City with theatrical heart is a hard act to follow

AS a blow-in — I’ve only been here for 38 years — I was taking an English friend on a walking tour round my adopted city of Cork when he pointed out something which we all take for granted.

In no English city of comparable size would you find six theatres within walking distance of each other — the Everyman Palace, Opera House, Triskel, Granary, Firkin Crane and the Cork Arts Theatre. Noting that one of the coming attractions at Cork Arts Theatre was the Three In One production of two one-act plays by JM Synge, he observed, tongue in cheek, that only in Ireland could one see a one-act play consisting of two acts — Synge’s The Tinker’s Wedding. But then, he added, Synge is exceptional. And my point is? Do we need visitors to point out to us how lucky we are? C’mon folks, support your local theatres.

Brendan Casserly