Event of the week
Vampire Weekend
Friday, November 29th, 3Arena, Dublin, 6.30pm, €56.85, ticketmaster.ie
New York’s Vampire Weekend – now a core trio of Chris Baio, Ezra Koenig and Chris Tomson – have been on the receiving end of acclaim since their self-titled 2006 debut. Just in case their fan base had forgotten, 2024′s fifth album, Only God Was Above Us, has since taken on the status of a career-best collection. This helps when any band plays in such a large venue. But more so when (as this paper noted in its review), “musicians can harness acute cleverness without losing sight of what should always be the end result: vibrant, inventive work”. Special guests are the Irish folk/trad sibling duo Diarmuid and Brían Mac Gloinn, otherwise known as Ye Vagabonds. Hup!
Gigs
Dark Blue: Anohni Sings Lou Reed
Tuesday, November 26th, NCH, Dublin, 8pm, €74.50/€59.50/€49.50/€40, nch.ie
Anohni contributed vocals to Lou Reed’s 2013 album The Raven, and they remained friends and collaborators until the latter’s passing in 2013. Following Anohni’s 2023 album, My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross (which featured the Reed-inspired song Sliver of Ice), the New York-based singer, songwriter and visual artist presents a full show of songs written by the former Velvet Underground leader. From Perfect Day to Candy Says, and many more, prepare for a singular performance from a particularly distinctive artist.
The Unthanks
Tuesday, November 26th, Róisín Dubh, Galway, 7.30pm, €33, roisindubh.net; Wednesday, November 27th, The Empire, Belfast, 7.30pm, £27.50, belfastempire.com; Thursday, November 28th, Liberty Hall, Dublin, 7.30pm, €35, ticketmaster.ie; Friday, November 29th, Live at St. Luke’s, Cork, 7.30pm, €35, ticketmaster.ie
UK folk group The Unthanks have a knack for fusing Northumbrian folk music with other musical styles, but their true calling is the blended singing of sisters Rachel and Becky Unthank. Across a dozen albums, the members have focused on highlighting social causes (2012′s Songs from the Shipyards) and the works of lesser-known artists (including Robert Wyatt, and Molly Drake). In a seasonal twist, The Unthanks’ latest album, In Winter, is (they say) “a bittersweet hymnal to our shared winter experience.”
Festival
Other Voices
Friday-Sunday, November 29th-December 1st, various venues/times/prices, Dingle, Co Kerry, othervoices.ie
Songs for the head and heart is this year’s nominal tagline for Other Voice’s 23rd edition. As usual, the music talent is off the charts, with performances in Dingle’s St James Church featuring the likes of Laura Marling, Lisa O’Neill, and Morgana. The weekend also includes the Jameson Music Trail (which includes dozens of established and emerging Irish acts, from A Burial at Sea and Amy Michelle to Toshin and Venus Dupree), the IMRO Other Room (with Shiv, and Curtisy) and Ireland’s Edge (featuring panel discussions on disinformation, climate change, geopolitics, sustainability, and public service broadcasting). Full details are on the festival website.
The Young Offenders Christmas Special review: Where’s Jock? Without him, Conor’s firearm foxer isn’t quite a cracker
Restaurant of the year, best value and Michelin predictions: Our reviewer’s top picks of 2024
When Claire Byrne confronts Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary on RTÉ, the atmosphere is seriously tetchy
Classical
enVELop
Sunday, November 24th, St John’s Priory, Kilkenny, 7pm, €17.50, eventbrite.ie
The brainchild of Co Clare classical violinist Hilda O’Mahony, enVELop aims to attract a broader audience for classical music with not only performances of more contemporary classical works (by the likes of Phillip Glass, Arvo Pärt, Max Richter, Ludovico Einaudi, Béla Bartók, and Valentyn Silvestrov) but also live visual projections (by Galway audiovisual producer and video programmer, marQu). For this performance, O’Mahony will be joined by concert pianist Máire Carroll.
Marble City Music Festival
Thursday-Sunday, November 28th-December 1st, St Mary’s Cathedral, Kilkenny, various times/prices, marblecitymusicfestival.com
Christmas arrives a teensy bit early in Kilkenny with Marble City Music Festival’s mix of classical music, mince pies and mulled wine. Steered by Kilkenny-born violinist and conductor Patrick Rafter, the festival’s opening concert (7.30pm, Thursday, November 28th) is Solo Bach, in which Rafter and cellist Ailbhe McDonagh perform a selection of the composer’s solo violin and cello works. The festival’s closing concert (4pm, Sunday, December 1st) features soprano Claudia Boyle, pianist JJ McNamara, and the Kilkenny Choir for a rousing family-friendly finale. Full details are on the festival website.
Stage
The Borrowers
Until Sunday, January 12th, Gate Theatre, Dublin, 7.30pm, €31/€16, gatetheatre.ie
The Gate follows last year’s reimagining of Peter Pan with the Irish premiere production of one of Mary Norton’s most celebrated books. The titular tiny Clock family live covertly behind the walls and under the floorboards of a large country house and pinch various items to survive from week to week. On one such raid, however, the Clock’s youngest member, Arrietty, is seen by Tom, a house visitor. Cue a frantic search for a new home. Charles Way adapts, Róisín McBrinn directs, with witty songs by Fionn Foley. Claire O’Leary and David Rawle costar.
Film
Dublin International Comedy Film Festival
Wednesday-Saturday, November 27th-30th, various venues/times/prices, dublininternationalcomedyfilmfest.com
The fifth edition of the Dublin International Comedy Film Festival (DICFF) will feature a special showing of Paddy Breathnach’s 1997 acclaimed crime comedy film I Went Down at the Lighthouse Cinema on Wednesday, November 27th. The film, which features an early lead performance from Brendan Gleeson, will be followed by a Q&A with the director. Across four days, more than 60 films will be shown, including the much-touted US teen pregnancy comedy If That Mockingbird Don’t Sing. Films and events take place between Lighthouse Cinema, Complex, IFI, Hendrick Hotel, and Tailors’ Hall. Full details are on the festival website.
Still running
Outrage
Tuesday, November 26th/Wednesday, November 27th, Pavilion Theatre, Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin, 8pm, €25, paviliontheatre.ie; Saturday, November 30th, Droichead Arts Centre, Drogheda, Co Louth, 8pm, €18, droichead.com
Deirdre Kinahan’s absorbing historical drama focuses on the key roles of sisters Alice (Caitriona Ennis) and Nell (Mary Murray) in the lead-up to the 1922 Civil War. Jim Culleton directs.
Book it this week
Chris Kent, 3Olympia Theatre, Dublin, January 23rd, ticketmaster.ie
The High Llamas, Whelan’s, Dublin, February 15th, ticketmaster.ie
Dublin Bowie Festival, February 26th-March 2nd, dublinbowiefestival.ie
Iggy Pop, Royal Hospital, Kilmainham, Dublin, June 7th, ticketmaster.ie
