Memories that linger: Andrews Lane through the years

Peter Sheridan, writer and director:Sheridan recalls, while directing his own play, Children of Eve, in 1989, "seeing a cast of 10 young girls from Dublin Youth Theatre on stage, Deirdre Molloy played the lead. They were on a professional stage in Dublin in a theatre that had just opened. There was something very moving about that. I can see it as if it was yesterday."

Tony Ó Dálaigh, arts consultant and former director of the Dublin Theatre Festival:Ó Dálaigh remembers the opening of Stones in His Pockets: "Everybody just felt this new production was something amazing. There was a genuine standing ovation. It wasn't a manufactured one. You felt it was something special."

Terry Byrne, director:Byrne has directed many plays at Andrews Lane Theatre. He recalls Death and the Maiden, the first play he produced and directed there, when only a handful of people turned up each night. "I remember every night. It was a brilliantly hot summer. I didn't realise it at the time that having a good play is not enough. That's the most dominant image. It was all downhill from there," he jokes.

Camille O'Sullivan, singer:O'Sullivan  recalls doing her first professional gig at the theatre, performing Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris. "You remember lots of gigs but that stands out. People said it would be hard to top. I didn't realise it then. It was at the beginning of my career and it felt like it was one of my happiest summers. As well as my mother singing his songs, it was that show that started my love affair with Jacques Brel. I have a very strong connection to the theatre because of that. It will be sorely missed."

Maura O'Keeffe, independent producer:O'Keeffe remembers the thrill she got on first seeing the leopard-skin seats of the studio, but, more seriously, she recalls the opening of Enda Walsh's play, Bedbound. "It was a big risk. It wasn't an easy play to do in Andrews Lane. I learned a lot from Pat. All my memories are tied in with her rather than the building. That for me is the real loss - her passion, her energy, her tenacity. I'm a big fan."

Fiach Mac Conghail, director of the Abbey Theatre:His outstanding memory is of seeing Brendan Gleeson in a play called Double Base. "It was in the studio. What was really important about Andrews Lane, like other venues in the city, was that it allowed you to go and see different work up close to the stage, and in that case to see what a fine actor he was." Other nights that stand out are Liam Carney and Kathy Belton in Paul Mercier's Kitchen Sinkand also when he saw the work of Jimmy Fay, of Bedrock Productions, as director for the first time.