Amharclann Smock Alley 10 Nollag. Smock Alley Theatre 10 December

Transcription

1 Amharclann Smock Alley 10 Nollag Smock Alley Theatre 10 December

2 Since 1987, three million, mostly young people under the age of 25 years, have voluntarily left their home countries to spend a short period studying or working in another European country. It is a remarkable statistic a figure that is greater than the population of six member states of the European Union. Over the lifetime of the next phase of the programme Erasmus+ ( ) it is planned to send a further two million higher education students on this voyage of discovery. One of the most exhilarating features of this mobilisation of young people is that they all share the common badge of being higher education students. The only other historically comparable mobility from a similarly homogenous grouping is probably soldiers. Let us hope we never see those days again. The Erasmus+ Programme is totally in line with Irish policy developments in higher education. In the early pages of the Government s National Strategy for Higher Education to 2030 it states Education in general and higher education in particular, is a force for individual growth, societal progress and cultural development. I can think of no better way of contributing to delivering these outcomes than to expose oneself to the challenges and opportunities of an overseas learning experience. To be an international student on the European mainland has to have a profoundly positive impact. The obvious benefits are linguistic improvements, intercultural skills, deeper subject knowledge and personal development. But maybe of even greater significance is the sense of removing oneself from the familiar space of home and college in Ireland to head for another shore to commence what the poet Mary O Malley describes, in another context, the start of possibility. Ireland has played a strong part in this Europe-wide journey. Nearly 40,000 students from this country since 1987 have experienced the benefits of the programme. An even greater number have come to Ireland (probably of the order of 80,000) enriching life on Irish campuses and workplaces. The support of Irish industry is to be commended at these difficult times with nearly 1500 incoming students finding placements in this country last year. It is not all about students. The opportunities for staff mobility are equally important for their continuing professional development as well as the vitally important contribution to internationalising the higher education experience of those students who do not engage in physical learning mobility. The new Erasmus+ programme was piloted to finalisation during the Irish Presidency of the European Council in June 2013 by Mr. Ruairi Quinn, T.D., Minister for Education and Skills. From its establishment, the programme has aimed to address how we as citizens share this space we call Europe. That challenge remains as important and as necessary today as in Higher education has a crucial part to play in how this concept is defined, articulated and given expression. Tonight s lecture by our distinguished guest Bill Schneider will add plenty of thoughtful fuel to that debate as will the joyous music and singing of the renowned Royal Irish Academy of Music. Tom Boland HEA Chief Executive

