The Dublin Community Blog

If you haven’t already made plans for next weekend I would advise you to get yourself into Merrion Square, the earlier the better. Last year myself and my family had a great day out at the Street Performance World Championships in Dublin. It was so good on the Saturday that we went back for more on the Sunday. This event happens over 2 weekends – the first took place yesterday and Saturday in Fitzgerald park in Cork and from the tweets seemed to have been a big hit, regardless of the weather.While it was very busy last year, particularly on the Sunday, we were nearly always able to get a good view and we didn’t feel crowded.

Apart from the contiortionists, sword swallowers, breakdancers and acrobats SPWC are organising a world record attempt which we can all participate in on the Sunday. If you would like to break the world record for the number of people bouncing on space hoppers at the same time, your dream can become a reality on Sunday at 2pm. You just have to register by emailing worldrecord@spwc.ie.

The competition kicks off at 12pm on Saturday and the last performances are scheduled to take place at 6.30pm on Sunday. While most of the performers don’t take the competition too seriously, you can vote for your favourite act throughout the weekend. Make sure to bring along plenty of fivers or change to pay the performers. They do not get a penny except what they can persuade you to part with after their performance. Some of them are very persuasive!

The SPWC website includes maps (don’t worry about not being able to print it – they have plenty available at the event), timetables and lots of info about the competing acts. A favourite with the kids last year were the wooden games so we’ll see you there and challenge you to best us!

You’ve probably heard the cringe worthy advert currently running on national radio stations in relation to MenuPages.ie giving vouchers for restaurants. The advert might be annoying, but the offer is definitely worth a look. The value from each restaurant varies considerably. From taking a quick scan today, I noted good deals by Buenos Aires Grill and Cafe en Seine.  Should you find yourself on Dublin streets accompanied by hunger pangs, these vouchers might come in use. The majority of offers cannot be used during the weekend, however, dining out on school nights is more fun anyway.

I took myself and my three children along to the RHA Gallagher Gallery on Ely Place (map) to check out their annual exhibition. It runs until 31st July and I would recommend that you get yourself along to it. It’s a hop, skip and a jump from Stephen’s Green so we combined our visit with a picnic in the park. (This was originally supposed to be a playground post but the playground in Stephen’s Green is closed for refurbishment but looks like it will be ace!)

To be honest my visit to the exhibition was kind of a duty: my brother, Blaise Smith, and brother-in-law, John O’Reilly, both have paintings on display. The painting right is by  the brother in law.

That’s the thing about the RHA Annnual exhibition: if you know any Irish artists chances are you will see some of their work exhibited here. It’s a great opportunity to see the work of up-and-coming or established artists. I am the farthest thing from an art critic. I look at the paintings and think about what they make me think about. I like this or that because the colours appeal to me or it evokes memories or reminds me of a person, place or thing. Some paintings I enjoy because they make me smile or conjure up other emotions. I have a very rudimentary art history education so I won’t even attempt to review the exhibition in those terms but as a way to spend an afternoon in Dublin you could do a lot worse. You are bound to see something that will make you melt inside, raise your hackles or that will feature in your dreams or nightmares. All types of materials are used and while painting features heavily there are also prints, photography, sculpture, architecture and even one brooch featured! The refurbished gallery is a beautiful exhibition space (it’s probably been refurbished for ages but y’know I don’t get out much!) It was a fine way to spend the afternoon with two lively under 7s and there was no difficulty getting the buggy around and up and down.

My husband was very glad when I told him I didn’t get a catalogue and buy any paintings but if you are looking to invest in some work this is a great place to pick up some iconic Irish art as many of the items are for sale. I hadn’t planned to write a blog post about the exhibition so while I know which items would be my top five I can’t remember all the details. I do plan to go back so I might take notes next time!

180th Annual Exhibition, Opening hours:
The RHA Gallery will revert to opening ALL Exhibition AREAS, 7 days a week, for the 180th Annual Exhibition, from 24 May – 30 July.
Monday & Tuesday 11 – 5pm
Wednesday – Saturday 11 – 7pm
Sunday 2 – 5pm

As a mammy-ish aside I also note that the RHA run children’s workshops throughout the year. My older son was very interested in the exhibition so I’m off to book him into the workshop that focuses on the exhibtion.

