Details of the 12th instalment of Culture Night have been revealed with this year’s event taking place on Friday, September 22nd.
Organisers are hoping to build on last year’s turn-out of over 400,000 nationwide with thousands of free individual events across the country.
Highlights of this year’s line-up include the Irish Railway Record Society which will host an open evening in its library, archives and small exhibits museum. Visitors to the National Gallery of Ireland can see its refurbished historical wings with tours and talks hosted throughout the evening.
RTÉ Radio 1’s “Arena” returns to the upper courtyard of Dublin Castle for a live broadcast featuring music, theatre, comedy and poetry in the company of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra.
Over in the National Concert Hall, RTÉ Corn a nOg will perform a selection of scores from “Les Miserables” and the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra will perform two concerts.
Outside the capital, a screening of “Maze” is taking place at Cork City Concert Hall followed by a Q&A with director Stephen Burke and some of the cast and crew.
In Clare, three of Ireland’s most skilled fire performers present their latest production, Firestorm, while Kinvara Courthouse in Galway hosts Poetry, Paintings and Song in Court featuring an exhibition by visual artist Darryl Vance and performances by poet Sarah Clancy and singer/songwriter Sharon Murphy.
Culture Night travels beyond the borders of Ireland this year with events planned in Paris and New York to showcase the country’s culture internationally. The Irish Arts Centre in New York will host John Minihan: Beckett and His World, a photographic exhibition that captures the essence of Samuel Beckett and the luminaries that made up his world.
In Paris, the Centre Culturel Irlandais will host a group exhibition of new works by six artists who reflect the diversity of contemporary painters in Ireland.
Invaluable contribution
Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltact Heather Humphreys said Culture Night offered “some cultural discovery for all ages and interests”.
“Culture makes an invaluable contribution to our country, both to our economy and to the lives and wellbeing of our citizens. It is who we are and what we do,” Ms Humphreys said.
“Culture Night is a night like no other on this island, helping to make our rich and varied culture more accessible to all. It has grown from strength to strength each year and 2017 promises to be bigger and better than ever.”
Dublin Bus will provide free buses every 20 minutes starting on Bachelor’s Walk, Pearse Street, Aston Quay and Eden Quay. In Cork, Bus Éireann will provide three complimentary bus routes while Iarnród Éireann is offering 100 family passes for travel on Culture Night.
The full programme of events and participating venues for Culture Night 2017 is now available on www.culturenight.ie.