3 Failte Ó 1987, tá trí mhilliún duine, ar dhaoine den chuid is mór iad faoi bhun 25 bliana d aois, tar éis a dtíortha dúchais a fhágáil go deonach le gearrthréimhse a chaitheamh ag staidéar nó ag obair i dtír eile Eorpach. Is iontach an staitistic é figiúr ar mhó é ná daonra sé bhallstát den Aontas Eorpach. Thar shaolré an chéad chéim eile den chlár Erasmus+ ( ) tá sé beartaithe dhá mhilliún eile mac léinn ardoideachais a chur ar an turas fionnachtana. Ar cheann de na gnéithe is spreagúla a bhaineann le slógadh na ndaoine óga seo tá go bhfuil sé i gcomhpháirtíocht acu gur mhic léinn ardoideachais iad. Is dócha gurb iad saighdiúirí an t-aon ghrúpáil aonchineálach eile go stairiúil a rinne slógadh inchomparáide. Bíodh dóchas againn nach bhfeicfear a leithéid de laethanta arís. Tá Clár Erasmus+ ag teacht go hiomlán le forbairtí polasaí na héireann san ardoideachas. Sna leathanaigh tosaigh de Straitéis Náisiúnta Ardoideachais an Rialtais go dtí 2030 deirtear Is fórsa atá san oideachas go ginearálta agus san ardoideachas ach go háirithe, d fhorás indibhidiúil, do dhul chun cinn sochaíoch agus d fhorbairt chultúrtha. Ní féidir liom cuimhneamh ar bhealach níos fearr le cur le soláthar na dtorthaí seo ná go nglacfaí leis na dúshláin agus na deiseanna a bhaineann leis an taithí foghlama thar lear. Caithfidh tionchar an-dearfach a bheith le bheith mar mhac léinn idirnáisiúnta i mór-roinn na heorpa. Is iad na buntáistí follasacha a bhaineann leis ná feabhasú teanga, scileanna idirchultúrtha, eolas níos doimhne ar ábhar agus forás pearsanta. Ach b fhéidir gur suntasaí fós an tuiscint a bhaineann le spás aithnidiúil an bhaile agus an choláiste in Éirinn a fhágáil agus aghaidh a thabhairt ar chríoch eile le tosú ar thús féidearthachta faoi mar a thug an file Mary O Malley air, i gcomhthéacs eile. Tá Éire tar éis páirt láidir a bheith aici sa turas seo ar fud na heorpa. Bhain beagnach 40,000 mac léinn ón tír seo leas as a dtaithí ar an gclár ó 1987 i leith. Tá líon níos mó fós tar éis teacht go héirinn (timpeall 80,000 is dócha) ag saibhriú an tsaoil ar champais agus in ionaid oibre na héireann. Tá moladh le tabhairt do thacaíocht na héireann san aimsir chrua seo le beagnach 1500 mac léinn nua ag aimsiú socrúcháin sa tír seo an bhliain seo caite. Ní bhaineann sé go léir le mic léinn agus tá an tábhacht chéanna le deiseanna soghluaiseachta foirne maidir le forbairt ghairmiúil leanúnach chomh maith leis an tábhacht ollmhór a bhaineann le cur le hidirnáisiúnú taithí ardoideachais na mac léinn sin nach mbíonn baint acu le soghluaiseacht foghlama fisiceach. Déanadh píolótú chlár nua Erasmus+ a thabhairt chun críche le linn Uachtaránacht na héireann ar Chomhairle na heorpa i Meitheamh 2013 ag Ruairí Quinn, T.D., An taire Oideachais agus Scileanna. Ó bunaíodh é, tá an clár tar éis díriú ar an mbealach ar a bhfuil an spás ar a dtugaimíd an Eoraip á roinnt againne na saoránaigh. Tá an dúshlán chomh tábhachtach agus chomh riachtanach inniu agus a bhí i Tá páirt ríthábhachtach ag an ardoideachas maidir leis an mbealadh ar a ndéantar an coincheap seo a shainmhíniú agus a chur in iúl. Cuirfidh léacht na hoíche anocht ag ár n-aoi oirirc Bill Schneider go leor adhmaid le hábhar na díospóireachta sin chomh maith leis an ceol agus an amhránaíocht ghlórmhar ón Acadamh Ríoga Tom Boland Príomhfheidhmeannach ÚAO

4 William Bill Schneider, a leading U.S. political analyst, is Professor of Public and International Affairs and Public Policy at George Mason University. He is a Distinguished Senior Fellow and Resident Scholar at Third Way in Washington, D.C. He is also a contributor to CNN International, Al Jazeera English, Politico and Reuters.com. He was the Cable News Network s senior political analyst from 1990 to Schneider has been labeled the nation s electionmeister by The Washington Times and the Aristotle of American politics by The Boston Globe. Campaigns and Elections Magazine called him the most consistently intelligent analyst on television. He was a member of the CNN political team that won an Emmy for its 2006 election coverage and a Peabody for its 2008 coverage. Schneider received his B.A. from Brandeis University and his Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University, where he subsequently taught in the Department of Government. From 1990 through 1995, he was the Speaker Thomas P. O Neill Jr. Visiting Professor of American Politics at Boston College. In 2002, he was the Fred and Rita Richman Distinguished Visiting Professor at Brandeis University. From 2009 to 2012, he was the Omer L. and Nancy Hirst Professor of Public Policy at George Mason University. He received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Brandeis University in In 2003, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University awarded Schneider its Centennial Medal for contributions to society. In 2001, he received the Julian P. Kanter Award for Excellence in Television from the American Association of Political Consultants. He is also the recipient of the Brandeis University Pride Award and the Alumni Achievement Award. In 2009, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems presented Schneider with a special award for his extensive coverage and keen insight of the 2008 United States presidential elections... showcasing democracy in action to the world. Bill Schneider is co-author, with Seymour Martin Lipset, of The Confidence Gap: Business, Labor and Government in the Public Mind. He has also written extensively on politics and public opinion for The Los Angeles Times, The New Republic, The Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Post, Politico, Reuters and National Journal. He is currently writing a book for Simon & Schuster, Journey to the New America.

