'What a crowd': Jenny Greene says playing the Marquee was highlight of the year

It is an impressive sign that leaving the Marquee after Jenny Greene and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra’s 90-minute performance and stepping into the midsummer twilight feels exactly like leaving a club and finding the breaking dawn illuminating your path home. It no doubt evoked memories of those special nights with friends and loved ones for many in attendance at Live at the Marquee on the second-last night of the 2023 season.

Revellers flocking to the venue by Cork’s Marina on Friday night were there for a night to remember and that was delivered to them in abundance by the DJ, orchestra and performers on stage. The tent was thronged with fans of both house music and classical performances, seeing a perfect marriage of both genres in the iconic venue.

Greene and the orchestra took to the stage at 9pm for their dance collaboration and delivered hit after hit to the teeming audience, a sea of bodies that moved as one to the beat surrounding them. From mega tunes like ‘God is a DJ’ by Faithless to the captivating vocals of Gemma Sugrue on tracks that included ‘Toca’s Miracle’ by Fragma and ‘Freed From Desire’ by GALA, the audience was spoiled with club classics.

Greene was visibly thrilled too to be back in Cork, telling the audience it is one of her favourite places to perform.

“I can’t put into words how brilliant it is to be back in our favourite place in the world: the Marquee,” she said to cheers. 

“It is really good to be here tonight and can I say how amazing is it to see Gemma Sugrue where she belongs, at the front!” 

She was referencing the move of the vocalists from the back of the stage to the front, literally allowing them to be centre stage and adding more movement and fluidity to the act.

Greene said she was happy to bring “the next chapter and a new set” to the Rebel County, which included a grand finale with Cork’s own Jack O’Rourke, who brought the house down with his performance of ‘Carry Me Home’ by Gloworm.

It was a night to remember, and not just for those in attendance. “What a crowd you are tonight, thank you so much for coming,” Greene said. “This has been the highlight of our year and it’s only June. We are never going to top this!”