Theatre Nights: So much to see in Cork's Midsummer Fest

THE very popular Cork Proms at the Opera House is offering three different concerts over the next week to kick off The Midsummer Festival.

Tonight it’s Heyday, a mix of Irish rock and pop with new arrangements of beloved songs by artists and bands such as Sinéad O’Connor, The Cranberries, The Pogues, Enya, Thin Lizzy and more.

It is a night to be truly proud of Ireland’s incredible musical legacy and celebrate the best music this country has produced from the 1960s through to the modern day.

Joining the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra, conducted by John O’Brien, will be soloists Jack O’Rourke, MayKay, Lucia Evans, Laoise Leahy and Niall McCabe.

That’s followed on Sunday by New World Symphony and Rhapsody In Blue, also featuring music by composers Copland, Korngold and Barber; and on Wednesday and Thursday next, There’s No Place Like Home, celebrating the best of musical theatre. Beautiful events, don’t miss any of them.

Call 021 427 0022 or see www.corkoperahouse.ie

And tons of things are going on elsewhere during the festival - down at the Marina Market from tonight until Saturday, for example, Night Dances, an exhilarating, ferocious performance of pure dance and live music from Emma Martin to a live soundtrack by Daniel Fox. 8.30pm start.

At the Granary tonight, tomorrow, and Saturday, Suisha Inclusive Arts/Cope Foundation present Home Sweet Home, a play about housing, horror films and protest. An ambitious, disability-led production, it features creatively-embedded access including audio description, captioning, Irish sign language interpretation, and relaxed performances. That’s 7pm tonight and tomorrow, 3pm Saturday. Suitable for 12+.

One of the most exciting events has to be Alter by Kamchàtka, an extraordinary award-winning collective of international artists. 

You meet in the city centre and are taken on a late-night journey to a secret location for an unforgettable experience. Seven characters appear, each carrying a suitcase. Who are they, what are their stories? 12+ accompanied by a parent or guardian, meet at 10pm. This Friday to Sunday, June 14-16, booking in advance is essential, when you will receive the exact meeting point. Thrilling or what?

This really is the most diverse and fascinating of festivals, all praise to those who make it happen! See https://www.corkmidsummer.com/whats-on/ to be sure you don’t miss anything.

There’s still time to take the little ones to The Summer I Robbed A Bank at the Everyman, it must end this Sunday. A delightful romp of an adventure across Achill Island which makes a child’s holidays something never to be forgotten. There is a special access performance on Sunday at 2pm, but you do need to specify that when you are booking. 021 450 1673 or www.everymancork.com

Music Network presents Linda Fredriksson’s Juniper at the Triskel tomorrow, Friday, offering Cork audiences a rare opportunity to hear this jazz band, winner of the Teosto Prize in 2022, one of Scandinavia’s most prestigious awards. Juniper also won an Emma for Best Jazz Album in 2022. 8pm start. 021 427 2022 or triskelartscentre.ie for bookings.

Something excellent in the way of dance is coming up at the Triskel next week, also as part of the Cork Midsummer Festival, when Dance Cork Firkin Crane present two matinee screenings of This Is It, by Laura Murphy Dance. Pioneering women in dance in Ireland are the focus of this series of candid multimedia portraits.

Collaborating with filmmaker Pato Cassinoni, animator Alan Early and composer Irene Buckley, Murphy presents an innovative, multifaceted exploration of eight women: Jean Butler, Alicia Christofi Walshe, Lisa Cliffe, Finola Cronin, Joan Davis, Katherine O’Malley, Mary Nunan and Angie Smalis. Fri/ Sat, June 21/22 at 3pm. Tickets at www.corkmidsummer.com