| The Rose of Tralee  High-pitched
squeals and nervous laughter echo along the corridors of the Brandon Hotel
in Tralee. Peeping surreptitiously into open bedrooms, I see gaggles of
giggling girls. “Does my make-up look good enough for TV?”
asks one as she applies one last slick of lipstick to her pink lips. “Where
are my hairclips?” wonders another as she searches the room in a
panic, her black curls falling about her pretty face.
Suddenly, a girl in a blue dress shrieks. Oh no! She’s broken the
heel of her shoe. The other girls rush to the rescue. Is there anything
they can do? What about another pair of shoes?
A tall tuxedoed man (one of many who serve as escorts) saves what might
have been a disastrous day. He fishes a tube of superglue from his bulging
pockets. What a hero.
Who are these pretty girls? Why are they so nervous? Who are the heroic
men in tuxedos? And what are they all doing in Tralee?
From August 18 to 22, thirty young women of Irish heritage from all over
the world took part in the International Rose of Tralee Festival. It’s
one of Ireland’s most unique and renowned festivals. This year,
I went along to see what all the fuss was about.
First, I met the Roses – girls from Ireland, the UK, the US, Canada,
Australia, New Zealand, Dubai and Luxembourg. I saw them being treated
like princesses at the Rose Ball, adored like celebrities in the parade
and turned into movie stars for their TV appearances.
Throngs of children surrounded the Roses wherever they went, seeking autographs
and taking pictures. Stylists and make-up artists helped them put together
the many outfits they needed for each day’s events. And finally
– lights, camera, action – it was time for their moment of
stardom on TV. Almost one million people tuned in to watch the Rose Selection
live on RTE when one blushing Rose was chosen as the 2006 Rose of Tralee.
Is the Rose of Tralee a beauty contest? According to everybody I’ve
spoken with, it certainly is not. Well then, what is it?
Aoibhínn Ní Shúilleabháin ought to know. This
young woman from County Mayo has just ended her reign as Rose of Tralee
for 2005 and is sad to say goodbye to a wonderful year of her life.
“I’ve had the most intense experiences and fantastic opportunities,”
she said. “I’ve learned so much about the Irish who live abroad
and how much the Rose of Tralee means to them. There are so many Irish
communities all over the world and they are all so vibrant in their own
way. The Rose of Tralee brings them together. It’s a way for them
to connect. That makes it very special.”
 Aoibhínn
spent her year traveling to these Irish communities (making use of the
25,000 travel fund that is part of her prize) and strengthening the relations
between them. She also had a brand-new car which she used to travel to
events all over Ireland. And among the many other prizes were a range
of Newbridge home ware, jewelry, a stunning silver tiara and a perpetual
trophy. The Roses’ duties are not set in stone, but she travels
to lots of Irish centers abroad, promoting the festival and building on
Irish links. She also does a lot of work for a charity of her choice.
Impressive though these prizes may be, the participants in this year’s
Rose of Tralee claim that the event is more than a mere competition. The
Roses who hail from outside Ireland regard the festival as a celebration
of their links with the country of their ancestors.
“It’s a chance for me to show how proud I am of my Irish heritage,”
said Aislin Roche, the San Francisco Rose whose roots are in Counties
Cork and Limerick.
“It helps us to hold on to where we’ve come from and it keeps
the ties to home alive,” added Kathryn Feeney, the Queensland Rose
and (sorry to spoil the surprise) eventual winner of the 2006 title.
Meghan Dixon, the Southern Californian Rose from San Diego, was even more
emphatic. “It’s like we’re one big Irish family spread
out all over the world.”
Most of the girls heard about the festival through their families and
friends. Not so for winner Kathryn Feeney. She had a unique introduction
to the festival.
“My mother works in a nursing home with nuns,” she explained.
“They get a videotaped copy of the Rose Selection sent to them every
year and they always pass it on to my mother. So, you could say I’ve
seen the sacred copies of the Rose of Tralee!” She has promised
to bring a copy back for them this time.
As well as giving people the chance to connect with the land of their
ancestors, the Rose of Tralee Festival also presents people with a rare
opportunity to learn more about their roots.
Erin Barnard, the Texas Rose, came to Ireland with her grandfather Patrick
and his brother Martin. “This was their first visit and they went
in search of their family,” she said. “They made a wonderful
discovery. They found out their grandfather had a brother they didn’t
know about and now we’ve found lots of new relatives. It’s
all thanks to the Rose of Tralee.”
Kathryn Feeney’s father Frank was also paying his first trip to
Ireland. “It’s been the best time of his life,” she
said. “He feels at home here. At a family reunion in Offaly, he
met people that looked like him and instantly there was a connection.”
Southern Californian Rose Meghan Dixon experienced an emotional moment
of her own. “On the trip from Killarney to Dingle, I caught my first
glimpse of the Atlantic from the opposite side,” she explained.
“I felt so blessed to be here that I started to cry.”
This is what the Rose of Tralee is supposed to be about – bringing
people home and exploring what it means to be Irish in the modern world.
