Roscommon Arts Centre has recently announced its summer events for July and August and there is something to keep everyone in the family entertained over the coming weeks.
Children and their families will be spoilt for choice with Choral Academy Ireland making a welcome return with their Summer Singing School running daily from July 5 to 9. This is the second year that the Choral Academy returns to the arts centre, following a very successful camp last summer where children and young people aged 10+ had the chance to improve their talent and, most importantly, have lots of fun. Due to popular demand the organisers of the camp have agreed to make more spaces available and so anyone interested in attending should contact the box office immediately.
Children aged five to 105 will love the magical adaptation of Alice Through the Looking Glass by London’s Quantum Theatre, in the arts centre on Saturday July 24 at 12pm. This theatrical treat for all of the family promises fantasy, songs and stagecraft. The story follows Alice’s fantastical adventures in the strange world she enters through the mirror above her drawing-room fireplace and as she crosses a giant chess board she meets some of Lewis Carroll’s most memorable and fantastical characters including Tweedledum and Tweedledee, The Lion and the Unicorn, and the Jabberwock.
Following last summer’s remarkable performance, award-winning soprano Toni Walsh returns to the Percy French Summer School with a performance in the arts centre on Wednesday July 21. Originally trained as a primary school teacher, Toni has worked as assistant lecturer in the Department of Vocal, Operatic and Dramatic Studies at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama since 1997. The Percy French Summer School celebrates one of Ireland’s best-loved songwriters. The annual Percy French Summer School takes place from July 14 to 21. A programme of lectures and concerts investigating the historic and cultural influences of the remarkable life of Percy French - songwriter, performer, painter, editor, and poet. Tickets for the ‘Songs of Percy French’ with Toni Walsh are available from Roscommon Arts Centre box office.
Traditional music fans can look forward to another great session in Strokestown Park House with Dave Sheridan and Ciaran Somers on Thursday August 12. This duo provides the entertainment for the finale of the summer sessions in Strokestown Park House where the music flows freely and the craic is ninety. Both Dave and Ciarán are highly regarded for the energy and sense of enjoyment that they bring to their music and this session in the galley kitchen promises not to disappoint.
More information on all of these events is available at Roscommon Arts Centre’s website www.roscommonartscentre.ie or by calling (090 ) 6625824.
