February 2021
ONLINE THEATRE: Sister Black by Maggie Hannon
A new one-woman show about the remarkable life of Nurse Catherine Black (1878-1949). Born in Ramelton, Co. Donegal, Catherine Black trained as a nurse in England and worked in the slums of Whitechapel, at the Somme in World War 1, and as King George V’s private nurse in the last 7 years of his life. Her memoir ‘King’s nurse Beggar's nurse’ was published in 1939 and there’s a copy in the library at Buckingham Palace. This one-woman play is inspired…
Find out more »March 2021
ONLINE THEATRE: Dalloway
From Dyad Productions, the award-winning creators of Jane Eyre: An Autobiography, Austen’s Women, The Time Machine and Christmas Gothic… 1923: The War is over. While Clarissa Dalloway prepares a party in Westminster, Septimus Smith is diagnosed with shell-shock, their memories and dreams magically intertwining with those of 15 other disparate souls, this hot blue day in June. Conjuring the hopes and regrets of post-war London, Dyad’s adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s celebrated map of hearts, minds and memories offers a compellingly…
Find out more »May 2021
CONNECTIONS 2021: Youth Theatre Festival
Each year the UK’s National Theatre commissions ten new plays for young people to perform, bringing together some of the most exciting writers with the theatre-makers of tomorrow. Every year, 300 youth theatre companies and over 6,000 young people produce a Connections play. This year Riverbank Arts Centre is partnering with NT Connections to bring you plays by three Irish youth theatre companies Dramahouse, Kildare Youth Theatre and Ardclough Youth Theatre. Due to Covid restrictions, these plays will be streamed…
Find out more »July 2021
LIVE BROADCAST: ODD THEATRE COMPANY – The Last Five Years
The Odd Theatre Company is proud to present its production of the award-winning musical The Last Five Years, a show widely regarded as one of the finest musicals of the 21st century. An emotionally powerful and intimate tale of two New Yorkers in their twenties who fall in and out of love over half a decade, The Last Five Years follows the relationship of Cathy, a struggling actress, and Jamie, a rising novelist. The show's unconventional structure sees Cathy’s story…
Find out more »September 2021
THEATRE: A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings
Gabriel García Márquez's darkly comic tale, brought to the stage for children and adults to share. In a kitchen, in a theatre, two storytellers and their audience find something remarkable — a very old man with enormous wings. The wise neighbour woman tells us he’s an angel. The priest says he’s an imposter. Pilgrims flock to see him, hoping to be healed by him, hoping for a gawp. They leave with something different than what they expected. Adapted from Gabriel…
Find out more »FAMILY: A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings
Gabriel García Márquez's darkly comic tale, brought to the stage for children and adults to share. In a kitchen, in a theatre, two storytellers and their audience find something remarkable — a very old man with enormous wings. The wise neighbour woman tells us he’s an angel. The priest says he’s an imposter. Pilgrims flock to see him, hoping to be healed by him, hoping for a gawp. They leave with something different than what they expected. Adapted from Gabriel…
Find out more »Work-in-Progress & Workshop: WATERBIRTH
Waterbirth – A Work-in-Progress Performance Come and join Darn Skippy Productions for this work-in-progress presentation of Waterbirth, a new play about motherhood and climate change – and join the company live on ZOOM immediately afterwards for a feedback session and creative workshop. Marina is pregnant and the climate is in crisis. But she’s fine. Everything is fine. She can look after everyone and fix everything, all while practicing her pelvic floor exercises. But as Marina’s body transforms, her sense of reality shifts…
Find out more »October 2021
THEATRE: Seven Ages of Mam
A new, heart-warmingly funny yet poignant play starring Pauline O’Driscoll (Smalltown, The Young Offenders) in which Mam shares her hilarious take on motherhood, sexuality, grief, infidelity, ageing, love, lust and loneliness. A female-centric piece that will appeal to all. A contemporary reimagining of Shakespeare's most famous soliloquy - but from a Mam's point of view! Finally touring in Ireland for the first time having garnered rave reviews and been nominated BEST NEW PLAY at its World Premiere at Brighton Fringe…
Find out more »THEATRE: Arán & Im by Manchán Magan
We need to find a way of talking about the Irish language - about the sublime beauty and profound oddness of this ancient tongue that has been spoken on the island for 2,500 to 3,000 years, and is now slipping slowly from our grasp. What can the word for the lonesomeness of a cow bereft of her calf, diadhánach, teach us about our current methods of food production? Why does one need to orientate oneself to the sun to give…
