Jeremy Irons attends the 48th Annual International Achievement Summit:

From July 3 to July 8, 2009, Jeremy Irons attended the 48th Annual International Achievement Summit in Cape Town, South Africa.  Here are some excerpts from the Academy of Achievement 2009 International Summit Highlights.  The complete page of highlights can be found on the Academy of Achievement web site.

The following written materials and the photo of Jeremy Irons are from the Academy of Achievement web site.

•  That evening, the group returned to the One&Only for the black-tie Banquet of the Golden Plate. Award-winning actor Jeremy Irons read individual citations lauding the Academy's new honorees, who were presented with the Golden Plate by Desmond Tutu.

•  Tuesday morning, Jeremy Irons conducted a spontaneous question and answer session with the students, before Jane Goodall returned to discuss her work more deeply with the student delegates.

•  After a fascinating game drive, the group reconvened at the Singita Ebony Lodge for a final informal dinner discussion. Jeremy Irons read the poem "Ithaka" by the 20th century Greek poet Constantin Cavafy. Implicitly comparing the voyage of Odysseus to the life journey of the student delegates, he lingered on the lines "Hope your road is a long one, full of adventure, full of discovery."

•  Irons also showed a less-known musical side of his talent, picking up a guitar to play a humorous duet with Vince Gill. Amy Grant and Vince Gill took turns singing solo numbers, giving the Academy a preview of songs from their upcoming albums. In a completely unexpected moment, Vince Gill invited his daughter, Jenny Gill, to the stage, where she gave a memorable performance of his song, "Whenever You Come Around." At the end of the evening, Jeremy Irons urged the student delegates to hook up their iPods to the Academy sound system, and as the students took turns playing DJ, the entire group enjoyed a spontaneous dance party for the rest of the evening.

Read the complete summit highlights here!

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