Category Archives: Cork City Events

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town, 21 April 2016

Arts, Cork City Events, Cork History, Improve Your Life, Kieran's Council Work, Uncategorized, Ward Events

840a. Some of the cast for the upcoming Cork City Musical Society production of Crazy for You, The New Musical

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town Article,

Cork Independent, 21 April 2016

Crazy for You

   My second foray with Cork City Musical Society brings Crazy for You the musical from 29 April to 1 May in the Firkin Crane Shandon, four performances (three evening shows and a matinee). The show for all the family is being directed by myself, has a cast of 30 and a 7-piece band, with musical direction by Michael Young and choreography by Aisling Byrne Gaughan.

    We are delighted to present our musical to the public. Our cast of 30 have worked very hard on this production to bring a toe-tapping, sing-along and funny musical, which will leave a smile on the faces of the audience. Amateur musical societies are multiple in nature up and down the country. All bring their local communities together under a volunteer and charity umbrella – collaborating and bringing people together to create an outlet for people and to put drama, music and all ultimately form a key cultural vein within towns and villages. It is important that a city such as Cork has a musical society to promote the inherent love for musical theatre.

    Crazy for You is a romantic love musical with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as “The New Gershwin Musical Comedy”, it is largely based on the song writing team’s 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but incorporates songs from several other productions as well. George and Ira Gershwin will always be remembered as the songwriting team whose voice was synonymous with the sounds and style of the Jazz Age. By the time of their 1924 Broadway hit, Lady Be Good!, George had worked with lyricist Buddy DeSylva on a series of revues, George White’s Scandals, while Ira reveled in success with composer Vincent Youmans on Two Little Girls in Blue. But from 1924 until George’s death in 1937, the brothers wrote almost exclusively with each other, composing over two dozen scores for Broadway and Hollywood. Though they had many individual song hits, their greatest achievement may have been the elevation of musical comedy to an American art form.

    The history of jazz has its roots firmly planted in the American cities of New Orleans, Chicago, and New York City. And the musical tradition within these cities still lives on today. As jazz spread around the world, it drew on different national, regional, and local musical cultures, which gave rise to many distinctive styles. New Orleans jazz began in the early 1910s, combining earlier brass-band marches, French quadrilles, ragtime and blues with collective polyphonic improvisation. In the 1930s, heavily arranged dance-oriented swing big bands, Kansas City jazz, a hard-swinging, bluesy, improvisational style and Gypsy jazz (a style that emphasized musette waltzes) were the prominent styles. Ira Gershwin was a joyous listener to the sounds of the modern world. He had a sharp eye and ear for the minutiae of living. He noted in a diary: “Heard in a day: An elevator’s purr, telephone’s ring, telephone’s buzz, a baby’s moans, a shout of delight, a screech from a ‘flat wheel’, hoarse honks, a hoarse voice, a tinkle, a match scratch on sandpaper, a deep resounding boom of dynamiting in the impending subway, iron hooks on the gutter”.

    In studying the history of jazz music on the other side of the Atlantic, it is very interesting to research the anti-jazz movement in Ireland in the 1930s. It is difficult to imagine the halting of such glorious toe-tapping music such as “I Got Rhythm”. In an article in the History Ireland magazine (1993) by Jim Smyth entitled Dancing, Depravity and all that Jazz, The Public Dance Halls Act of 1935 he notes the pressure for constraints on the dance halls was becoming forceful. The Gaelic League re-launched its anti-jazz campaign in 1934 with a statement very much in tune with the sentiments of the bishops: “It is this music and verse that the Gaelic League is determined to crush…its influence is denationalising in that its references are to things foreign to Irishmen: that it is the present day instrument of social degradations all too plain, even in Ireland. That was the reason for their-launching of the anti-jazz campaign, the reason it received the blessing of the church and the approval of the state. The League was quick to condemn politicians who were seen as behavin an ‘anti-national’ fashion”. The Secretary of the League, attacking the broadcasting of jazz on Radio Éireann, had this to say about the minister responsible: “Our Minister of Finance has a soul buried in jazz and is selling the musical soul of the nation for the dividends of sponsored jazz programmes. He is jazzing every night of the week”. A number of County Councils adopted resolutions condemning jazz and all-night dancing. In January 1934 a large demonstration took place in Mohill, County Leitrim. It was made up mostly of young people and the press estimated the attendance at 3,000, with five bands and banners inscribed with “Down with Jazz” and “Out with Paganism”. Support came from church and state.