Find out more »THEATRE: Arán & Im by Manchán Magan
We need to find a way of talking about the Irish language - about the sublime beauty and profound oddness of this ancient tongue that has been spoken on the island for 2,500 to 3,000 years, and is now slipping slowly from our grasp. What can the word for the lonesomeness of a cow bereft of her calf, diadhánach, teach us about our current methods of food production? Why does one need to orientate oneself to the sun to give…
Find out more »November 2021
THEATRE: Fight Night
Winner of Best Actor and Bewley’s Little Gem awards at Dublin Fringe, and nominated Best New Play at the Irish Times Theatre Awards, Aonghus Óg McAnally returns with his smash hit solo show Fight Night by Gavin Kostick for a 10th Anniversary nationwide tour. A gripping journey charting the comeback of Dan Coyle Jr, a failed amateur boxer living in the shadows of his overbearing father and his brother’s Olympic success. After years out of the ring, the birth of…
Find out more »THEATRE: Pure Mental by Keith Walsh
Keith Walsh is Pure Mental. Having finished up a 5-year stint presenting on National Radio, in the pressure cooker that is a breakfast show, Keith has finally found a bit of time for himself. More importantly, he’s found time to check in with his mental health. Midlife Crisis? Midlife awakening? Breakdown? We’ll find out. This show is part of his therapy and you’re his therapist! Join him on a journey of introspection and exploration, as he locates his demons and…
Find out more »THEATRE: Pure Mental by Keith Walsh
Keith Walsh is Pure Mental. Having finished up a 5-year stint presenting on National Radio, in the pressure cooker that is a breakfast show, Keith has finally found a bit of time for himself. More importantly, he’s found time to check in with his mental health. Midlife Crisis? Midlife awakening? Breakdown? We’ll find out. This show is part of his therapy and you’re his therapist! Join him on a journey of introspection and exploration, as he locates his demons and…
Find out more »THEATRE: Eden by Eugene O’Brien
Eugene O'Brien's Eden is the powerful story of an ordinary relationship on an extraordinary weekend. Billy and Breda are approaching their 10th wedding anniversary. Breda is determined that this will be the weekend that saves their marriage but Billy is more concerned with Imelda, the beautiful young woman he has his eye on. From the writer of the hit RTÉ drama Pure Mule, Eden is a story of stale love and fresh lust in the Irish midlands. Winner of Best New Play…
Find out more »December 2021
LOCAL ARTS: Newbridge Drama Group – 4 One-Act Plays
Newbridge Drama Group present four One-Act Plays - We Three by Olwen Wymark, Jimmy Shoe by Derek Egan, The Zoo Story by Edward Albee and Mary Lambert RIP by Siobhán Wright. We Three: A one act play written by Olwen Wymark Two women arrive for a rendez-vous but the third person they are expecting doesn't appear. Instead a girl that they don't know arrives, but she knows them. Who is she? Who are they? All is finally revealed. Cast: Em - Jenny…
Find out more »January 2022
THEATRE: The Handyman by Seamus O’Rourke
++please note start time of 6pm++ Hugh Spotten is the local Handyman. He is about to receive an award for his contribution to the community... but all is not what it seems in a small town, falling in on itself. Seamus O’Rourke explores friendship, relationships and how best to get noticed on your last day. The Handyman is hilariously funny, yet a poignant poetic look at small-town life in rural Ireland. Written and performed by Seamus O'Rourke Seamus O’Rourke is…
Find out more »February 2022
THEATRE: Falling Through the Universe – a staging of James Joyce’s ‘The Dead’
FALLING THROUGH THE UNIVERSE a staging of JAMES JOYCE’s “THE DEAD” framed in a personal memoir Written and performed by Declan Gorman On a Winter’s night in 1982, a young Irish emigrant borrows an English language book from a library in Munich. He reads it over one evening. The course of his life is changed… Forty years later, he walks onto a stage to recreate the magic of that night and perform one of the greatest short stories ever written in the English…
Find out more »March 2022
THEATRE: Tarry Flynn
A love-letter to life in rural Ireland. “He was sitting closer than ever he had sat to a girl before. And it was the girl he had dreamt of. He was terribly unhappy." Set in 1930s Cavan, Tarry Flynn tells the hilarious story of the farmer, poet and lover-from-afar, and his quest for big fields, young women and the meaning of life. Tarry’s adventures uncover the beauty in every aspect of nature and farm life, while he seeks to keep…
