Musical theatre review: Aiseirí 1916 at Cork Opera House

3/5

St Patrick’s night saw a huge performance in commemoration of the events of 1916 at Cork Opera House. Aiseirí 1916, the brainchild of the Cork ETB (Education and Training Board), was an unusual and ambitious blending of adult choir, children’s choir, youth orchestra, young traditional musicians, professional singers, and actors, which resulted in an evening that was clearly enjoyed to the full by the packed theatre. One would expect guest stars of the calibre of Mary Hegarty and Joe Corbett to perform at their best on such an occasion, as indeed they did. Renderings of ‘The Foggy Dew’ and ‘Banna Strand’ were particularly moving, as were the spoken words of the time, rendered most effectively by Sean McNally, Sadhbh Barrett Coakley, and Patrick Cregan.

The Lee Singers brought power and melody, while children’s choir Fianna Chorcaí, and the young musicians of The Northern Stars gave confident performances — especially one young woman whose handling of the uileann pipes was exceptional. And the Cork ETB Youth Orchestra could not be faulted in their superb playing under conductor Michael Cummins. Popular patriotic songs like ‘The Boys of the County Cork’ and ‘A Nation Once Again’ brought the entire audience to its feet, cheering. And how appropriate to end with the National Anthem — once a standard inclusion at any large concert.

The only fault, in fact, that could be found with this unusual and extremely challenging show was what one might describe as a lack of cohesive sequence — a clear path from beginning to end, with each element linked in a smooth progression.

What actually happened was a song, a break, scattered applause; a short monologue, another break, more sporadic applause; then some music, haphazard applause. If some of these very short disparate elements could have been brought together to form several longer sections, each with a clear theme, the show overall would have benefited greatly. Overall, however, an effective and fitting tribute to the epic events of a century ago.