   But one can imagine that deep within some dance halls, the needs to release this soulful and spirit enhancing music. Come and enjoy Cork City’s musical production of Crazy for You, 29 April-1 May, see www.firkincrane.ie for tickets.

Captions:

840a. Some of the cast for the upcoming Cork City Musical Society production of Crazy for You, The New Musical; 29 April-1 May, www.firkincrane.ie for tickets (picture: Kieran McCarthy)

840b. George Gershwin at piano with Ira Gershwin and Fred Astaire (source: Getty Images)

 

840b. George Gershwin at piano with Ira Gershwin and Fred Astaire (2)

 

Cllr McCarthy’s Community Talent Competition 2016

Arts, Cork City Events, Improve Your Life, Kieran's Council Work, Uncategorized, Ward Events

Cork’s young people are invited to participate in the eighth year of Cllr Kieran’s McCarthy’s ‘Community Talent Competition’. The auditions will take place on Sunday 8 May between 10am-5pm in the Lifetime Lab, Lee Road. There are no entry fees and all talents are valid for consideration. The final will be held two weeks later. There are two categories, one for primary school children and one for secondary school students. Winners will be awarded a perpetual trophy and prize money of €150 (two by €150). The project is being organised and funded by Cllr Kieran McCarthy in association with Red Sandstone Varied Productions (RSVP).

Cllr McCarthy noted: “In its eight year, the talent competition is a community initiative. We generally get to audition people who have very little experience of performing. Within the audition process there is friendly feedback from our judges and if the auditionee gets through there are workshops to offer advice and support. The talent competition is all about encouraging young people to develop their talents and creative skills, to push forward with their lives and to embrace their community positively. I am delighted with the nuggets of talent that we have found in Cork communities over the years and very proud of those who post audition and competition, have taken up music, drama, and other elements of the performing arts within Cork – they engage with their talent and develop and enjoy it more”. Further details can be got from the talent show producer (RSVP), Yvonne Coughlan, 086 8764685 or email rsvpireland@gmail.com.

Kieran’s Talks, Lifelong Learning Festival Week

Cork City Events, Cork History, Kieran's Council Work, Landscapes, Uncategorized

For the forthcoming Lifelong Learning Festival Week, Douglas Road Cllr Kieran McCarthy will give a talk on some of the histories of West Cork through old postcards at the meeting room of the Church of the Real Presence, Curaheen on Wednesday 13 April, 10.30am. Based on his book, West Cork Through Time, Cllr McCarthy noted: “The talk focuses on in selective detail postcards from Cork City museum of the region of West Cork from one hundred years ago. It takes the reader from Bandon to Castletownbere through the changing landscapes and seascapes. This region is a striking section of Ireland’s coastline, over 320 kilometres in length, encompassing a raw coastal wilderness with expansive inlets eroded away by the Atlantic Ocean. The old postcards represent many memories of the landscape, sold to visitors and locals a century ago.”.

Cllr McCarthy will also give a talk on Cork and daily life in 1916 in the Cork City and County Archives in Blackpool at 11am on Saturday 16 April (all free, all welcome). It will form part of the half day seminar entitled Cork and the Easter Rising. Kieran is currently working on a book that takes the year 1916 from the point of view that there were multiple conversations to be heard during the year – a kaleidoscope of ideas which provided the context and framework for revolution – everyday life being one – some led Cork citizens to connect with the Republican mantra at the time and others to just maintain existence, survive and struggle with the bleakness of a national and local economy. Cllr McCarthy noted: “Entering the Cork Examiner on 1 January and progressing page by page one discovers key nuggets about the nature of Cork society, the soul of Ireland’s southern capital, the ongoing conversations about maintaining a contemporary status of being one of Ireland‘s distinguished port cities, and all the advantages and problems that run with that”.

Crazy for You Musical

Cork City Events, Improve Your Life, Kieran's Council Work, Uncategorized, Ward Events

   Cork City Musical Society to present award winning musical Crazy for You in Firkin Crane

   Cork City Musical Society is preparing for its second musical outing. This time they take on Crazy for You from 29 April to 1 May in Firkin Crane, four performances (three evening shows and a matinee).

  The show for all the family is being directed by Cllr Kieran McCarthy, has a cast of 30 and a 7-piece band, with musical direction by Michael Young and choreography by Aisling Byrne Gaughan.

