The Alan Kelly gang and Eddie Reader at the Linenhall
For a night of top-drawer folk/traditional music, look no further than The Alan Kelly Gang with special guest Eddi Reader, performing at the Linenhall Arts Centre in Castlebar on Wednesday September 21 at 8pm.
Fronted by Ireland’s piano accordion maestro, together with three of Ireland's finest musicians Tola Custy (fiddle ), Steph Geremia (flute and vocals ), and Tony Byrne (guitar ), The Alan Kelly Gang deliver joyous and uplifting trad/folk/world-based music, fresh and unique with strong dynamics, driving rhythms, buoyant harmonies and plenty of passion. For this very special touring concert The Gang are joined by iconic internationally acclaimed Scottish songstress Eddi Reader (formerly of Fairground Attraction ) and guitarist and songwriter John Douglas. The tour will mark the release of The Alan Kelly Gang’s first official band album, Small Towns and Famous Nights. A dazzling night is in prospect.
Exhibition from Dublin sculptor
An exhibition of new sculpture by Dublin artist Kathlyn O’Brien continues at Custom House Studios until September 25. Kathlyn O'Brien's exhibition is entitled Missing Feather and has been made over two years. The essence of her work continues to be informed by an obsessional preoccupation with cracks, the silent seepage of encrusted crevices created by the constant weathering of contradictions. The gallery open every weekday 10am to 5pm. Weekends and holidays 1pm to 4.30pm.
Free family WhistleBlast concert in Castlebar
The WhistleBlast Quartet performs a fun, free, family concert at the Linenhall Arts Centre in Castlebar on Wednesday, September 14 at 6pm.
The WhistleBlast Quartet - Mary Curran (French horn ), Ken Edge (saxophone and clarinet ), Andrew Synnott (piano ), Síle Daly (oboe and cor anglais ) with guest double bassist Joe Csibi - performs a family-friendly new programme of music for all ages, including Saint-Saëns’ “Danse Macabre”, Prokofiev’s “Montagues and Capulets”, James Bond themes and a special piece written and performed by Csibi. All with an emphasis on fun. Children from Snugboro National School will also perform a short composition that they will have created with the Quartet. An informal and accessible concert guaranteed to delight.
Riverside Theatre debut with Doubt: A Parable
Ballina’s newly-formed Riverside Theatre group stage their debut production at Ballina Arts Centre on Friday September 16 and Saturday September 17, and it is a real cracker. Formed by local drama scene stalwart Ray Collins, the group will present JP Shanley's Pulitzer Prize winning play Doubt: A Parable, at Ballina Arts Centre. Ray has high ambitions for the group, hoping to stage a number of productions each year. “I want the company to present good quality plays, utilising local talent and offering a springboard to that talent to get experience, before moving on”, he said. Collins’ plans include tackling plays by playwrights such as Henrik Ibsen, Anton Checkhov, Brian Friel, Sean O’Casey, Samuel Beckett and Harold Pinter. “We want to establish a varied programme of Irish and international theatre works, which will hopefully challenge the local audience and maybe introduce them to something new. Plays which are theatrically entertaining and intellectually stimulating.” Tickets for Doubt: A Parable, are available from Ballina Arts Centre box office on 096 7359 and booking is advised. Admission is €10 or €8 with a concession.
Relive Synge’s classic The Aran Islands
Tegolin Knowland and Seán Coyne present a ‘dramatic recitals for two voices’ based on JM Synge’s The Aran Islands at the Linenhall Arts Centre in Castlebar on Thursday September 15 at 8pm.
Adapted, devised, and directed by poet Eamonn Grennan, and performed by actors Tegolin Knowland and Seán Coyne, The Aran Islands is based on excerpts from JM Synge’s book chronicling his experiences visiting Inishmaan between 1898 and 1901. As the performers explain, “Eamon Grennan has taken a number of representative moments from The Aran Islands and turned them into a kind of collage to represent as much as possible what the book is like, so we can give as best we can something of its flavour.” The result is “a romantic lyrical evocation of this wild place”.
