Theatre Nights: Romance, music, comedy and something for the little ones 

After a sold-out run in 2024, Natural Woman returns to Cork Arts Theatre this Saturday, February 15.

Created by singer songwriter Fiona Kennedy, it is a combination of songs, stories, readings, and projections about ordinary women who have done extraordinary things – including Cork-born World War II heroine Mary Elmes, travel writer Dervla Murphy, women’s advocate Mary Crilly, and more.

Kennedy will be joined by some of Cork’s finest musicians and narrator Ethel Crowley for this unique and uplifting show.

Next week sees the start of a longer run of Same Time Next Year, in which a couple married to other spouses fall in love, and meet for just one weekend in the same place every year – for 25 years!

Written by Bernard Slade and directed by Mary Curtin, it opens on Wednesday, February 19 and runs to Saturday, March 1 at 8pm, with matinees on February 22 and March 1 at 2.30pm. Call 021 450 5624 or www.corkartstheatre.com.

Dara Ó Briain is completely sold out at the Opera House until Saturday, but there might be a few seats left for the Bay City Rollers on Sunday. Kyla Cobbler is here next Monday and Tuesday, February 17 and 18, while there is A Night With Adele on Thursday and Friday next. Call 021 427 0022 or see www.corkoperahouse.ie.

The Little Mermaid (Junior) opens at Everyman tomorrow and continues to Sunday, with evening shows at 7pm and matinees at 2.30pm. Presented by Centre Stage School with a huge cast of over 500 talented performers aged 8 to 19, it’s a magical underwater adventure with classic songs audiences will love. Tickets are selling fast!

Next Tuesday and Wednesday, it’s Accents, by actor/writer Emmet Kirwan, a show about the arrival of new life, the families we try to create, the families we may never have, and the post-crash boom generation living a life delayed. 8pm start, with an ISL-interpreted performance on Wednesday.

Des Bishop is here next Thursday, February 20, with his new show, Lately, while Qween, featuring the Dublin Gospel Choir, plays the venue on Friday, February 21.

Call 021 450 1673 or see www.everymancork.com.

Advance notice that the Ortús Chamber Music Festival celebrates its 10th anniversary from February 27 to March 2 in a wonderful array of venues: Blackrock Castle, Dripsey Castle Estate, Sirius Arts Centre Cobh, UCC’s Aula Max, the School of Music, and St Peter’s Church.

Set up in 2016 by childhood friends Sinéad O’Halloran and Mairéad Hickey, who shared a strong desire to bring the world’s finest musicians to Cork, the 2025 festival will feature many of the world’s finest classical and trad musicians. Full details of concerts and a link for purchasing tickets can be found on ortusfestival.ie.

There is a Valentine’s Weekend Special at City Limits - Cork Comedy Club this Saturday, with Brian Gallagher. One of the rising stars of Irish comedy, he is a regular in Ireland’s top comedy venues as well as at festivals like Forbidden Fruit, The Vodafone Comedy Carnival, Electric Picnic, The Vodafone Comedy Festival, Tedfest, the Edinburgh Fringe and more. Doors 8pm, show 8.45pm.

Booking on www.thecomedyclub.ie, tickets@thecomedyclub.ie 085 257 3480, or on the door if you trust any tickets being left!

Finally, Mallow Musical Society is at the Glen Theatre in Banteer, from tomorrow until Sunday, with its first full-feature show, Mala Gala: The Musical. Directed by Paola Cioppi, with musical direction by Rosanna Byrne, and choreography by Kelly Brassil, it’s going to be a sensation! Book online at mallowmusicalsociety.ie.

And you might like to know that Anne Gildea is back at the Glen Theatre on Saturday, March 1 with Further Adventures in Womaning, ideal for a girls’ night out.

Call 029 56239 or email theglentheatrebanteer@gmail.com.