'It’s overwhelming, surreal and so much fun' - Tara
Michelle Taite
The countdown is on for the Cavan Rose, Tara Rogers, who is set to take to the stage this Tuesday evening in an attempt to be crowned the Rose of Tralee 2022.
The Knockbride lass sounded ecstatic during her phonecall with the Celt, as she tried to speak over the symphony of voices of roses chiming together to sing Tara’s song, 'Have You Ever Seen The Rain'.
“It has been unreal,” says Tara, speaking about the journey so far. “I really cannot describe what it’s like. We’re going all the time from six o’clock in the morning to twelve o’clock at night. It’s go, go, go. Between getting ready and going around different stops, it’s crazy, and we’re treated like celebrities.”
“It’s mad because I’m only from Cavan and you’d think walking down the street of Leitrim that people would pass no remarks but you’ve little kids coming up to you looking for signatures and everything. It’s overwhelming, surreal and so much fun.”
Very fancy
The 33 Roses travelled through different counties on the way down to Tralee, including Leitrim, Limerick, Galway, Dublin, Wexford and more. The best attractions of each county were showcased during their journeys, and they were treated to various gala dinners.
“You wouldn’t have one of these in Cavan anyway,” Tara says, speaking about the prestigious dinners. “They’re very fancy, I’m not used to it. The table manners need to be good and you have to be able to make small talk. They’re so much fun though, we have good craic at them.”
While Tara enjoyed all of the Gala dinners, the one in Kildare sticks out in her mind the most.
“We had a Gala dinner in Barberstown on Monday and all my family came. That was the real moment for me, to see all of them in a room with Daithi O Se, Marty Morrisey, all 33 roses, and Anthony O’Gara who is the CEO of the Rose of Tralee, it was a big moment for them.”
“It’s lovely to be doing this for me, but to be doing it for them and to get this far, that was the high point of it all.”
Tears
However, once the dinner came to an end, Tara had to say goodbye to her supportive family, a task which proved to be even more difficult that she imagined.
“My granny was crying saying goodbye to me and she had me in tears. You’d swear I was never going to see them again. I’m going to see them Friday and it was Monday, but I was balling. It was purely just the overwhelming feeling of doing something like this for them and them telling me they’re so proud. You do hear as you’re growing up that they’re so proud of you but now, at this moment, I know I’m doing them proud which is nice.”
Tara has received great air time through The Rose of Tralee’s social media accounts. The organisation posted a video of the Cavan Rose singing her song in Barack Obama Plaza in county Offaly while the other roses sang along. A second video was also released of Tara throwing shapes to a famous TikTok dance on stage during the festival events over the weekend.
However, the lead up to the event is coming to an end as the RTÉ Rose of Tralee International Festival will air live on RTÉ One and the RTÉ Player from 8pm to 9pm and 9:35pm to 11:35pm tonight and Tuesday. Tune in tomorrow night to see Tara’s bid to claim the crown.