 Founder of the society Cllr McCarthy noted “We are delighted to present our musical to the public. Our cast of 30 have worked very hard on this production to bring a toe-tapping, sing-along and funny musical, which will leave a smile on the faces of the audience. Amateur musical societies are multiple in nature up and down the country. All bring their local communities together under a volunteer and charity umbrella – collaborating and bringing people together to create an outlet for people and to put drama, music and all ultimately form a key cultural vein within towns and villages. It’s important that a city such as Cork has a musical society to promote the inherent love for musical theatre”.

  Crazy for You is a romantic love musical with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. Billed as “The New Gershwin Musical Comedy”, it is largely based on the song writing team’s 1930 musical, Girl Crazy, but incorporates songs from several other productions as well.

   Crazy for You won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Musical. Memorable Gershwin tunes include I Can’t Be Bothered Now, Bidin’ My Time, I Got Rhythm, Naughty Baby, They Can’t Take That Away from Me, But Not for Me, Nice Work if You Can Get It, Embraceable You and Someone to Watch Over Me. It’s a high energy comedy which includes mistaken identity, plot twists, fabulous dance numbers and classic Gershwin music.

Tickets are e.20 online at www.firkincrane.ie or from the box office at 021 4507487. There is a special deal of four tickets for e.70.

CRAZY FOR YOU ®
THE NEW GERSHWIN ® MUSICAL
Music and Lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin
Book by Ken Ludwig
Co-Conception by Ken Ludwig and Mike Ockrent
Inspired by Material by Guy Bolton and John McGowan
Originally produced on Broadway by Roger Horchow and Elizabeth Williams

Kieran’s Talks, Lifelong Learning Festival Week 2016

Arts, Cork City Events, Cork History, Landscapes, National, S.E. Ward Local History, Uncategorized

 

   For the forthcoming Lifelong Learning Festival Week, Douglas Road Cllr Kieran McCarthy will give a talk on some of the histories of West Cork through old postcards at the meeting room of the Church of the Real Presence, Curaheen on Wednesday 13 April, 10.30am. Based on his book, West Cork Through Time, Cllr McCarthy noted: “The talk focuses on in selective detail postcards from Cork City museum of the region of West Cork from one hundred years ago. It takes the reader from Bandon to Castletownbere through the changing landscapes and seascapes. This region is a striking section of Ireland’s coastline, over 320 kilometres in length, encompassing a raw coastal wilderness with expansive inlets eroded away by the Atlantic Ocean. The old postcards represent many memories of the landscape, sold to visitors and locals a century ago. There are places that charm, catch and challenge the eye. West Cork in itself is a way of life where individuals and communities have etched out their lives. It is a place of discovery, of inspiration, a place of peace and contemplation, and a place to find oneself in the world”.

    Cllr McCarthy will also give a talk on Cork and daily life in 1916 in the Cork City and County Archives in Blackpool at 11am on Saturday 16 April (all free, all welcome). It will form part of the half day seminar entitled Cork and the Easter Rising. Kieran is currently working on a book that takes the year 1916 from the point of view that there were multiple conversations to be heard during the year – a kaleidoscope of ideas which provided the context and framework for revolution – everyday life being one – some led Cork citizens to connect with the Republican mantra at the time and others to just maintain existence, survive and struggle with the bleakness of a national and local economy. Cllr McCarthy noted: “Entering the Cork Examiner on 1 January and progressing page by page one discovers key nuggets about the nature of Cork society, the soul of Ireland’s southern capital, the ongoing conversations about maintaining a contemporary status of being one of Ireland‘s distinguished port cities, and all the advantages and problems that run with that”.

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town, 24 March 2016

Arts, Cork City Events, Cork History, Improve Your Life, Kieran's Council Work, Uncategorized

836a. Ballyphehane GAA group participating at the recent Cork City St Patrick’s Day Parade, March 2016

Kieran’s Our City, Our Town, 

Cork Independent,  24 March 2016 

Centenary Programmes: Reflecting 1916-2016

 

    For a century, the stories of the Easter Rising and the Irish Citizen Army have morphed into powerful national metaphors for Irish identity. The events are written and spoken about in almost mythic and romanticised terms, encoded and re-encoded, distilled and re-distilled into key events and moments in the Easter period of 1916 and onwards into subsequent years – the idealism of democracy, the Rising, the Rebellion, the Volunteers, the reading of the Proclamation, the Irish Citizen Army, the standing down of those ready to fight outside of Dublin, the role of the GPO and its shelling by British forces, the violence, the surrender, the executed leaders, the sorrow, the questions of clemency, the morality, the internment camps, the beginning of the war of Independence, the role of objects of nostalgic currency such as participation medals, copies of the actual proclamation, the citizen army flag, letters and documentation.