The festival has been held in Tralee since 1959. Its origins lie in the
romantic tale of William Mulchinock and his true love Mary O’Connor.
William was a merchant in the town in the 19th century and Mary was his
maid. They fell in love but, because of the class difference between the
two families, their love affair was discouraged.
William emigrated. Years later, unable to forget Mary, he returned to
Tralee only to discover she had died of tuberculosis while he was away.
Grief-stricken, he expressed his love for her in the words of a song –
“The Rose of Tralee.”
In this song, William describes his Rose of Tralee as a fair and lovely
lady. He maintains that it was not her beauty alone that captured his
heart. Mary had a “truth in her eyes ever-dawning”; she was
a strong woman with an honest and sincere character.
This song caught the imaginations of a group of budding entrepreneurs
in 1950s Tralee. The town had suffered from mass emigration in the post-war
years and they were eager to start an event that would bring life and
enthusiasm back to Tralee.
They decided to start a carnival and they chose the “Rose of Tralee”
song as its theme. The main event of the carnival was the search for a
queen – a young woman who embodied the qualities of Mary, the original
Rose of Tralee.
With the help of Kerry people living abroad, they chose Roses from London,
Birmingham and New York as well as from Tralee and Dublin to compete.
Ever since, the Rose of Tralee festival has grown and developed to become
the internationally renowned festival of today.
What has made it so successful? It may have a lot to do with an emigrant’s
nostalgia for the country of their ancestors but there is more to it than
that.
Seán Kelly, one of this year’s judges and former president
of the GAA, has his own thoughts on the matter “I think the competition
has changed with the times. It represents modern Irish women from all
over the world. Honest, sincere, confident women who can communicate with
and relate to everyone from the man in the street to the man in the White
House.”
Christine Frawley, the Philadelphia Rose, agrees. “The Rose of Tralee
sends out an important message,” she said. “It’s not
about beauty. It’s about regular girls who are positive role models.
We all represent Ireland in different ways. The Rose of Tralee gives us
a chance to get together and strengthen our Irish bonds.”
And – as all the Roses would heartily agree – the festival
is also about fun. Each of the 30 girls gets to live the life of a princess
for a week. They wear beautiful clothes. A hairstylist and make-up artist
are on hand at all times to make them look stunning. Crowds queue to ask
for autographs. They have a handsome male chaperon to look after them.
And finally, they get to appear on TV.
“Tralee has opened its arms to us and given us an amazing welcome,”
said New York Rose Melissa Teelin, who was born in Dublin. “The
parade has to be one of my highlights. The crowds who waited on the streets
in the rain simply to see us parade past made me feel like a queen.”
Christine Frawley from Philadelphia was especially taken with the idea
of having her own escort. “Ooh,” she said in a cooing voice.
“My escort is wonderful. He’s great fun and a perfect gentleman.
He looks after me so nicely.”
Her TV appearance was something the Boston Rose Caitlin Sullivan was really
looking forward to when I spoke to her. “I’ve got a sparkly
pink dress that I can’t wait to wear. It’s an opportunity
to do something I’ve never done before,” she said.
Meghan Dixon couldn’t pick any one highlight. “It’s
impossible to choose the best parts,” she gushed. “Every little
thing just makes it better. It’s like having the best ice cream
sundae in the world and then someone adds a cherry, some more chocolate,
more and more and more than you could ever imagine.”
The world’s best ice cream sundae, an opportunity to live the life
of a princess, a chance to explore the history and heritage of Ireland;
the International Rose of Tralee Festival means a great many things to
many different people.
In an Ireland that has changed so much in recent years, in a country whose
population has spread to countries all over the world, it asks important
questions. What does it mean to be Irish? Who are we today? Who were our
ancestors yesterday? And who do we want to be in the world of tomorrow?
But it’s not all about serious philosophical questions. It’s
mostly about fun. Irish people from all over the world come together in
Tralee to celebrate the bonds and relationships that link them to each
other.
“For me, the Rose of Tralee is about pride and respect,” said
Seán Kelly, after his first year as a judge. “It’s
about pride in who you are, pride in Ireland and respect for yourself
and where you come from. It’s something the world needs more of
today. We have enough negative things to contend with and the Rose of
Tralee is a breath of fresh air.”
That breath of fresh air blew through the lives of 30 Roses for five fun-filled
days in Tralee, treating them to a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Most
of them have now returned home. “I have to go back to work much
as I’d love to stay here in Tralee,” said Boston Rose Caitlin
Sullivan wistfully.
Some have added a few extra weeks to their trip. “I’m going
to see my first All Ireland Final,” said San Francisco’s Aislin
Roche with glee in her voice.
2005 Rose Aoibhínn Ní Shúilleabháin is about
to start a new phase in her life as a post-graduate student in London,
after handing her tiara over to the reigning Rose, Kathryn Feeney.
And Kathryn – shocked and absolutely thrilled – is finding
her feet in her new role as Rose of Tralee 2006. “It’s a dream
come true,” she says, “and not only for me but for my entire
family, especially my granny Mary Josephine who is 91 years old. This
is her win too.”
A family win at the Rose of Tralee – how appropriate.
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