5 Clar na hoiche Programme for the Evening Fáilte/Welcome Tom Boland, Chief Executive, Higher Education Authority Léacht/Lecture Bill Schneider

6 Leiriu Ceoil The Royal Irish Academy of Music Thomas Moore ( ) Selected Songs from Moore s Irish Melodies Thomas Moore was born at 12 Aungier Street in Dublin (over his father s grocery shop), into a well-todo middle class family. His father hailed from the Kerry Gaeltacht and his mother, Anastasia Codd, from Wexford. He had two younger sisters, Kate and Ellen. From a relatively early age Moore showed an interest in music and other performing arts. He sometimes appeared in plays with his friends, such as The Poor Soldier by John O Keeffe, and at one point had ambitions to become an actor. Moore attended several Dublin schools including Samuel Whyte s English Grammar School in Grafton Street where he learned the English accent with which he spoke for the rest of his life. In 1795 he was educated at Trinity College, which had recently allowed entry to Catholic students, in an effort to fulfil his mother s dream of him becoming a lawyer. Moore was initially a good student, but he later put less effort into his studies. His time at Trinity came amidst the on-going turmoil following the French Revolution and a number of his fellow students such as Robert Emmet were supporters of the United Irishmen movement, although Moore himself never was a member. She is far from the Land is one of the most well-known of poems to immortalise the relationship of Robert Emmet and Sarah Curran. In 1799, he travelled to London to study law at the Middle Temple in London. He was an impecunious student and had difficulties in paying the fees and his tailor s bills. However, it was as a poet, translator, balladeer and singer that he found fame and some income. His work soon became immensely popular and included The Harp That Once Through Tara s Halls, Believe Me, if All Those Endearing Young Charms, The Meeting of the Waters and many others. His ballads were published as Moore s Irish Melodies (commonly called Moore s Melodies) in 1846 and The Harp That Once through Tara s Halls Silent O Moyle The Young May Moon She is far from the Land Seán Boylan Gemma Ní Bhriain Sarah Shine Ciarán Kelly

7 Thomas Moore Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms ( ) Liebeslieder Walzer Opus 52 When asked to sign a fan for the step-daughter of Johann Strauss II, Brahms wrote the theme from the Blue Danube Waltz and added Unfortunately not by Johannes Brahms. He had an enormous admiration for the Waltz King and thoroughly enjoyed his music. The eighteen Love-Song Waltzes reflect this delight in the Viennese waltz and were written in They may have been inspired in part by the composer s love for Schumann s step-daughter Julie; when she married another, he was quite distressed. At the time he had been editing Schubert s songs and this too, may have influenced the simple melodiousness of his settings. The texts are from Georg Daumer s Polydora and have Russian, Polish and Hungarian origins. Brahms captures the style superbly, yet manages to provide plenty of variety in his settings. The music is written for soprano, alto, tenor and bass with a piano duet. When published he noted that the voices are optional, though the work is best in its full original vocal form. Royal Irish Academy of Music Students Rachel Croash, soprano Sarah Shine, soprano Heather Fogarty, mezzo-soprano Gemma Ní Bhriain, mezzo-soprano Andrew Gavin, tenor Ciarán Kelly, tenor Seán Boylan, baritone Rory Musgrave, baritone

8 No. 1 Rede, Mädchen, allzu liebes, Speak, maiden, whom I love das mir in die Brust, die kühle, in my breast, so cold hearted, hat geschleudert mit dem Blicke you who flung me suddenly diese wilden Glutgefühle! these feelings of wild passion. Willst du nicht dein Herz Erweichen, Won t you soften your heart? willst du, eine Überfromme, Do you want to remain chaste, rasten ohne traute Wonne, without your own sweet bliss, oder willst du, daß ich komme? or do you want me to join you? Rasten ohne traute Wonne, To remain without my own bliss nicht so bitter will ich büßen I won t make such bitter penance Komme nur, du schwarzes Auge, So come, dark-eyes, Komme, wenn die Sterne grüßen. Come when the stars greet you. No. 2 Am Gesteine rauscht die Flut, Against the stones rushes the stream, heftig angetrieben: driven violently: wer da nicht zu seufzen weiß, anyone who hasn t yet sighed there lernt es unterm Lieben. will learn to when they fall in love. No. 3 O die Frauen, o die Frauen, Oh, women, women, wie sie Wonne tauen! how they thaw my joy! Wäre lang ein Mönch geworden, I would have become a monk long ago wären nicht die Frauen! If it were not for women! No. 4 Wie des Abends schöne Röte Like the evening s lovely red glow möcht ich arme Dirne glühn, Would I, a poor girl, like to shine, Einem, Einem zu gefallen, to please just one boy, one boy, sonder Ende Wonne sprühn. and then radiate bliss eternally. No. 5 Die grüne Hopfenranke, sie schlängelt auf der Erde hin. Die junge, schöne Dirne, so traurig ist ihr Sinn! Du höre, grüne Ranke! The green hop vine, snakes along the earth. The young, pretty girl, has such sad thoughts! Listen, green vine!

