Arts & Culture

THIS year’s edition of Razzle Dazzle by a group of South Galway writers is being launched next week. “This year’s Razzle Dazzle will probably make waves,” says the anthology’s editor, broadcaster and author, Liam Nolan.The 2010 edition of the annual collection of writings by Loughrea Creative Writing Group will be launched in Loughrea Library on Friday, December 3 at 7.30 pm. Mr Nolan himself will do several readings from the book.“Some of the topics this year and the style in which they are written, mark a departure from the anthology’s usual mix,” Nolan stated. “As well as surprising, they may well upset some people.”He cited the forceful writing and strong opinions expressed on such matters as the disgraceful treatment by the Catholic Church of the victims of paedophile priests, and the odd mixture of piety and paganism that characterised life in Ireland in the recent past.But the book embraces other departures, too including an experiment in writing a modern fable …

THIS Thursday, there will be a double arts event at Coole Park Visitor Centre marking the final night in the arts programme of the Winter 2010 series.From 8pm to 9pm, there will be an evening of traditional music with Charlie Harris and friends followed from 9pm to 10pm by a performance by Seán Tyrell. A commanding and imaginative musician, Charlie Harris is a natural accordion player who is held in the highest of esteem by his peers. Although there was no music in his family, he taught himself to play on a borrowed melodeon. In 2009, he was winner of the TG4 Gradam Ceoil award, which honours the musical heroes of the modern age. Charlie will be accompanied by musicians, Geraldine Cotter and Maeve Donnelly. Afterwards, from 9pm to 10pm, Seán Tyrell performs a selection of Irish poems to music. During this performance, he returns to the brimming well of Irish poetry and summoned a meitheal of poets, from both …

HAS been + is going, the Christmas Show at The Courthouse Gallery, Ennistymon opens this Friday. The exhibition runs until January 6, with the official opening on Friday at 7pm. It is followed at 8pm by an auction of Trasna Postcard Exhibition.Has been + is going features an astonishingly diverse range of work by Clare artists that ‘has been’ exhibited or ‘is going’ to be exhibited in the near future.Trasna, an exhibition of postcard-sized works by well-known artists will run in conjunction with the Christmas show.This is a first for the Courthouse Gallery, who have been delighted with the response from national and international artists.“It is a wonderful opportunity for locals to purchase original artworks as gifts for loved ones in the upcoming festive season. “To encourage all of the communities in North Clare to share in this fun event, there will be a wine reception and a humourous auction to be enjoyed on the opening night,” said a spokesperson …

CLARE Museum has taken possession of a number of artefacts discovered during excavations along the route of the recently opened M18 Gort to Crusheen road scheme.The museum is to hold an exhibition early next year in a specially designed exhibition space on the top floor of the building, which will feature the artefacts unearthed by archaeologists working on the infrastructure project. According to a spokesperson for Clare Museum, the items offer a fuller picture of history in the area.The exhibition will include pottery, stone tools and axes dating from the Neolithic period, along with glass and amber beads and a rare bone gaming piece, which date from the Iron Age period.“From informal discussions with archaeologists, I understand that between Gort and Crusheen and south of Sixmilebridge, very little Neolithic pottery has been discovered to date. It is good to find some items from these parts as it gives a fuller picture of the history of the areas. It wasn’t just …

SHANNON Heritage has announced two special Christmas productions at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. The Princess & the Dragon Wizard dinner and mini panto will take place on December 2-5, 9-12 and 16-23 at 5pm. There will also be a special Christmas evening and dinner at the castle, which will commence at 8pm on December 2 and will run on various dates until December 23.“We are delighted to extend our programme of Christmas entertainment at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. Our talented troupe of Bunratty Castle entertainers are putting on a series of fun Pantos including dinner for all the family and are performing a selection of the great Christmas classics at our Christmas evening and dinner at the castle. This year more than ever, people want to take their mind off the doom and gloom and what better way to do this than by revisiting your childhood panto experience and sharing it with your children,” said John Ruddle, chief …

LOCAL and internationally-acclaimed Irish traditional musicians will raise the roof at the launch of a charity CD in Ballina this Saturday night.Live at Liam’s was recorded to raise funds for Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin and will be launched in Liam O’Riain’s at 8pm.A live seisiún in Liam O’Riain’s was recorded last March following a conversation between Paul Smyth and Rowan Mulrooney, Portroe one night in the pub.Paul and Emer Smyth’s first child, David, died suddenly as a result of a serious heart defect and following a brief stint in Our Lady’s Hospital. They have supported various fundraising ventures for the hospital over the years.It is expected the hospital will benefit from an estimated €15,000 once the first 1,000 CDs, which had the production costs covered by five sponsors, are sold.The CD can be purchased in Custy’s Music Shop, Ennis and shops in Ballina, Killaloe, Nenagh, Newport and other areas in Limerick.Anyone who wants to purchase a copy …

THE National Self-Portrait Collection of Ireland (NSPCI), which is located in the University of Limerick campus, has acquired a second work by the artist Alice Maher, former visiting lecturer at the Burren College of Art, in Ballyvaughan. By John Rainsford Helmet (2003) is a photograph of the artist holding a helmet of snail shells close to her face. The picture is intended to tell the viewer more about the sitter’s interests and profession than a complete physical depiction ever could. Ms Maher, who is a former graduate of European studies at UL, already has a piece in the collection, a painting entitled Self-Portrait: Four Views (1993). She was born in Cahir, Tipperary, into a family of three brothers and one sister. When the fledgling National Institute of Higher Education’ (NIHE) Limerick, opened in 1972, she obtained a place. She took lectures in architecture and art history as well as in French and political history in her chosen field of European …

FRESH from a successful run at the Dublin International Gay Theatre Festival, the Bottom Dog Theatre Company arrive in Ennis this week with their production Language Unbecoming a Lady.This one-man show was written and performed by Limerick actor Myles Breen and is coming to Glór this Saturday.Originally presented as part of Limerick Pride in 2009, the play is set in the dressing room of Robert, an ageing drag queen who reveals his life and loves, victories and defeats.Exploring the themes of identity, love found and love lost using the music of Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, Billie Holiday and more, Language Unbecoming a Lady tells the story of one gay man’s life.Myles Breen is a founder member of Bottom Dog and as well as being a writer and director, he is one of the busiest actors in the country with a list of theatre, television and film credits stretching back over 20 years. He is directed in Language Unbecoming A Lady …