David is well known to us all as someone who understands both economics and entertainment. In Outsiders he talks about the recent collusion between the insiders of the Irish political system and the financial sector. In a reflective and humourous piece – a mixture of stand up, discussion, and social observation – David will explain how we got to the state we’re in, and why we shouldn’t despair because there is a way out. Join the man who believes that Ireland’s political and social divide is not so much about rich and poor, young and old, urban and rural, but about insiders and outsiders. The insiders – found in every village, town and city – are those with a stake in our country who believe that today’s status quo must be preserved at all costs. The outsiders – who might live next door – are those who realise that the status quo is part of the problem… Directed by award-winning director Conall Morrison, Outsiders promises to be a unique, dynamic and engaging event.

 

 

Of all the performances to emerge from Ireland in the past decade, nothing has carried the energy, the sensuality and the spectacle of Riverdance. Experienced by over 21 million people worldwide across four continents and boasting a worldwide television audience in excess of two billion people - Riverdance is a truly global phenomenon. An innovative and exciting fusion of Irish and international dance, Riverdance propels traditional dance and music into the present day, capturing the imagination of audiences across all ages and cultures. This is the last chance to see the show rightly described by the Irish Times as "the original... the best" and experience the magic that is Riverdance!

 

A newly commissioned solo exhibition that explores the complex and historical world of spectatorship. Adopting the early special effects technique of matte painting, Sander uses and quotes the visual intricacies associated with illusion, while critically examining the personal motivation of consumers who participate in spectator industries. Tourism, audiences, the traveller and the curious are all characters who take time out of everyday life and pay to see things. The gallery will be transformed into a single, circular screen, providing a constantly changing and looping landscape. Sander contrasts the simplicity of matte painting with the complexity of the current economic unknowns that form the background to many of our lives.

 

Aidan Harte's 'Inferno' is a collection inspired by the notorious Italian masterpiece. Dante cast a cold eye on society and it's an example the artist takes seriously with sculptures and etchings in an impassioned Expressionist style. Official opening at 7pm on June 18th.

 

After leaving college, Ó Briain began working at RTÉ as a children's TV presenter. At this time he also began performing his first stand-up gigs on the Irish comedy circuit. He admitted, "I did the trip from Donegal to Dublin to play to six people; then I turned round and drove home again. I did about three or four years playing to a lot of bad rooms, but learning as I went. It's not bad when someone gives you 40 quid for standing up and telling jokes. I remember thinking: 'This is the life.'"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Price includes light lunch. THE SHANNON COLLEENS have been performing in cabaret and theatre shows for the last 15 years. They’ve carved out a niche as the musical light relief at literary gatherings, sharing the stage with writers such as Patrick McCabe, Roddy Doyle, Dermot Healy and Conor McPherson. They co-wrote (with Donal O'Kelly) an anti war single in 2003 for the human rights group AFRI (Action From Ireland).

 

Skeletons leap from suburban closets in Bookworms, Bernard Farrell’s hilarious and razor-sharp vision of a household savaged by the Celtic Tiger. ‘….and Larry, let’s try to show everybody that, recession or no recession, we are contented, confident and happy – and that this evening is going to be fun!” This month’s Book Club hostess Ann is struggling to stay calm, desperate to deliver the perfect evening of literary classics and late-night canapés. But when the all-female group invite their husbands to join the club, and a mysterious figure pays a visit from an upstairs room, everyone is forced to contend with a lot more than just Virginia Woolf. Opinions are challenged, suspicions aroused and tempers flare as their daily lives unravel into a saga to rival even the most outrageous fiction. Director Jim Culleton brings to life this hugely entertaining new play by the popular and celebrated playwright Bernard Farrell (I Do Not Like Thee Doctor Fell, Canaries, Lovers At Versailles) in an evening of wine and cheese, mystery and mayhem. An Abbey Theatre commission.