Find out more »THEATRE: Tarry Flynn
A love-letter to life in rural Ireland. “He was sitting closer than ever he had sat to a girl before. And it was the girl he had dreamt of. He was terribly unhappy." Set in 1930s Cavan, Tarry Flynn tells the hilarious story of the farmer, poet and lover-from-afar, and his quest for big fields, young women and the meaning of life. Tarry’s adventures uncover the beauty in every aspect of nature and farm life, while he seeks to keep…
Find out more »April 2022
THEATRE: Making a Mark
Mark has competed in the World Games, played King Lear before, packed houses and packed bags for 20 years in Tesco’s... But that’s not even half the story. Part live interview, part self-led confessional, this is Mark’s life and he’s ready to take a seat at the table. Ambition, disruption, grief and frustration. He hopes this show will be the making of him. Are you ready for what he has to say? Following a sell out premiere production at the Dublin…
Find out more »THEATRE: Making a Mark
Mark has competed in the World Games, played King Lear before, packed houses and packed bags for 20 years in Tesco’s... But that’s not even half the story. Part live interview, part self-led confessional, this is Mark’s life and he’s ready to take a seat at the table. Ambition, disruption, grief and frustration. He hopes this show will be the making of him. Are you ready for what he has to say? Following a sell out premiere production at the Dublin…
Find out more »THEATRE: Making a Mark
Mark has competed in the World Games, played King Lear before, packed houses and packed bags for 20 years in Tesco’s... But that’s not even half the story. Part live interview, part self-led confessional, this is Mark’s life and he’s ready to take a seat at the table. Ambition, disruption, grief and frustration. He hopes this show will be the making of him. Are you ready for what he has to say? Following a sell out premiere production at the Dublin…
Find out more »THEATRE: Snapshot
Set in the early days of the first lockdown, Snapshot is a story of two sisters trying to connect in a disconnected world and finding their footing in a changing landscape. Through their relationship, we explore connection, family, and shared memories, all with deft humour and lightness of touch. Snapshot is inspired by 44 interviews with people about their experiences of lockdown. It is a record of a global event through a local lens. Created over the course of lockdown…
Find out more »May 2022
LOCAL ARTS: Stormy Surprise by Dave Tiernan
Paul thought he’d planned the best surprise birthday party for his wife June when he hired an old remote cottage in the woods, but the shabby shack isn’t up to June’s standard, and things get even worse as the surprise guests that Paul has invited are people that June hates. A stormy night adds to the tension in the cottage and with a mysterious stranger turning up uninvited anything is liable to happen in this hilarious comedy. Written by Dave…
Find out more »LOCAL ARTS: Newbridge Drama Group presents Canaries by Bernard Farrell
Bernard Farrell's Canaries was first performed on stage at the Abbey Theatre in October 1980. Since then it’s been a great hit with many audiences. Set in the Canary Islands we meet a collection of colourful characters. From a couple who are not shy about sharing their ‘holiday’ with anyone willing, to a couple of singletons who are not who they seem! Throw in a young couple on holiday with a parent, an ageing Contessa who’s determined to get back to Madrid,…
Find out more »June 2022
THEATRE: The Visit by Deirdre Kinahan
Rose has washed and ironed her cowgirl shirt and skirt. She carries it on a hanger. She likes the way the fringe swings when she wears it. Makes her feel glamourous. Adventurous. Brave. She stands on the empty stage and looks out into the auditorium. Imagining what it will be like when it is full. Which it will be. Tonight. When the choir perform. In the quiet of the theatre, she finds herself thinking back on the events of that…
Find out more »LOCAL ARTS: GYT PRESENTS: Double Bill: It Only Ever Happens in the Movies/Grimms Fairy Tales
After two years of online and outdoor work Griese Youth Theatre are excited to be back on Riverbanks stage. Engaging with five separate scripts that explore the challenges and hopes of youth the performances will take place over three nights. Double Bill on June 23rd @7pm It Only Ever Happens in the Movies - Devised by Mikel Murfi, John Taite, and the cast of the National Youth Theatre 2011. (Playshare) Followed by Grimms Fairy Tales by John Morton (Playshare)
Find out more »LOCAL ARTS: GYT PRESENTS: Double Bill -Little Big Foot / Beetroot
