Kerry County Council Arts Office has been busy co-ordinating Culture Night events again this year along with arts groups and other organisations who are happy to get involved and offer a free night of cultural events to their communities.
The annual Culture Night takes place on Friday, 20 September and there are dozens of events taking place across each of five Municipal Districts in Kerry:
Castleisland – Corca Dhuibhne Municipal District
Browne’s Bar in Castleisland will host a Culture Night evening from 9pm with local musicians whole Brosna GAA is the venue for a gathering to celebrate Daniel J Hannon’s life and work from 7.30pm.
Scartaglin sees the launch of Handed Down Series 6 from 8-10pm at the Heritage Centre and there will be further celebration of all things Sliabh Luachra at Tureencahill Community Centre from 8.30-10.30pm.
Events at An Díseart kick off Culture Night in Dingle, including a print workshop with artist Deirdre McKenna from 4-5pm and poetry and film with Maria Ní Murchú and George Jackson. New murals will be on display from 5.30pm at Púcaí Lane while Nelliefreds will host Niall McCabe and band and a Culture Night festival club curated by Tríona Duignan from 9.30pm.
Dingle Library will shine a spotlight on their special collections from 6-8pm including rare items of local interest and there will be a talk by artist Clare O’Halloran on Harry Clarke’s stained glass windows, at An Díseart from 7-8pm while Mol Teic, Páirc Ghnó Cúilín will host Narratives from a current state: Asylum Seekers presenting their narrative via live feed projections.
Kenmare Municipal District
In Kenmare, the Carnegie Arts Centre is hosting an Arts Blitz for Adults from 6-8pm (no experience necessary) and exhibiting work made by children during Cruinniú na nÓg in June while filmmaker Mieke Vanmechelen’s film Moving Image will have an informal screening from 4-8pm at Nest, 4 Henry Street.
In Killorglin there will be a tour of the Pauline Bewick Collection with Kate Landers from 6-7pm and the Killorglin and District Pipe Band will give a recital at Library Place from 7-7.30pm with an opportunity to interact and handle the musical instruments. From 8-9.30pm there will be an evening of screenings hosted by KFest, suitable for 16 years onwards, at The Woolshed, Langford Place.
There will be a printmaking workshop from 7-9pm for the whole family at Jack’s Coastguard Bar and Restaurant in Cromane with Jeannine Storan, where you can create your own coat of arms.
There will be a celebration of local creativity at the Caha Resource Centre in Lauragh from 8-10pm with film from the archives and in Ardgroom Caha Centre there will be a storytelling and song event encompassing the myths and legends of the Beara Peninsula from 8-10pm.
In Caherdaniel, Aoibheann Lambe will lead a torchlit tour of the rock art of Caherdaniel from 10-11pm (10yrs +) while in Waterville Dr. Elaine Treacy will give a talk on the Environment History of Lock Currane from 8-9.30pm.
Caherciveen will host a creative youth café from 5-9pm for ages 12-19 and Cill Rialaig in Ballinskelligs will host storyteller Sean Ó Laoghaire and others for a night of storytelling from 5-11pm.
Killarney Municipal District
You can get an early start to Culture Night at St. Brigid’s Secondary School who are back with their successful collection of artworks from young artists from 4-6pm, with refreshments.
The fifth Kerry Visual Artists’ Showcase will be launched at 6.30pm at the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, New Road. Light refreshments will be served.
At the newly refurbished Killarney Cultural Centre, DB O’Connor will host an hour of storytelling, sean-nós singing and dancing. At St Mary’s Church from 8-9.30pm Afro Trad Ireland will perform their unique blend of songs, stories and drumming. On the railings of the church, artist Betty Rohan will exhibit her work from 5-10pm.
The Kerry Archaeological and Historical Society host a talk on The Wran in Kerry at Killarney Library from 7.30-9pm while from 7-9pm Killarney House and Gardens will tell the stories of the women of the House over the centuries.
Declan O’Rourke will be in concert at the Muckross Schoolhouse form 7.30-9pm and Don Mescall will give a song writing workshop and performance at the INEC from 7.30pm. Kerry Film Festival and Killarney Cinema will screen two short films from 6.30-7pm.
Then dance the night away with a set dancing ceilí at Fossa Community Centre from 9pm to midnight.
Listowel Municipal District
Culture Night in Listowel kicks off at 5pm at the Creative Youth Café in KDYS, Upper Church Street, Listowel for 12-19 year olds, followed by St John’s at 6pm with a horror film workshop and screening as well as music, drama and dance.
The Kerry Writers Museum will host an evening of poetry, story, song and music from 7-8.30pm and then Billy Keane will take the reins at Keane’s Bar from 9-11pm with theatre, song and music.
From 5-7pm there will be a celebration of Listowel’s literary history at the John B. Keane statue. John McAuliffe has curated a set of poems by local poets which will be given to members of the public on postcards. Collect the whole set on your way to your next Culture Night event.
In Lixnaw, the Ceolann Cultural Centre will be busy from 6-7.30 with artists Alison McCormack and Richard Walsh presenting videos and animations – created as part of their Creative Ireland projects. Then from 8-10pm Lixnaw Comhaltas will host an evening of Irish music, song and dance.
Tralee Municipal District
A full programme of events is scheduled for Kerry County Museum including free admission to all exhibitions as well as a presentation by Ger Riordan on Ringforts and Fairy Lore from 6–7pm.
Thursday Night Writers will host an event at Tralee Library from 6-8pm, which includes the launch of their anthology ‘Thursday Night Tales, Volume One’. Literature with Lámh runs from 5-7pm at the Kerry Down Syndrome Shop on High Street with readings by author Anthony Garvey, the Kerry Rose and the Creative Writing Group all interpreted with Lámh sign language.
The hugely popular Ceilí Afro Dabke will take place at the Presentation Primary School Hall from 7.30-9pm with a performance from It Takes A Village followed by a world music ceilí for everyone. There will be an open house at Kerry School of Music from 5-10pm and Bryan Carr School of Performing Arts will present an evening of Musical Delights from 7– 8pm in the Drawing Room in Ballyseedy House Hotel.
Siamsa Tíre’s Visual Arts Residence with artist Zoe Uí Fhaoláin will be looking creatively at how the Kerry coastline might change in the years ahead and how we might adapt, from 6-8pm. The highly praised film The Camino Voyage will screen at St John’s Church, Ashe Street, from 8-10pm, presented by The Kerry Camino.
Drama offerings include a series of dramatic and comic pieces in site specific outdoor venues in Tralee from 6pm – 8pm in Tralee Town Park and Square, a series of humorous sketches entitled A Cultural Look from St Patrick to Michael D from 8-10pm at the Imperial Hotel and Nightmare at 8 from 8 – 9.30 at the Ballymac Bar – humorous and horror-filled monologues for the run up to Halloween.
Visual art is on offer for children with Me and The Moon from 5-7.30pm at Collis Sandes House with a printing workshop – 30 minute workshops giving children the chance to make art together. There will be a talk on the artworks of significant Irish artists given by John Griffin at St John’s Catholic Church at 5pm. You can throw your own pot with the Tralee Pottery Club at Siamsa Tíre from 5-7pm and Art in the Park will be at the railings of Tralee Town Park from 4–8pm. The Secret Garden, an origami installation, will be in place at Syphon Coffee Bar, Courthouse Lane from 6-11pm.
The Creative Youth Café will be open from 5-9pm at the KDYS in Denny Street and cultural offerings are also on the menu at the Kerry ETB building on Denny Street.
All events and any later additions to the programme can be found on www.culturenight.ie/kerry or phone 066 7183541