9 Was hebst du dich nicht himmelwärts? Du höre, schöne Dirne! Was ist so schwer dein Herz? Wie höbe sich die Ranke, der keine Stütze Kraft verleiht? Wie wäre die Dirne fröhlich, wenn ihr das Liebste weit? No. 6 Ein kleiner, hübscher Vogel nahm den Flug zum Garten hin, da gab es Obst genug. Wenn ich ein hübscher, kleiner Vogel wär, ich säumte nicht, ich täte so wie der. Leimruten-Arglist lauert an dem Ort; der arme Vogel konnte nicht mehr fort. Wenn ich ein hübscher, kleiner Vogel wär, ich säumte doch, ich täte nicht wie der. Der Vogel kam in eine schöne Hand, da tat es ihm, dem Glücklichen, nicht and. Wenn ich ein hübscher, kleiner Vogel wär, ich säumte nicht, ich täte doch wie der. Why don t you climb skywards? Listen, pretty girl! Why is your heart so heavy? How can the vine lift itself when it has no support? How can the girl be merry when her lover is so far away? A little pretty bird took flight to the garden, where there was fruit in plenty. If I were a pretty little bird, I wouldn t hesitate, I d do the same thing he did. Treacherous birdlime-smeared twigs were lying in ambush there; the poor bird could no longer get away. If I were a pretty little bird, I would have hesitated, I wouldn t do what he did. The bird fell into a beautiful girl s hand; He had nothing to complain of. If I were a pretty little bird, I wouldn t hesitate, I would do just what he did.

10 No. 7 Wohl schön bewandt war es vorehe mit meinem Leben, mit meiner Liebe; durch eine Wand, ja, durch zehn Wände erkannte mich des Freundes Sehe; doch jetzo, wehe, wenn ich dem Kalten auch noch so dicht vorm Auge stehe, es merkt s sein Auge, sein Herze nicht. No. 8 Wenn so lind dein Auge mir und so lieblich schauet jede letze Trübe flieht, welche mich umgrauet. Dieser Liebe schöne Glut, laß sie nicht verstieben! Nimmer wird, wie ich,so treu dich ein Andrer lieben. No. 9 Am Donaustrande, da steht ein Haus, da schaut ein rosiges Mädchen aus. Das Mädchen, es ist wohl gut gehegt, zehn eiserne Riegel sind vor die Türe gelegt. Zehn eiserne Riegel Previously my life was a quite pleasant one, and so was my love; through a wall, yes, through ten walls my sweetheart s eyes recognized me; but now, alas, no matter how close I stand to the eyes of that cold boy, neither his eyes nor his heart will take notice. When your eyes look at me so mildly and so lovingly, every last shadow that had darkened my life vanishes. The beautiful flame of this love, don t let it go out in sparks! No one else will ever love you as faithfully as I do. On the banks of the Danube there stands a house, a pink-complexioned girl looks out from it. The girl is well protected, ten iron bolts are placed before the door. Ten iron bolts

11 das ist ein Spaß; die spreng ich, als wären sie nur von Glas. No. 10 O wie sanft die Quelle sich durch die Wiese windet; O wie schön, wenn Liebe sich zu der Liebe findet! No. 11 Nein, es ist nicht auszukommen mit den Leuten; Alles wissen sie so giftig auszudeuten. Bin ich heiter, hegen soll ich lose Triebe; bin ich still, so heißts, ich wäre irr aus Liebe. No. 12 Schlosser auf, und mache Schlösser, Schlösser ohne Zahl! Denn die bösen Mäuler will ich schließen allzumal. No. 13 Vögelein durchrauscht die Luft, sucht nach einem Aste; und das Herz, ein Herz, ein Herz begehrt s, wo es selig raste. No. 14 Sieh, wie ist die Welle klar, blickt der Mond hernieder! Die du meine Liebe bist, liebe du mich wieder! are just a joke; I ll snap them as if they were only made of glass. Oh, how gently the stream winds its way through the meadow! Oh, how beautiful it is when a lover finds his way to his beloved! No, there s just no dealing with people; they manage to put such an evil interpretation on everything If I m jolly, they say I harbor wayward lusts; if I m calm, the story is I m out of my mind with love. Locksmith, come, and make locks, locks without number! For I want to lock up all the spiteful mouths. The little bird flutters through the air, it looks for a branch; and my heart desires a heart on which it can rest blissfully. See how clear the waters are when the moon shines down! You who are my love, love me in return!

