Five For Your Radar: Sound Of Music, Forest Fest, Skibbereen arts
The Sound of Music is on at Cork Opera House. Picture: Clare Keogh
Soprano and Classical Brit Award nominee Wendy Carr (Maria) and West End performer Matt Blaker (Captain Von Trapp) lead Cork Opera House's big summer spectacle, , which also includes Irish soprano Majella Cullagh as Mother Abbess. Directed by Davey Kelleher, the production will feature classic songs including , , and . A few of your favourite things await at Cork Opera House before the summer is out.
Forest Fest returns to Emo this weekend with a new site at Bee’s Wing Farm to accommodate an increase in capacity. Aimed at the more discerning older festival attendees, Echo & The Bunnymen, James, and Madness top the bill this year, alongside the likes of Deacon Blue, The Charlatans, Boomtown Rats, The Undertones, The Coronas, Paul Brady, Feeder, Kerbdog, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, and The Wedding Present. Irish folk and trad music will take to the Forest Fleadh Stage, with Kíla, Dervish, and Jiggy among those due to perform. New for this year is the Kickin' Up Dust Arena, a dedicated country and Americana stage featuring Nathan Carter, Clíona Hagan, Michael English, and Dave Lofts.
Dr Strangely Strange, one of Ireland's pioneering psychedelic folk bands, will perform at St James' Church on Saturday as part of Mallow Arts Festival. Formed amid Dublin's melting-pot 'beat' scene as the 1960s, the group gained a cult following with albums such as and . Now more than six decades into their career, the band will revisit songs and stories from across their catalogue during an intimate performance.
Comedy, music, theatre, and dance feature across the programme at this year’s Skibbereen Arts Festival. Things kick off on Friday with an Oscar-themed street party and interactive challenges and games for all ages. Frankie Boyle-endorsed stand-up Jen Brister brings her latest show Reactive to the town hall on Tuesday, July 28, while the following day, The Wind That Round The Fastnet Sweeps unites Cork artists Alan Daniel Tobin (ADT) and How I Became A Wave, aka Pat Carey, for a boat trip — and live music — around the Fastnet Rock.
Based on a cult web series and subsequent TV show, will not be for everyone’s tastes, but if you ‘get it’, it’s likely to be the funniest thing you see all year. Set in Toronto — it’s like a love letter to the city — Matt and Jay play music in a group called Nirvanna: The Band, who dream to play a show at the Rivoli in the city. When things go wrong, the film channels as they travel back to the year 2008. Things only get more off the wall from there.
