OMAGH'S new arts centre has just launched its inaugural programme which offers patrons a selection of music, plays, tours, talks and workshops throughout the summer.
The long awaited programme reveals what the £10.5m purpose-built Strule Arts Centre will deliver once it opens its doors to the public in June.
At the launch, the council vice-chairman Cllr Peter Kelly encouraged local people to support the Strule Arts Centre, "These are exciting times for the Arts community in Omagh and indeed for the people of the district as a whole. It has been a long-held ambition to have a suitable venue capable of bringing the very best in all mediums of the Arts to Omagh. That dream is now a reality and in less than three weeks the Strule Arts Centre will welcome its first performers and audience to a concert to celebrate all that is good about Omagh.
"I would urge the people of Omagh to come out and support the events in the new Arts Centre. Something in the programme will appeal to everyone", Cllr Kelly added.
Events get underway with an inaugural gala performance, featuring the finest home-grown talent, on Friday, June 8 at 8pm. The boards of Strule Arts Centre stage will be treaded for the very first time, with a glittering array of performers who reflect the varied traditions of Omagh.
Performers will include comedian Kevin McAleer, the Dirty Blues Band, Dún Uladh Traditional Music Group, Tom Sweeney, David and Lesley Caldwell, Gerarda McCann, the Western Board Big Band, and St Eugene's Band, in a concert compèred by Pio McCann. With this one-off line-up, and with tickets a mere £10, you cannot afford to miss this show.
Country music lovers will be in for a treat on Thursday, June 14 at 8pm, when Crystal Promotions present the crème de la crème of Irish country musicians in Keep It Country. Mick Flavin, Brian Coll, duo Thomas Maguire and Fiona Ennis, Anthony McBrien, and rising stars Seamus Delaney and Carmel McLoughin will surely have your toes tapping. Pio McCann will also compère the evening's entertainment and tickets are £12.50.
Theatre will have its first airing at Strule Arts Centre on Saturday, June 16 at 8pm (tickets £12) and there is no better show on which to bestow this privilege than John B Keane's hilarious play, The Matchmaker. This production, by City Theatre Dublin, has gripped audiences from off-Broadway to throughout Ireland with its superb casting including Mick Lally ('Miley' from Glenroe) and Anne Charleston ('Madge' from Neighbours).
The world renowned BackBeat Percussion Quartet will perform a concert for families on Wednesday, June 20 at 6.30pm. Primary school children will also have the opportunity to learn the art of percussion from the professionals for free, on Monday and Tuesday, June 18 and 19, from 10am - 4pm.
Omagh Players will present one of Frank McGuinness' finest plays, Dolly West's Kitchen, on Friday and Saturday, June 22 and 23, tickets priced at £7. Set in Buncrana during World War II this blisteringly funny story is based upon the West family and their relationships with a group of Derry-based soldiers.
Tuesday, June 26 will see Stage Beyond take to Strule Art Centre's stage. This fledgling company for young adults with learning disabilities, based at the Millennium Forum, Derry, will explore what it's like to not fit in, or to not be heard. This theme is dealt with in the play, Gift of the Gab by Christina Reid. A one-hour workshop will follow the show, which will appeal to those with learning disabilities. Tickets are priced at £3 and group rates are available.
Local upcoming actors will perform East of the Sun, West of the Moon on Saturday, July 7, tickets priced at £5. Based on the Norwegian folk tale of the same name, the play tells the wildly adventurous tale of Karen, who makes a deal with a bear that, unknown to her, is actually a prince seeking her love and affection. This performance from Omagh Youth Theatre is presented in partnership with County Sligo Youth Theatre.
The popular Belvoir Players will present The Love Nest by Sam Cree on Friday and Saturday, August 17 and 18 at 8pm, tickets are £7. This play sees the Willis household thrown into disarray when Edna Willis decides to host a foreign visitor to improve 'international relationships.' Confusion reigns, with laughs aplenty in this comedic play.
Strule Arts Centre's expansive exhibition space will be utilised with two exhibitions throughout the summer, both of which are free to attend. From June 11 to 29 artwork of local school children in the Primary Schools Placenames Exhibition will be on display.
Omagh Bomb Memorial, Exhibition of Shortlisted Designs will be displayed for public viewing from July 3 to 27. This international design competition is a project of Omagh Memorial Working Group, which is working to put in place a permanent, fitting memorial which will be widely valued and cherished. A final decision on the successful commission will be made by the Panel of Assessors at the beginning of August.
Action Art Arés will take up residency at Strule Arts Centre from Thursday to Saturday, June 28-30 from 11am – 8pm daily. This artist-run performance art exchange between Northern Ireland and the Transylvania region of Romania, will deliver exciting talks, workshops and performances, all of which are free. The events will involve the artists working in a diversity of approaches to performance: exploring poetry, action art, sound, linguistics, time-based and body art.
Omagh Youth Theatre gives local budding actors, aged 14 – 18, the chance to learn the art of acting and all aspects of performance in a series of workshops. These weekend workshops run from Friday 1 – Saturday 2, Friday 8 – Saturday 9 and Friday 29 – Saturday, June 30. The Summer School Intensive will take place Monday to Sunday, July 2-8. For further details contact Susan Glass on 028 8224 5321.
You can 'Access All Areas' of Strule Arts Centre through a series of free tours and workshops which run throughout July: Monday 9 to Friday 13; Monday 16 to Friday 20; Monday 23 to Friday 27 at 10am, 11am, 2pm and 4pm. Your free tour will guide you through the auditorium, studio theatre/conference room, print workshop, dark room, ceramics studio, art workshop, recording studio, dance studio and exhibition space giving you the opportunity to learn of our facilities and what the facility has to offer. The one hour tour will be followed by a workshop in either movement or print, which will also last one hour.
Further details on all of Strule Arts Centre's events are available at www.omagh.gov.uk or pick up a copy of the events brochure. To book tickets, contact the Box Office on 028 8224 7831.