12 No. 15 Nachtigall, sie singt so schön, wenn die Sterne funkeln. Liebe mich, geliebtes Herz, küsse mich im Dunkeln! No. 16 Ein dunkeler Schacht ist Liebe, ein gar zu gefährlicher Bronnen; da fiel ich hinein, ich Armer, kann weder hören noch sehn, nur denken an meine Wonnen, nur stöhnen in meinen Wehn. No. 17 Nicht wandle, mein Licht, dort außen im Flurbereich! Die Füße würden dir, die zarten, zu naß, zu weich. All überströmt sind dort die Wege, die Stege dir; so überreichlich tränte dorten das Auge mir. No. 18 Es bebet das Gesträuche; gestreift hat es im Fluge ein Vögelein. In gleicher Art erbebet die Seele mir, erschüttert von Liebe, Lust und Leide, gedenkt sie dein. The nightingale sings so beautifully when the stars twinkle. Love me, my beloved sweetheart, kiss me in the dark! Love is a dark shaft, a highly dangerous well; and I, poor fool, fell in; I can t hear or see, I can only think about my bliss, I can only moan in my sorrow. Light of my life, don t walk out there in the meadows! Your tender feet would get too wet, too soaked. The paths there are all flooded, and so are the trails, because my eyes wept so copiously there. The bushes are quivering; a little bird brushed them as it flew by. In the same way my soul trembles, overcome by love, pleasure and pain, whenever it thinks of you. Notes and translations by Ian Fox. National Concert Hall 2013

13 Finghin Collins was born in Dublin and studied with John O Conor at the Royal Irish Academy of Music and with Dominique Merlet at the Geneva Conservatoire. He established his international reputation by winning the 1999 Clara Haskil International Piano Competition. Since then he has performed with leading orchestras such as the Chicago, City of Birmingham and Houston Symphony orchestras, the Seoul, London, Rotterdam and Royal Philharmonic orchestras, the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Northern Sinfonia, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and the Gulbenkian Orchestra. He has collaborated with conductors such as Christoph Eschenbach, Myung-Whun Chung, Hans Graf, Emmanuel Krivine, Sakari Oramo, Heinrich Schiff, Vassily Sinaisky, Leonard Slatkin and Frans Bruggen. Last season he completed his three-year tenure as Associate Artist of the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, rounding off his cycle of the complete Mozart and Beethoven piano concertos. His new double CD recording for the RTÉ Lyric FM label of Mozart piano concertos with the RTÉ NSO was also released in May In June 2013 he made his début in the London Pianoforte Series at the Wigmore Hall in London while in August he appeared at the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado. Engagements in the 2013/14 season include appearances with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, London Chamber Orchestra and the Anhaltische Philharmonie Dessau. His recordings of Schumann s piano music for Claves Records in Switzerland have received widespread acclaim, including Editor s Choice in Gramophone magazine in His more recent recording for Claves of works by Stanford with the RTE NSO has also been very well received, and was Editor s Choice in May 2011.

14 Dearbhla Collins is regarded as one of Ireland s finest and most versatile musicians. As well as being an accomplished and prizewinning solo pianist with a distinguished performing career nationally and internationally, she is respected equally as recitalist, vocal coach and music administrator. She is the vocal coach at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin, where she also teaches piano. Over the past ten years Dearbhla has specialised in the song repertoire and appears regularly in concert with Irish and international singers. She also often teams up with her brother Finghin Collins for 4 hand recitals and 2 piano performances. Dearbhla has given many performances in China - with bass John Molloy, soprano Lynda Lee and with Aylish Kerrigan in the prestigious National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. She has also given many masterclasses in Wuhan, Shanghai and Beijing, including in the Central Conservatory in Beijing. Other performances with singers have included concerts with Regina Nathan, Tara Erraught, Celine Byrne, Mark Padmore, Paul Austin Kelly; recitals in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Tunis with Judith Mok, soprano; song recitals in Stuttgart, London and Paris including with Pumeza Matshikiza, soprano, Sarah-Jane Brandon, soprano and Dean Power, tenor in the Wigmore Hall, London in February Forthcoming engagements include a north American tour with mezzo-soprano Tara Erraught in March She is Artistic Administrator to the prestigious triennial Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition in Dublin, a member of the Board of the National Concert Hall, Dublin and a board member of Feis Ceoil, having previously served two terms as a Director of Culture Ireland.

