23 September 2011This evening, Friday 23rd September 2011, Culture Night was celebrated across the island of Ireland. Streets, venues and open-spaces came alive with a rich cultural offering of electric atmosphere, colour, music, performance and workshops, providing people with the opportunity to discover and explore iconic cultural venues, buildings and spaces on their doorstep all for free in a record 30 regions across the island of Ireland. Culture Night, was created by Temple Bar Cultural Trust in 2006 with 40 venues opening their doors, this year Dublin saw more than 156 venues participating and offering a diverse cultural mix in Dublin alone.
Dermot McLaughlin, CEO of Temple Bar Cultural Trust which organises Culture Night said, “There is a magical atmosphere in Dublin City tonight, the City is alive with the sound of culture! Last year more than 500,000 people engaged with Culture Night across the country and 152,000 in Dublin alone, it looks like last year’s numbers will be repeated and early indications suggest there might even be an increase. Culture Night also helps boost the local economy and in Dublin alone, the event will generate close to €2m. Grandparents, grandchildren, families and people of all backgrounds have taken to the streets of Temple Bar, Dublin and all over Ireland this evening to experience, share and explore culture.”
Just some of the diverse highlights this year included:
- The Gaeltacht-based visual art projections illuminating simultaneously on gable walls in Kerry, Conamara, Donegal and Dublin
- Music and children’s workshops at the Triskel Arts Centre, Cork ? A variety of themed-parades, from bicycles to a freakshow, on Donegall Street, Belfast
- The premiere performance of a new play ‘Ride On’ from award winning Leitrim playwright Seamus O’Rourke, performed by the Livin Dred Theatre Company and directed by Padraic McIntyre at the Ramor Theatre, Cavan
- A new adaptation by Ground Up Artists Collective of Brian Merriman’s, The Midnight Court, featuring a judge in a fairy court presiding over a case where the sexes air and their opinions and complaints about marriage and relationships. Temple Gate Hotel, Ennis, Co Clare
- Presidential candidates Mary Davis, Sean Gallagher, Michael D Higgins and Gay Mitchell discussing the importance of art and culture at a Presidential Hustings Meeting in the Irish Film Institute, Dublin.
Commenting on Culture Night Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan TD said, “Culture Night is regarded as one of the highlights of Ireland’s cultural events calendar. Providing as it does a wonderful opportunity to experience the creative culture that is on our door step and also freely available for this one night in the year. The phenomenal success of Culture Night is perhaps best measured by the fact that it has grown from a Dublin based cultural event in 2006 to the significant national event it is now with 30 regions. This year attendance is expected to increase with the additional new attraction of Windmill Lane Recording Studios in Dublin being open to the public, as they are synonymous with U2 and Sinead O’Connor.”
Culture Night is an initiative co-ordinated by Temple Bar Cultural Trust and supported by the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht in partnership with the regional arts offices and local authorities throughout the island of Ireland.