After two years of online and outdoor work Griese Youth Theatre are excited to be back on Riverbanks stage. Engaging with five separate scripts that explore the challenges and hopes of youth the performances will take place over three nights. Double Bill on June 24th @7pm (Pre-Youth Theatre group 11/12 year olds) Little Big Foot by Gerald P Murphy (Lazy Bees Scripts) Followed by Beetroot by Lucy Montague Moffatt (Playshare)
Find out more »LOCAL ARTS: GYT PRESENTS DOUBLE BILL: It Only Ever Happens in the Movies & Remote by Stef Smith
After two years of online and outdoor work Griese Youth Theatre are excited to be back on Riverbanks stage. Engaging with five separate scripts that explore the challenges and hopes of youth the performances will take place over three nights. June 25th @ 7pm It Only Ever Happens in the Movies - Devised by Mikel Murfi, John Taite, and the cast of the National Youth Theatre 2011. (Playshare) Followed by: Remote by Stef Smith (NT Connections Programme) Suitable for over…
Find out more »July 2022
THEATRE: Lost Lear
“Who is it that can tell me who I am?” ― King Lear, Act I Scene IV Riverbank Arts Centre is thrilled to present preview performances of Lost Lear, an ambitious new production directed by Dan Colley and featuring an ensemble of exceptional theatre artists. Lost Lear is a very (very) loose adaptation of King Lear, examining the self and that part of us that's inaccessible to others. Fast-paced and thought-provoking, Lost Lear invites us into the world of Joy…
Find out more »THEATRE: Lost Lear
“Who is it that can tell me who I am?” ― King Lear, Act I Scene IV Riverbank Arts Centre is thrilled to present preview performances of Lost Lear, an ambitious new production directed by Dan Colley and featuring an ensemble of exceptional theatre artists. Lost Lear is a very (very) loose adaptation of King Lear, examining the self and that part of us that's inaccessible to others. Fast-paced and thought-provoking, Lost Lear invites us into the world of Joy…
Find out more »September 2022
THEATRE: Arán & Im by Manchán Magan
What can the word for the lonesomeness of a cow bereft of her calf, diadhánach, teach us about our current methods of food production? Why does one need to orientate oneself to the sun to give directions in Irish? Arán & Im is a theatrical performance in which Manchán Magan bakes sourdough bread while offering insights into the wonders of the Irish language – exploring potent words of landscape, terms of intuition and insight, and the many phrases that bring…
Find out more »THEATRE: Arán & Im by Manchán Magan
What can the word for the lonesomeness of a cow bereft of her calf, diadhánach, teach us about our current methods of food production? Why does one need to orientate oneself to the sun to give directions in Irish? Arán & Im is a theatrical performance in which Manchán Magan bakes sourdough bread while offering insights into the wonders of the Irish language – exploring potent words of landscape, terms of intuition and insight, and the many phrases that bring…
Find out more »THEATRE: Paddy Cullivan’s The Murder of Michael Collins
Historical Entertainer Paddy Cullivan brings you the incredible story of the death of Ireland’s first Commander-in-Chief. An audio-visual spectacular featuring hundreds of images, shocking new research and incredible songs, Paddy dares to unravel the secrets and lies around what happened that fateful day in Béal na mBlath, 22nd August 1922. Did Michael Collins have a secret son in London? Was he really going to keep to the Anglo-Irish Treaty or was he planning to resume the war? If the anti-treaty…
Find out more »October 2022
THEATRE: Selvage
Selvage (a line of self securing knitting), is a theatre show about unravelling tightly wound modern anxieties and a boy's triumph over his 'gnaw'. It is a creative examination of the countless avenues people trudge in an effort to calm themselves while a ‘gnaw’ waits not far from the surface. Following the incarceration of his beloved granny, Selvage follows Joe as he navigates an often cruel world, seeking solace in consumerism, charity and religion. Written by James Riordan, Directed by…
Find out more »DANCE THEATRE: Michael Keegan-Dolan / Teaċ Daṁsa – MÁM
Mám 1 : 1.Yoke. Faoi mhám an pheaca, under the yoke of sin. 2. Lit: Obligation, duty, function. Mám 2 : Mountain pass. Mám 3 : Handful. ~ mhilseán, of sweets. Scaipeann sé ina mhámanna é, he throws it away in handfuls. MÁM is a meeting place between soloist and ensemble, classical and traditional, the local and universal. It brings together the virtuoso, Irish traditional concertina player Cormac Begley, the European classical, contemporary collective, s t a r g a…
Find out more »DANCE THEATRE: Michael Keegan-Dolan / Teaċ Daṁsa – MÁM