   In Cork many hundreds of Cork men and women mobilised (c.180 alone in the Cork City Battalion). An anxious standoff took place at the Volunteer Hall on Sheares Street between the Irish Volunteers who had gathered there and the British Forces. The intervention of the Lord Mayor and the Bishop of the day led to a peaceful outcome and no bloodshed.  However these aspects and above and much more are all stitched into a national history framework – a cultural consciousness – a continuous conversation about Irish heritage by successful Irish governments and by civil society on what the building blocks of a national nostalgic and a national collective memory should be and their meaning, relevancy, value and connection to today’s world.

    The Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme, under the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, is a year-long programme of activity to commemorate the events of the 1916 Rising, to reflect on challenges and achievements over the last 100 years and to look towards Ireland’s future. The 31 local and community plans are a core element of the Community Participation strand of Ireland 2016, one of the seven programme strands alongside State Ceremonial, Historical Reflection, An Teanga Bheo – the Living Language, Youth and Imagination, Cultural Expression and Global and Diaspora.  Over 2,000 events will take place in 2016 as part of the Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme. The 31 Local Authority Programmes for Ireland 2016 represent the outcome of many hundreds of hours of reflection, consultation and discussion involving thousands of people all over Ireland.  Cork city and county, under the efforts of both local authorities, will have the biggest percentage of events in the country.

   The Cork City programme is the outcome of consultations with interested local groups, organisations and individuals. Led by Cork City Council, the programme comprises events and initiatives ranging across all seven strands of the Ireland 2016 programme.

  • Easter Monday Commemorative Ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the Rising in conjunction with Cork County Council. Events will be held at St. Francis Hall on Sheares Street, the home of the Cork Volunteers, and at the National Monument on Grand Parade. A synchronised wreath laying ceremony will be held at 1.15 p.m. – the time that the first shots of the 1916 Rising were fired.
  • Sacrifice at Easter: Corcadorca Theatre Company will stage Sacrifice at Easter by Pat McCabe at Elizabeth Fort in June 2016. Written in response to the 1916 centenary, Sacrifice at Easter is a creative collaboration between director Pat Kiernan, writer Pat McCabe and renowned composer Mel Mercier.
  • Exhibition: Perceptions 2016, the Art of Citizenship: Part of a series of exhibitions and events the Crawford Art Gallery will host in response to the 1916 Centenary, Perceptions 2016 is an exhibition, seminar and public engagement workshops and events that expand the range of voices, visions, perceptions and approaches to creativity that the public engage with. This will be held in cultural venues throughout the City including Crawford Art Gallery, Wandesford Quay Gallery, City Hall Atrium and a number of satellite venues around Cork.
  • Exhibition on the 1916 rising and its connection to Cork City: Illustrating people, places and events connected to Easter Week in Cork at Cork Public Museum.
  • Centre of Commemoration at St. Peter’s Church, North Main Street: Cork City Council will manage a year round venue based programme in St Peter’s Church on North Main Street. The centre will be called ‘The Centre of Commemoration’ and will host a range of exhibitions, talks, readings, music and community events. All national themes relating to Remember, Reconcile, Imagine, Present And Celebrate will be programmed, supported and presented into this venue.
  • Ballyphehane 1916-2016 programme: Ballyphehane’s main roads are named after the seven signatories of the 1916 Proclamation. See their facebook page for more.
  • Upstairs at The Oliver Plunkett, Revolution is a dramatic, specially commissioned series of plays, written and directed by Eoin Hally, which bring the events of 1916 to life. The series features six different plays, including the following: The Women of the Rising, O’Donovan Rossa Connection, WWI Roger Casement, The Lockout 1913, Connolly and The finale play – The Preparation and The Rising. Tickets are available to buy online at www.theoliverplunkett.com or at the bar.

