WATCH: Students and teachers in Cork protest ongoing closure of indoor performing arts classes
Performing Arts Educators of Ireland protest in response to continued ban on indoor dance classes and stage schools, at Emmett Place, Cork. Picture: Jim Coughlan.
Angry chants of ‘let us perform’ were heard around Cork city today as students and teachers protested the continued closure of indoor drama, dance and singing classes.
Trevor Ryan, director of Montfort College of Performing Arts and Cork co-ordinator of the Performing Arts Educators of Ireland (PAEI) said that safe indoor classes must be allowed to resume in September.
Over the past 17 months, performing arts schools were only permitted to return for indoor classes for three weeks, he said.
Many people have now left the industry and many schools are on the brink of collapse having paid rent and overheads for the past 17 months with limited government support and little or no revenue, he said.
"This is the last chance saloon for us," Mr Ryan said.
“It has been heartbreaking. We have been the first to close and certainly will be the last to reopen.
“There are so many students who have been affected by this, their social skills have been impaired, their confidence has been knocked, we really need to get open.
“We did some outdoor classes during the summer. A lot of the kids I saw coming back, the life, the energy was gone from them.
“They have been severely impacted by the pandemic.
"We’re training some people who will be the stars of the future, but some people will be coming for friendship, it’s a safe and secure environment, they like to sing, they like to dance, they like to act, and that has been taken from them, it’s really, really difficult.
“It’s the inequality between sports and the arts. When I see the crowds going into Croke Park, 25,000 I think for the semi-final and up to 40,000 for the final. But we can’t let 15 children into a room, socially distance them, and perform each week. It beggars belief.
“The Government really needs to take a close look at the arts sector because I really feel we’ve been pushed to the side and ignored for too long.”
Katie Gallagher, 19, who performs with Centre Stage School in Mallow agrees.
“Kids need an outlet,” she said.
“Most of my friends, we don’t play football, we don’t play hurling, all we want to do is dance, sing, and act. Every other child is getting to do their sport and we’re not being given the chance.”
She said that the continued closure is negatively impacting thousands of young people’s mental and physical health.
And she believes that it is unfair that gyms were allowed to reopen but not performing arts studios.
“I was going to the gym, feeling perfectly fine, and wondering how dance was not allowed.
Gymnastics was allowed to go ahead but dance wasn’t.
“In September I’m going to study in Italia Conti in London, one of the leading performing arts schools. I have four other friends going over there to study it too.
“So we’re not even getting to train for our career, it’s as if we’re not getting to study for our future career which is really upsetting.”
Ms Gallagher said that she was very shy and lacked confidence before she started performing arts classes.
But just a few years after beginning those classes, she was performing in front of 1,000 people in Cork Opera House.
"People would not believe that I used to be shy. My mum signed me up hoping it would give me a bit of confidence, and I just loved it.
“It really helps children’s confidence. You have no idea how much it changes kid’s lives.
And kids have been completely lost without it.”
Lilly Murphy, 18, who studies with CADA performing arts, also believes that sports has been prioritised unfairly by government when dance and performance are many children’s only outlet for physical activity and social connection.
“We’re here protesting that dance class, singing classes and acting classes are not able to reopen at the moment," she said.
“It’s been very difficult on many stage schools. We’re hoping to get things reopened instead of going back online.
“It makes a difference in a lot of people’s lives. I’m going into 6th year this year. With exams it’s great to have that escape, to get out of the house and not sit at home and study all of the time.
“I feel like sports is taking precedent, with GAA matches reopening. People have sports to escape to but no one has the arts to escape to. It’s really hard on a lot of people and I’m hoping the escape will be able to come back.”
The PAEI held protests outside Cork Opera House and Leinster House in Dublin today to demand that the arts sector can resume safe indoor classes.
PAEI, chairperson Pamela Hughes said: “We have been fighting for survival since March 2020. As it is now August 2021, it has been an exhausting 17 months for us all. We have felt ignored, discriminated against and we cannot survive another autumn and winter with what is left of our businesses remaining closed”.
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