This year’s Dublin Writers Festival kicks off on June 1st, and I have to say that this year the list of featured authors is impressive: Ian McEwan, Anthony Beevor, Joseph O’Connor, Anne Enright, Hanif Kureishi, Yann Martel a. m. m. mark this year’s edition a festival not too miss. You’ll find the full programme here, and you can follow the festival both on Twitter and Facebook as well.

I’m really disappointed to miss it, as I’ll be on holidays at the time, but if you’re into books, please give it a go – tickets are between 12 and 20 €, and events take place at different venues throughout town, such as the Project Arts Centre, the Sugar Club and the Dublin Writers Museum. Go bookworms!

Yay, the long-awaited long May weekend is almost upon us. And if you’re still looking for something to do over the weekend, we are here to help. You could try these things:

First of all there’s the SoGo Arts Festival in and around South Great George’s Street all weekend. This 3 day bonanza kicked of today, but there are loads of activities and things to see over the next 2 days as well, like “The Best of Busking” featuring the Mighty Steph, a screening of “Once” in Walton’s music store and a flea market on Sunday.

Next on the list is the recently opened Glasnevin Museum – a museum on Dublin’s most famous graveyard, dedicated to Irish heritage & genealogy, and the history of the graveyard itself.

If a proper Indie rock festival is more of your liking, you could also head to Balbriggan on Saturday, where the Sibin Festival officially opens the Irish open air-festival season. For those of you who prefer electronic tunes, you can either keep on partying or start your own festival season on Sunday with the Yes Festival down in Clontarf.

And if this is too much activity for you, you can always relax in one of Dublin’s beer gardens – the weather permitting…

Image via

Even though we did not make it into the final round of the IBA’s this year, we are still looking forward to the festivities in Galway next weekend. Red Mum (nominated for Best Photo Blog! ) and my humble self will be there to represent the Dublinblog, and will update you via our own Twitter-accounts and the Dublinblog-Twitter.

In the meantime, I’ll try to lay my hands on a nameplate that says “Hi, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father.” and will also try to get a shitty haircut. See you next Saturday.

image via.

I’m happy to post this guest article written by my friend, Melanie. Melanie has many years of experience in the arts and particularly in acting and she offers unique insight into the Dublin theatre scene.

Tom Creed, originally from Cork, has been living and working as a freelance theatre director in Dublin since 2006. Well known in the theatre community as a young and prodigious talent, his work is at once prolific and varied. Beginning his theatre work in Cork, he then trained with Rough Magic’s SEEDS programme, which seeks to identify and develop young theatrical talent. He got what he calls the ‘golden ticket’; he was made an Associate Director of the company, which allows him to work under their well established banner as well as pursuing some of his own work.

His latest departure is Una Santa Oscura, a theatrical staging of the music of Ian Wilson, inspired by the life of 12th century Christian visionary Hildegard of Bingen. Presented at the Project Arts Centre in Dublin’s Temple Bar, Tom is adamant that there’ll be no nuns on stage! Rather it’s an interpretation of a cloistered day interrupted by ecstatic visions, brought to life in a contemporary apartment setting and performed by a single musician, violinist Ioana Pectu-Colan. Although he wouldn’t call himself religious, Tom is intrigued by the collision of the sacred and profane and found himself fascinated by the life of this extraordinary proto-feminist, fundamentalist Christian nun who was famed in her own lifetime as a composer of hymns, expositor of theology and receiver of visions. Read the rest of this entry »

In my opinion, one of the most interesting events that is currently happening in Dublin city is this monthly themed night of music, spoken word and performance: The Brown Bread Mixtape. Happening upstairs at the Stag’s Head is an evening full of great entertainment, prose, poems, song, laughter, fun and the odd Swedish pop song. MC’s, chief organisators and jacks-of-all-trades Kalle and Enda present a hand-picked array of artists, and are spicing it up with their own performances in between.

Dublinblog sent some questions their way, and here’s what the two main men had to say:

Read the rest of this entry »

There is a fan page on Facebook called Secret Dublin. Secret Dublin aims to provide a forum for Dubliners to share their insights on places and talent in Dublin to discover “hidden gems”. The idea is romantic, but sadly a short peruse of the page shows few suggestions. With this in mind, I am going to share my little bit of Secret Dublin I happened to stumble across two months ago.