15 The European Song Tradition through the Irish Lens: Singing a Great Story Since music began, song has expressed the human condition most eloquently in every culture. In the 19 th century, German art song truly flowered, creating music in which the vocalist and accompanist shared in interpretive importance. The pieces of this time were most often written to be performed in an informal, salon setting and were much informed by the emergence of great poets such as Goethe and Heine. One of the great masters of this German song tradition was Johannes Brahms, whose Liebeslieder Waltzer take centre stage tonight. In an Irish context we have much to celebrate in the songs of poet Thomas Moore, who was certainly influenced by the composers and poets of Europe, yet managed to locate his art songs in Ireland through the political nature of the poems and his use of traditional Irish melodies. A common thread throughout the development of song repertoire across Europe has been the mobility of musical ideas through the migration of composers and performers. At times this cross-fertilisation of musical style has not been an easy one (one thinks of Rossini s quote, One can t judge Wagner s opera Lohengrin after a first hearing, and I certainly don t intend to hear it a second time ) but mostly the tradition has been given life and vigour by the sharing of best practice ideas between colleagues and across generations. At the Royal Irish Academy of Music, we celebrate a long and illustrious line of performance graduates who now take their place as cultural ambassadors for Ireland on the world stage. These musical Olympians break records, win international competitions and make a strong case for the quality of teaching in our country. Tonight s performance features our alumni represented by international pianist Finghin Collins; our staff, in pianist and vocal coach Dearbhla Collins, and is led by eight of our current gifted young singers. The Erasmus programme has greatly enriched the RIAM itself. All of the singers on stage tonight have benefited by the teaching of visiting professors, and we have developed performance projects in opera with fellow institutions which have created really meaningful associations. Our students have studied abroad on the Erasmus programme and taken the opportunity to see hugely inspiring performances in those countries. Our staff have seen the work of other institutions and returned to us with stories of great work and new things to try. The actor Martin Mull once commented, writing about music is like dancing about architecture, so we leave the words behind now, and let our musicians sing the story. Deborah Kelleher, Director, Royal Irish Academy of Music

16 Smock Alley Dublin s Oldest Newest Theatre Smock Alley was the first Theatre Royal built in Dublin. John Ogilby opened it in 1662 as part of the Restoration of the British monarchy and King Charles II in It was the first custom-built theatre in the city and still remains in substantially the same form, making it one of the most important sites in European theatre history. The theatre was the first outside London to receive the title of Theatre Royal, but because it had been built on land reclaimed from the Liffey, the building was unstable and the gallery collapsed twice. It was rebuilt in In the mid-1740s, Thomas Sheridan took on the role of manager of Smock Alley and made many improvements to it. While it was in operation as a theatre, it gave the world the plays of George Farquhar, Oliver Goldsmith, and Richard Brinsley Sheridan, and the brilliant performances of Peg Woffington, Thomas Sheridan, Spranger Barry, and Charles Macklin. It was on this stage that David Garrick, the greatest actor of the 18th century, first played Hamlet. Smock Alley was celebrated for its musical and operatic productions as well as its purely dramatic performances. Renowned Italian and Irish composers made Smock Alley famous as a venue for opera and music with composers such as Michael Kelly, Gennaro Antonio Federico, Baldassare Galuppi, Tommaso Giordana, Michael Arne, Giovanni Paisello and Charles Clagget. The theatre closed in The building was then used as a whiskey store until Father Michael Blake bought it to set up a church. When the bell tolled in 1811, 18 years before Catholic Emancipation, the first Catholic bell to ring in Dublin in nearly 300 years was heard. The facade boasts ornate stained glass windows and original ceiling plasterwork remain in the Smock Alley as a witness of this time. In 1989, the church was deconsecrated due to falling numbers of parishioners. It was then redeveloped into the Viking Adventure, as part of the Temple Bar rejuvenation scheme, closing down in After a six-year renovation, Smock Alley Theatre reopened its doors as Dublin s oldest newest theatre in May Besides recovering its old purpose, Smock Alley is also the new home of The Gaiety School of Acting The National Theatre School of Ireland. For more than a century, Smock Alley put Irish theatre on the European map, acting as the very core of an Ireland striving to find its own voice. Following its outstanding rejuvenation, the artistic heart of Smock Alley continues its vibrant beat.