Mám 1 : 1.Yoke. Faoi mhám an pheaca, under the yoke of sin. 2. Lit: Obligation, duty, function. Mám 2 : Mountain pass. Mám 3 : Handful. ~ mhilseán, of sweets. Scaipeann sé ina mhámanna é, he throws it away in handfuls. MÁM is a meeting place between soloist and ensemble, classical and traditional, the local and universal. It brings together the virtuoso, Irish traditional concertina player Cormac Begley, the European classical, contemporary collective, s t a r g a…
Find out more »November 2022
LOCAL ARTS: The Odd Theatre Company Presents – First Date
The Odd Theatre Company presents First Date, a hilarious new Broadway musical that follows two young New Yorkers on a high-stakes blind date. When Aaron, a buttoned-up banker, and Casey, an artist a bit too wild for Wall Street, first meet, sparks don’t exactly fly. However, when other restaurant-goers transform into their inner critics, best friends, manipulative exes, and protective parents, their evening becomes more than they bargained for. Can the couple turn apparent dating disaster into something that will…
Find out more »LOCAL ARTS: The Odd Theatre Company Presents – First Date
The Odd Theatre Company presents First Date, a hilarious new Broadway musical that follows two young New Yorkers on a high-stakes blind date. When Aaron, a buttoned-up banker, and Casey, an artist a bit too wild for Wall Street, first meet, sparks don’t exactly fly. However, when other restaurant-goers transform into their inner critics, best friends, manipulative exes, and protective parents, their evening becomes more than they bargained for. Can the couple turn apparent dating disaster into something that will…
Find out more »LOCAL ARTS: The Odd Theatre Company Presents – First Date
The Odd Theatre Company presents First Date, a hilarious new Broadway musical that follows two young New Yorkers on a high-stakes blind date. When Aaron, a buttoned-up banker, and Casey, an artist a bit too wild for Wall Street, first meet, sparks don’t exactly fly. However, when other restaurant-goers transform into their inner critics, best friends, manipulative exes, and protective parents, their evening becomes more than they bargained for. Can the couple turn apparent dating disaster into something that will…
Find out more »January 2023
THEATRE: Pure Mental by Keith Walsh
Following a 16-venue tour in 2021, Pure Mental returns to Riverbank Arts Centre for two special performances, as part of First Fortnight Festival. Having finished up a 5-year stint presenting on National Radio, in the pressure cooker that is a breakfast show, Keith Walsh found a bit of time for himself. More importantly, he found time to check in with his mental health. Midlife Crisis? Midlife awakening? Breakdown? Join him on a journey of introspection and exploration, as he locates his demons…
Find out more »THEATRE: Pure Mental by Keith Walsh
Following a 16-venue tour in 2021, Pure Mental returns to Riverbank Arts Centre for two special performances, as part of First Fortnight Festival. Having finished up a 5-year stint presenting on National Radio, in the pressure cooker that is a breakfast show, Keith Walsh found a bit of time for himself. More importantly, he found time to check in with his mental health. Midlife Crisis? Midlife awakening? Breakdown? Join him on a journey of introspection and exploration, as he locates his demons…
Find out more »February 2023
THEATRE: Danti-Dan by Gina Moxley
“Listen girl, this is the kind of place that if you lost your virginity, somebody would find it and bring it home to your mother” In the middle of nowhere outside Cork city, during the interminable summer of 1970, a motley gang hang out on a short stretch of road. Dan is a busy 14-year-old cowboy, innocent Dolores and wily Cactus’ hormones are absolutely raging, while Ber is hoping you can’t get pregnant if you were standing up… By the…
Find out more »THEATRE: Paddy Cullivan’s The Murder of Wolfe Tone
Historical Entertainer Paddy Cullivan brings you the incredible story of the mysterious death of Theobald Wolfe Tone, the founding father of Irish Republicanism. An audio-visual spectacular featuring hundreds of images, shocking new research and incredible songs, Paddy dares to unravel the secrets and lies around what happened that fateful week in the Provost’s Prison in November 1798. Was Wolfe Tone’s real father the Chief Justice of Ireland - the man who tried to save him twice? Was his trial illegal…
Find out more »March 2023
THEATRE: Blue Raincoat Theatre Company Presents Happy Days by Samuel Beckett
In Happy Days we find Winnie, a woman in her 50s, buried waist-deep in the centre of a mound of scorched earth, with little else around other than a large black bag and a collapsed parasol. Behind her and hidden from view sleeps Willie. A piercing bell rings, stops, rings again, and Winnie wakes and looks at the sky. Blue Raincoat Theatre Company have been touring their work throughout Ireland for over three decades with shows such as Alice Through…
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