For City City commemorative events,

see http://corkcity1916.ie/clar.pdf

and for the County Programme

see http://www.ireland.ie/sites/default/files/cork_county.pdf

 

 Captions:

 836a. Ballyphehane GAA group participating at the recent Cork City St Patrick’s Day Parade commemorating Ballyphehane’s historic roads named after the signatories of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic (picture: Kieran McCarthy)

 836b. Large scale banner of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic, Cork City St Patrick’s Day Parade 2016 (picture: Kieran McCarthy)

 

836b. Large scale banner of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic, Cork City St Patrick’s Day Parade 2016

Cork City Council Commences Electricity Generation at Tramore Valley Park, Cork

Cork City Events, Kieran's Council Work, Landscapes, Uncategorized, Ward Events

   Cork City Council, through its normal operations, buildings, transport etc consumes approximately 30 million units of energy per annum of electricity, fuel, gas, etc. As part of the National Climate Change policy, Cork City Council, like all other public bodies, is required to reduce its energy consumption by 33% by the year 2020 which equates to 10 million units per annum.

   The Kinsale Road landfill site (now Tramore Valley Park), which ceased accepting waste for landfilling in 2009, will continue to generate methane gas from the 3 million tonnes of waste deposited over the 40 year lifetime of the landfill site. This gas will now be beneficially used to generate electricity for Cork City Council and also ensure that the Council meets its EPA license obligations in regard to landfill gas treatment. The quantity of electricity being generated is adequate to supply 500 houses on an ongoing basis until 2021.

    The project is a collaboration between Cork City Council, The Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, who are providing ongoing support for the sale of electricity under the REFIT scheme, and a private energy supplier, Vayu Energy. Michael O’Brien, Senior Engineer, stated:

“The electricity generation project will generate 3 million units of energy per annum that will be sold to Vayu Energy. The project, which has been funded by Cork City Council, will reduce emissions to the environment and will also substantially contribute to the Council’s 2020 energy reduction targets, as well as showcasing an innovative project in the Tramore Valley Park. It is timely that the project be commissioned in the same week as the global summit in climate change is taking place in Paris”.

 Ross McConnell, Vayu Energy stated:

“We are delighted to be partnering with Cork City Council on this project. It’s an excellent example of the type of initiative that will help in meeting the Government’s targets for renewable energy. We see enormous potential for schemes such as this to transform the way electricity is produced in Ireland over the decades to come. This is important not only from an environmental sustainability viewpoint but also in terms of the country’s long-term economic competitiveness and security of energy supply”.

Cllr McCarthy’s New Book, North Cork Through Time

Cork City Events, Cork History, Kieran's Council Work, Landscapes, National, Uncategorized

  The second of three books Kieran McCarthy has been involved in penning this year focuses on postcards of historic landscapes of North Cork. Entitled North Cork Through Time, it is compiled by Dan Breen of Cork Museum and Kieran and published by Amberley Press.

  The region is defined by the meandering River Blackwater and its multiple tributaries and mountainous terrain to the north. It borders four counties that of Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford. The postcards, taken for the most part between c.1900 and c.1920 show the work of various photographers, who sought to capture the region and sell their work to a mass audience. Not every town and village were captured in a postcard. This book brings together many of the key sites of interest and serves as an introduction to the rich history of the region.  In the postcards, one can see the beauty that the photographers wished to share and express.  The multitude of landmarks shown in this book have been passed from one generation to another, have evolved in response to their environments, and contribute to giving the County of Cork and its citizens a sense of identity and continuity.

 Chapter one explores the border territory with County Kerry – a type of frontier territory for Cork people – its history epitomised in the elegant and well-built Kanturk Castle, the gorgeous town of Millstreet with its international equestrian centre and its access into the old historical butter roads of the region. Chapter 2 centres around the Limerick Road from Mallow to Charleville – Mallow a settlement with a heritage dating back 800 years and straddles the winding River Blackwater. 

   Chapter 3 glances at the area east of the Mallow-Limerick Road taking in the stunning Doneraile estate with the adjacent and spacious streetscape of the connected village.  Killavullen, Castletownroche and Kilworth all present their industrial pasts. Mitchelstown stands in the ‘Golden Vale’ of the Galtee Mountains, its heritage being linked back to the Kingston estate and their big house, which dominated the local landscape with views on all it surveyed.  Chapter 4 explores Fermoy, which because of its history and connection to a local military barracks possesses a fine range of postcards. Its bridge and weir, views of the Blackwater, the nineteenth century square, colourful streetscapes all reveal the passion for such a place by its photographers. North Cork Through Time by Kieran McCarthy and Dan Breen is available in any good bookshop.