Eleven locations across County Wicklow will see activities taking place as part of Culture Night.
Eleven locations across County Wicklow will see activities taking place as part of the annual Culture Night (Oíche Chultúir) on Friday 23rd September.
Culture Night is a national moment celebrating culture, creativity and the arts. It seeks to actively promote the rich and varied culture cherished and nurtured in the lives of people, today and every day, across Ireland.
Delivered nationwide in cities, towns, villages and rural areas, all activities are made available to the public free of charge.
This year the Wicklow Arts Office has collaborated, supported and funded a series of events and activities across the county for Culture Night, with continued support from the Arts Council, Creative Ireland and Local Live Performance Programming Scheme provided by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media and Creative Ireland.
With 11 locations across County Wicklow, the program includes a diverse range of experiences deliberately created and selected to surprise and delight all ages.
Arklow Music and Arts presents Arklow Culture Crawl featuring local musicians, bands, artists, poets and actors on a guided tour of the city’s cultural and historical landmarks.
At Baltinglass, Aisling Ennis (harp) and soprano Catherine Redding (singer) will present ‘Songs to the Moon’, a recital of evocative and charming selections from Fauré, Debussy, Bellini and Strauss, with two more performances to be announced.
The West Wicklow Chamber Music Festival presents a feast of party-fueled rhythmic virtuosity with Bangers & Crash Duo, Caitríona Frost and Paddy Nolan, who are two of Ireland’s most accomplished percussionists. Later in the evening, the Yurodny Ensemble offers us an energizing musical melting pot of new interpretations of traditional music from around the world. It promises to be a magical musical evening in the beautiful setting of The Avon, on the shores of the Blessington Lakes.
The Mermaid Arts Center is hosting three events for Culture Night including: Abacus, a contemporary dance performance by nine women and 18 buckets choreographed by Laura Murphy, which takes place on the Bray seafront; singer Susan O’Neill in concert at Mermaid and extended opening hours for artist Michael Durand’s exhibition Blacker Than Any Blindness.
Music in Calary has invited award-winning classical Wicklow musicians Annette Cleary (cello), John Feeley (guitar) and David O’Doherty (violin) to perform in the 19th century Calary Church.
Dunlavin Market Square will host a unique foodie evening with an interactive cooking demonstration by Catherine Fulvio, followed by performances from four of Ireland’s finest musicians, Niamh Kavanagh (singer), Lynda O’Connor (violin), Gerald Peregrine (cello) and Brian Connor (Piano). This family night is complemented by a concert by local singer-songwriter, Amy Barrett.
The Whale Theater presents an intergenerational celebration of jazz music featuring some of Ireland’s most celebrated jazz masters alongside a new generation of young, emerging jazz musicians.
The Bray Jazz Festival will stage a double live music program at the 18th century St Savior’s Church in the heart of Rathdrum village, featuring live performances by bands led by Bray-born jazz singer Aoife Doyle and the Irish jazz guitar of Arklow legend, Nigel Mooney.
The Courthouse Arts Center brings a multi-dimensional experience of sound and vision to Tinahely with live music featuring on stage Mark Caplice, Layzee Gold and Sam Ali; while visual artist Liing Heaney will animate the buildings of the cityscape with projections of his film exploring Tomnafinnoge Woods.
Finally, the Wicklow Arts Office, in conjunction with Wicklow Library Services, ran an exciting program of fun activities and workshops for children and adults at the libraries in Baltinglass, Carnew, Dunlavin, Rathdrum and Wicklow Town, including:
- Baltinglass Library – Felt-making and painting workshops in the Baltinglass Library;
- Carnew Library – An interactive children’s workshop exploring 3D printed replicas and real dinosaur fossils for children, followed by an open-mic poetry session with Lorcan Brennan at the Carnew Library;
- Dunlavin Library – traditional craft workshops such as candle making and willow weaving at Dunlavin Library;
- Rathdrum Library – Geli Engraving and Mosaic Making with Whitedoodle Art and Mosaic Making in the Rathdrum Library;
- Wicklow Library – And a Podcasting Workshop with Createschool and create your own personalized bookplate / bookplate workshop for adults at Wicklow Library.
Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council, Cllr Tommy Annesley, said he was delighted to see 11 venues represented in this year’s Culture Night programme. Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Executive Michael Nicholson said: “It’s great to see artists, organisations, places and citizens of Wicklow come together and take part in this annual celebration of culture, creativity and arts throughout the island.”
For more information and booking appointment www.culturenight.ie/wicklow.
