‘Once’ Duo Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova to reunite for first tour in 11 years

Hansard and Irglova recorded and toured as The Swell Season after their success with the film ‘Once’, but have only made a handful of onstage appearances together in the past decade.

05 November 2021 | Jonathan Cohen | Variety

Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova will re-team in early 2022 for their first tour together in nearly 11 years, Variety can exclusively reveal. The performances will take place next March to coincide with the 15th anniversary of the movie “Once,” which starred the duo and featured their original music.

The film’s “Falling Slowly” won the 2007 Academy Award for best original song; a hit Broadway musical adaptation later won eight Tony Awards, including best musical, in 2012.

Following the release of the film version of “Once,” Hansard and Irglova recorded and toured as The Swell Season, but have only made a handful of onstage appearances together in the past decade. The upcoming shows will feature material from both “Once” and The Swell Season, as well as the pair’s respective solo careers.

The tour comes at a time when “Once” remains a cultural touchstone, having been referenced in a recent Christmas-themed episode of Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso.” “That these songs still resonate and have been carried forward through the years is a songwriter’s dream,” Irglova tells Variety. “Realizing there is a new audience who have never seen us perform these songs live is even more of a blessing.”

“Although Marketa and I have stayed in contact and Marketa has guested on my records, and made a few of her own, it’s been a long time since we both revisited these songs together,” adds Hansard. “The words and music have gone on to have their own lives on musical stages around the world. They don’t need us anymore, which is wonderful! But we’ll call them back in to join us for this run of dates in March. It’ll be wonderful to sing them together again.”

Irglova’s recent releases include three lengthy singles, including “Among the Living,” a new short film for which was recently shot in and around her home in Iceland. She is preparing a new solo album for release at some point in 2022.

As previously reported, Hansard collaborated with Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder and Cat Power on the soundtrack to Sean Penn’s film “Flag Day,” and is a member of Vedder’s new solo band The Earthlings, who made their live debut in late September at Vedder’s Ohana festival in southern California. Expect new music from Hansard in 2022 as well.

Here are Marketa Irglova and Glen Hansard’s 2022 tour dates:

March 11: Minneapolis (State Theater)
March 12: Chicago (Cadillac Palace Theatre)
March 14: Philadelphia (Kimmel Cultural Campus)
March 15: Boston (Emerson Theatre)
March 17: New York (Beacon Theatre
March 18: Washington, D.C. (The Anthem)

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