Event of the week
The Crucible
From Monday, February 9th, until Sunday, March 22nd, Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, 7.30pm, €66.50/€61.50/€51.50
What happens to a society, the playwright Arthur Miller asks, when panic, bitterness and suspicion take over? Miller’s award-winning 1953 parable, set in the 1690s in the puritanical colonial town of Salem, Massachusetts, is a key work in the canon of American drama. Based around a series of lies that launch accusations of witchcraft against numerous women in the town, the work asks us to consider justice, decency and shared principles. A stellar cast includes Andrew McCarthy, Charlene McKenna, Bríd Ní Neachtain, Adam Rothenberg and Rory Nolan. Andrew Flynn directs.
Gigs
John Blek
Sunday, February 8th, Prim’s Bookshop, Kinsale, Co Cork, 8pm, €22.42, eventbrite.ie; Thursday, February 12th, Sky and the Ground, Wexford, 7.30pm, €15.50, bandsintown.com; Friday, February 13th, Upstairs at Whelan’s, Dublin, 8pm, €20, whelanslive.com
The Cork-based musician John Blek begins his Midnight Ache tour (named after his latest album) with several Irish shows before travelling to Britain, Germany, Austria and Belgium. Anyone in search of deftly shaped alt-folk/pop songs will find what they’re looking for: Blek is something of a master at fashioning melodies. Also, Sunday, February 15th, Coughlans, Cork, 3pm/8pm, €22.50, coughlans.ie
Kevin Burke, Dermot Byrne, Noriana Kennedy, Jim Murray
Tuesday, February 10th, St Michael’s Church, Waterville, Co Kerry, 8pm, €17, eventbrite.ie; Wednesday, February 11th, Glór, Ennis, Co Clare, 8pm, €20/€18, glor.ie; Thursday, February 12th, St John’s Theatre Arts Centre, Listowel, Co Kerry, 8pm, €25, stjohnstheatre.ie; Friday, February 13th, Ionad Cultúrtha, Baile Mhúirne, Chorcaí, 8pm, €22, ionadculturtha.ie
The accordionist Dermot Byrne, fiddle player Kevin Burke, singer-songwriter Noriana Kennedy and guitarist Jim Murray deliver traditional and contemporary material across a nationwide tour. Such an ensemble is rarely gathered for one show, let alone 14, so grab the opportunity to hear these celebrated musicians collaborate. Touring until February 27th; further details from musicnetwork.ie.
Of Monsters and Men
Wednesday, February 11th, 3Olympia Theatre, Dublin, 7pm, €57.35 (sold out); Thursday, February 12th, Telegraph Building, Belfast, 7pm, £46.20, ticketmaster.ie
Formed in 2010, Of Monsters and Men shares little musically with fellow Icelandic music acts such as Múm, Sigur Rós, Laufey and Ólafur Arnalds. Rather, their strand of indie folk/rock is inspired by the likes of Mumford & Sons and Noah and the Whale. Influences aside, the band’s billion-plus streams make them Iceland’s most successful musical export of recent times. Of Monsters and Men returns to Ireland in June for Beyond the Pale, the Co Wicklow boutique festival.
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Maria Somerville
Wednesday, February 11th, Kasbah Social Club, Limerick, 8pm, €25.90, ticketmaster.ie; Thursday, February 12th, Róisín Dubh, Galway, 7pm, €23, roisindubh.net; Friday, February 13th, Whelan’s, Dublin, 8.15pm, €31.50, ticketmaster.ie
Maria Somerville, whose latest album, Luster, has been nominated for the 2025 RTÉ Choice Music Prize, played her first gig in 2013, at the Róisín Dubh in Galway. Following up on that auspicious debut wasn’t straightforward, but over the years her experience as a studio engineer and producer helped her form an astute creative identity. That was on full display last November, when she supported My Bloody Valentine at 3Arena in Dublin. Her subtle music is more suited to more intimate spaces, however, which is why these shows are highly recommended.
Classical
Bach Cantata Series 2026
Sunday, February 8th, St Ann’s Church, Dublin, 3.30pm, €25, eventbrite.ie
The third annual series of Bach Cantatas returns under the artistic direction of conductor Blánaid Murphy, one of Ireland’s foremost interpreters of the German composer’s works. The programme features Mein Herze Schwimmt im Blut, BWV 199, Ich Habe Genug, BWV 82, and Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen, BWV 51. Performers include the sopranos Katy Kelly and Aisling Kenny, the altos Alison Browner and Sharon Carty, the tenors Christopher Bowen and Rory Lynch, and the bass William Gaunt. Also, Sunday, February 15th, same venue.
Stage
To Kill a Mockingbird
From Tuesday, February 10th, until Saturday, February 21st, Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, Dublin, 7.30pm, €63.40/€55.70/€46.70, ticketmaster.ie
Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about racial discrimination and childhood innocence has been adapted for the stage by the American screenwriter and film-maker Aaron Sorkin. The courtroom drama has received numerous plaudits, from “elegiac, satisfying, exhilarating” (New York Times) to “restless, probing, engaged” (Financial Times). Richard Coyle (Atticus Finch), Anna Munden (Scout Finch) and Aaron Shosanya (Tom Robinson) feature. Bartlett Sher directs. Under-16s must be accompanied by a parent/guardian aged 18-plus. (Also, from Tuesday, February 24th, until Saturday, March 7th, Grand Opera House, Belfast, goh.co.uk.)
Fair Deal
Wednesday, February 11th, until Saturday, March 28th, Peacock stage, Abbey Theatre, Dublin, 8pm, €32.50, abbeytheatre.ie
Una McKevitt’s satire, receiving its world premiere, tells of Kiera’s final night at the Thornton family home, as she plans to leave the nest the following day. What she doesn’t count on is the sudden arrival of her estranged mother, whose presence turns the evening into a riot act. Garrett Lombard, Aislín McGuckin, Caroline Menton and Jack Weise feature. Conall Morrison directs. The run starts with previews; opening night is on Tuesday, February 17th.
Still running
Scene + Heard
From Thursday, February 12th, until Saturday, February 28th, Smock Alley, Dublin, various times and prices, smockalley.com
Subtitled The Festival of New Work, the 10th Scene + Heard will present more than 100 original productions across music, theatre, comedy, dance, cabaret, spoken word and, say the organisers, “hybrid forms yet to be named”. Shows include Married Without Children, Mermaids Have No Tears and All the Things I Thought Were Not Enough.
Book it this week
- Blackwater Valley Opera Festival, Waterford/Cork, May 26th-June 1st, blackwatervalleyopera.ie
- The House Must Win, Everyman, Cork, May 6th-16th, everymancork.com
- Garbage, Iveagh Gardens, Dublin, July 18th, ticketmaster.ie
- Super Furry Animals, Collins Barracks, Dublin, August 30th, ticketmaster.ie
