Theatre Nights: Horror, laughs... and plenty of music

Garth Marenghi’s This Busted Earth is on tonight at the Opera House, bringing three new terrifying tales from the master of horror fiction.

The last few seats are available for Mack Fleetwood tomorrow, while Studio Wolfe are here on Saturday and Sunday with Battle of the Pop Bands, bringing the ultimate showdown of ’90s and early 2000s pop icons to the stage. Performers aged 3 to teenagers, and are they good!

All next week, that very popular show, Friends, The Musical Parody, is selling fast. Monday to Saturday, different times, so check on www.corkoperahouse.ie or 021 427 0022.

At the Everyman this Saturday, Flowers And Friendship Bracelets bills itself as the ultimate pop concert celebrating the biggest hits from Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, and more. And a huge pop party to finish the show! Unforgettable memories for children and families. Saturday, April 11 at 1.30pm and 6pm.

Next Tuesday and Wednesday, the Tigerslane production of Murder Trial Tonight is already sold out, but don’t forget that you can enjoy (if that’s the right word) Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience at the Metropole from April 14 to 19, at 7.30pm, with an additional Sunday lunch booking at 1.30pm.

That can be booked through the Everyman too: 021 450 1673 or www.everymancork.com.

From tonight until Saturday, Matilda Jr, The Musical, will be at the Firkin Crane.

Don’t forget Bumbled, coming up at the Ballymaloe Grainstore next Wednesday, April 15. A hilarious, and unexpectedly touching one-person play about Pascal, an earnest Irish honeybee on a mission to save the world — and maybe fall in love. The show blends comedy, physical theatre, and heartfelt storytelling as Pascal navigates the dangers of beelife, his romance with his French girlfriend Marion, and his desperate attempts to warn humans about the fragile state of the natural world.

For bee-lovers everywhere, don’t miss this one. 8pm. 021 465 2531 for tickets.

Brokentalkers are coming home to tour Ireland with their acclaimed stage show Bellow this month, playing Blackwater Fit-Up Theatre Festival, Thursday, April 16 (Ballynoe Community Hall), and Friday, April 17 at The Palace Theatre in Fermoy.

It’s the extraordinary real-life story of one of our foremost Irish accordionists, Danny O’Mahony, a man who has dedicated his life to the preservation of traditional Irish music and to the mastery of his craft. Tickets on the door in both cases; more info on www.fit-uptheatrefestival.com/.

At City Limits - Cork Comedy Club this Saturday, April 11, Brian Gallagher plus guests are on stage. Described as one of the rising stars of Irish comedy, Gallagher burst onto the scene when he came first runner-up in Irish comedy talent search Show Me The Funny.

A regular in some of Ireland’s top comedy venues and resident MC of Slatts Laughs Club Dublin, he has also appeared at many festivals and sold out at the Edinburgh Fringe. Doors 8pm, show 8.45pm. www.thecomedyclub.ietarget="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">, www.tickets.ie. 085 257 3480. Also on the door, if there are any left by then!

A youthband showcase is coming up at the Briery Gap in Macroom this Sunday, in Future Sounds. Six talented U18 bands and musicians from various corners of our county will give of their best in this lively concert which begins at 2.30om. Free, but tickets almost sold out already, so be quick!

On Monday and Wednesday next week, the Briery Gap Cinema presents The Testament of Ann Lee, about the 18th-century founder of the Shaker movement. 8pm start. 083 143 6884 or www.brierygap.ie.