Weeks and weeks ago, my French friend, Maryline, told me of an evening called Milk & Cookie Stories.

“It is a group of people that come together to tell stories and have cookies,” she explained. She described the event as if it were common place.

“What has cookies got to do with stories?” I asked in puzzlement.

“I don’t know, replied my friend. “It’s just what they do.”

“How much is it?”

“It is free.”

I was suspicious. I gave the first two events a wide berth by politely declining an invite. Then came a funny phase of mine; I realised I needed to be more open to new things and new people. When Maryline reminded me yet another Milk & Cookie Stories evening approached, I agreed to attend. I remained sceptical, but reminded myself of the new things and new people I craved.

On a wet Tuesday evening Maryline and I made our way to the Dublin Exchange, Temple Bar. We arrived to be greeted by friendly faces, most of whom –  I guessed – were students. We were early. Rows of seats and large cushions on the floor remained vacant. Across the open plan room were tables bearing baskets of biscuits. We were offered tea and helped ourselves to the fare on offer.

When I asked one of the organisers about the evening, I was told that it was an open mic evening where attendants were invited to share a story. The story could be anything from a lament to a personal experience. An emphasis was placed on first timers. Anyone interested in spinning a yarn was invited to put their name on the list. They would be called up when their moment came.

My friend and I warmed ourselves next to a solitary radiator in a remote corner of the gallery. We watched as the number of attendants slowly and steadily increased. We were both taken aback by the friendly atmosphere. I was introduced to a considerable number of people. I noted how simple it was to strike up conversation with relative strangers. My thoughts were suddenly interrupted.

“We will be starting in around five minutes,” a girl named Sarah announced to the eighty or so people gathered. This prompted a hush to descend on the room.

The first story teller was called up. He received a supportive applause from the congregation. He told his story. Following another round of applause, the next story teller was called. The most memorable performances from the evening were a recital of Arabian Nights, an Hungarian folktale and a Celtic myth. The featured performer of the evening – whose name has unfortunately slipped my mind – told a personal story that was both moving and humorous.

I went again last Tuesday and had an equally enjoyable experience. The featured performer, Clare Murphy, told two Irish stories and a Nigerian tale. Her performance was uniquely engaging and animated. Clare drew loud laughs and planted ideas in our minds. I would gladly have listened to her for hours had I the chance. Clare embodies the skill and art of storytelling that Milk & Cookie Stories strives to promote.

Milk & Cookies Stories meets on the first/second Tuesday of every month at Dublin Exchange, Temple Bar. The atmosphere is friendly, the stories are entertaining and the cookies are tasty. The event is free, but the organisers do encourage attendants to make a small donation when the “cookie jar” is passed around.  Should you find yourself available from six o’clock Tuesday, 9^th February, you should come along.

What’s the worst that can happen? You enjoy a unique experience and open your mind to some new ideas? Come along, it’s a great evening.

Yes, it is that time of the year again. Like last year, I’m planning to entertain you with my adventures as a volunteer for the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. The Festival officially opens on February 18th; so from then on you’ll get regular updates on what it’s like to rip of tickets, collect sticky rubbish from under cinema chairs and meeting the occasional celebrity, all while serving in one of the many venues of the festival. Plus also try to provide some insight on this rare occasion that World Cinema and Hollywood make a stopover in Dublin.

Whereas last year’s motto was “finding favourite films”, this year the festival seems even more diverse with spotlights on Korean, Russian and of course Irish cinema. And it is officially dedicated to one of it’s founders, Michael Dwyer, who passed away recently.

Among my personal picks this year are:

City of Live and Death - a Chinese movie about the so called “Rape of Nanking” in the Sino-Japanese war in 1937, directed by Lu Chuan. Warning: graphic images in the trailer!

Capitalism – a love story – Michael Moore’s inimitable look on capitalism and world economy.

Same Same but different – German director Detlev Buck tells the story of a German backpacker who falls in love with a Cambodian prostitute.

And last but by no means least: Valhalla Rising – Nicholas Winding Refn’s (Bronson) grimy Viking movie:

Please stay tuned for more movie madness on this channel errr blog.