myth and Reality in Irish Literature, Theatre and Visual Arts (17•08•16)
• Protean Spaces in Irish Literature, Theatre and Film (07•11•17)
• (Con)Figurations of Families in Irish Literature, Theatre and Film (07•11•18)
• Where Irish Literature, Theatre and History Meet (05•11•19)
• Intersections of Irish Literature, Theatre and Technology (12•11•21)
• Irish Arts and Disabilities (7-8•11•23)
• Spaces, Places and Psychogeographies of Ireland (5-6•11•24)
• Soundscapes of Ireland (30-1•9-10•25)
Online Round Tables
• How the Story Travels: The Contemporary Irish Short Story (14•10•20)
• Shakespeare in Ireland and Brazil: Translation and Performance (28•10•20)
• Irish Literature and Ecocriticism (31•03•21)
• Creative Writing: Towards a Pedagogy (28•04•21)
• Contemporary Irish Film Studies (29•07•21)
• Contemporary Beckett (16•09•21)
• The theatre of Tom Murphy (27•10•21)
• Contemporary Joyces (23•02•22)
• Violent Cinemas in Northern Ireland and Brazil (08•06•22)
• The Theatre and Cinema of Martin McDonagh (29•05•23)
• Shakespeare in Brazil and Ireland: Cultural and Political Perspectives (12•03•24)
Special events and collaborations:
• III Jornada de Integração de Letras Inglês (29•05•25)
• Publications of the series on Irish theatre and disability in partnership with Iluminuras publishing house (2023-2025)
• Exhibition of “Luvas e Anéis” from Cia Ludens
• V Circle of readings Cia Ludens (2-6•10•23)
• The inauguration of the #Ulysses100 mural, painted by Luiz F Serigheli as a result of the cultural competition Ulysses 100 Pelos Olhos Brasileiros (22•06•22)
• Online exhibition of “Bailegangaire” ( 10-11•12•21/8 P.M.╎12•12•21/ 3 P.M.)
• Book launch Vidas irlandesas: o cinema de Alan Gilsenan em contexto during the I Workshop in Progress (06-07•08•19) & the event Alan Gilsenan’s Film Collection Exhibition (15•08•19)
• Dramatic reading of the play No pântano dos gatos…│By the Bog of Cats (08•11•17)
• 13th Annual Irish Theatrical Diaspora (27-28•04•17)
• The Road to God Knows Where: bilingual book launch (16•05•16) & film exhibition (23•05•16)
• Irish Lives: The Cinema of Alan Gilsenan: Part II (29•07•15) & Part III (18-20•05•16)
NEI's members' associations
• Asociación Española de Estudios Irlandeses (AEDEI)
• Associação Brasileira de Estudos Irlandeses (ABEI)
• Associação Nacional de Pós-Graduação e Pesquisa em Letras e Linguística (ANPOLL)
• International Association for the Study of Irish Literatures (IASIL)
• Society for Irish Latin American Studies (SILAS)
• Yeats International Society; International Federation for Theatre Research (IFTR)
• Among other national and international associations
NEI's members involvement with advisory boards and editorial committees of scientific journals
NEI's publication history
• Ilha do Desterro 71.2 – Artistic Collaborations (2018); organized by Alinne Balduino Fernandes, Maria Rita Drumond Viana and Miriam Haughton
• Vidas Irlandesas: O Cinema de Alan Gilsenan em Contexto (PPGI, Insular, 2019); organized by Beatriz Kopschitz Bastos, and José Roberto O’Shea
• Tom Murphy Collection (Iluminuras, 2019), with translations by Domingos Nunez; organized by Beatriz Kopschitz Bastos
• Contemporary Irish Documentary Theatre (Bloomsbury, 2020); organized by Beatriz Kopschitz Bastos and Shaun Richards
• Ilha do Desterro 73.2 – The Irish Theatrical Diaspora (2020); organized by Beatriz Kopschitz Bastos and Patrick Lonergan
• A Irlanda no Cinema Roteiros e Contextos Críticos; organized by Beatriz Kopschitz Bastos and Lance Pettitt
• Maeve (edUFSC) by Pat Murphy, with the participation of other NEI members as authors and translators
• Theatre, Performance and Commemoration: Staging Crisis, Memory and Nationhood (Bloomsbury); organized by Miriam Haughton, Alinne Fernandes and Pieter Verstraete
• Several articles and chapters in national and international books and journals
Collaborating institutions
• University College Dublin (UCD)
• National University of Ireland Galway (NUI Galway)
• Trinity College Dublin (TCD)
• Dublin City University (DCU)
• Queen’s University Belfast (QUB)
• Among other institutions in Brazil and abroad
