After years of busking on the streets of Wexford and beyond, Wizard Fruit have been awarded the 2026 Westgate Music Rehearsal Space Residency…
The Wexford-based band will undertake a six-month creative residency supported by Wexford Arts Office in association with Wexford Arts Centre. The residency will provide dedicated time and space to develop a new body of original work, culminating in a public performance later this year. Dates are yet to be confirmed.
Led by twin brothers Seán and Oisín Daly Carney, Wizard Fruit have developed their music through years of live street performance in town centres, market spaces and festivals across Ireland, the UK and Europe. The group have built a following through consistent live performance and a willingness to perform in a wide range of public settings.
For this residency, the band will focus on the creation of a new live work featuring entirely original and previously unheard material.
The project will explore themes of beauty, humour, romance and everyday life through Wizard Fruit’s art-rock sound, combining music with elements of storytelling and performance.
“We’ve spent years performing on the streets and learning directly from audiences,” Oisín Daly Carney told Wexford Weekly.
“This residency gives us the opportunity to take everything we’ve learned and create something more ambitious and more complete than anything we’ve done before.”
The work will be developed over five months of the residency, with an additional month dedicated to reflection and refinement following its initial presentation.
The announcement also coincides with news that fellow Wexford band TEAS have been awarded a separate four-week residency at the Westgate Rehearsal Studio.
While details of the new work remain under development, audiences can expect a performance of original music shaped by humour, emotional depth and narrative focus.
“We try not to take ourselves too seriously,” says Oisín Daly Carney, “but we do take the music seriously. This is our job. It’s what we’ve dedicated ourselves to, and we want to make the most of this opportunity.”
Further announcements, including performance dates and project details, will be shared in the coming months.
Wexford Weekly
This article was published by a member of the Wexford Weekly team.
Read also:
Remember to submit your news to Wexford Weekly! To advertise on our socials or website, email our team at info@wexfordweekly.com