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Culture is making a comeback, with live performances at the National Concert Hall and the Abbey Theater this week.
A limited number of users will be allowed in indoor productions in an experiment that could indicate an opening for the entire live performance industry in the coming weeks and months.
NCH will announce ticketing details in a few days that will see approximately 100 seats with a paying customer for the first time since March when the curtain rises.
La Abadía offers a much more restricted and avant-garde idea that involves an actor playing a single member of the audience at a special booth, with a handful of booths available.
Minister Catherine Martin has won a great battle in the Cabinet to achieve the relaxation of restrictions after arguing that those who work in Culture and Arts are those who have suffered the most in society the ravages of Covid-19, and that now it is the Time for the show to go turned on, albeit in limited circumstances.
“These events will help demonstrate the industry’s ability to take creative and responsible approaches to the challenges posed by the pandemic,” he said.
A series of test live performances taking place over the next few days and weeks. These will include a performance by the Irish Chamber Orchestra at the National Concert Hall next Saturday, December 19, and at the Abbey Theater, which ironically will host a production of ‘Theater for One’, by Landmark Productions and Octopus Theatricals starting Friday. Dec. 18.
“The reopening of galleries, museums and cinemas in recent days has shown us the ways in which arts and culture can enrich our lives and do so safely,” said Ms. Martin.
The provision for theatrical and musical performances would follow the same pattern, operating with strict protocols to protect public health, he said.
“I am well aware of the great importance of theater and music in all of our lives and these events are an important step in showing that these are controlled spaces that can operate safely at this time.”
An Art and Culture Recovery Task Force recently recommended that the curtain be raised on certain locations, under strict protocols.
They noted that many cultural centers, venues, galleries and cinemas offer large areas with wide circulation and controlled auditoriums.
Such spaces are capable of facilitating large numbers of people in accordance with public health guidelines, said the report of the working group “Life Worth Living.”
These test events are a response to that recommendation, said the Minister.
The NCH event is a special Christmas celebration with the Irish Chamber Orchestra next Saturday.
The Abbey’s “Theater for One” is comprised of six five-minute plays by leading Irish playwrights Marina Carr, Stacey Gregg, Emmet Kirwan, Louise Lowe, Mark O’Rowe and Enda Walsh.
It is Theater for One because each 5 minute original playmade up of an actor for a member of the audience at a specially designed booth. The show is scheduled for December 18, 19, 21, 22 and 23. Only 30 audience members will see performances each day.
“Theater for One (and a Little One)”, for an adult and a child of ten years or less, will screen on December 29, 30 and 31, in co-production with the Abbey Theater and will present the newly commissioned work Roddy Doyle , Sonya Kelly, Louis Lovett and Pauline McLynn.
Maura McGrath, president of NCH, said that bringing audiences back to live music and theater “will be a very important role for the return of the arts and culture sector.”
He added: “We are delighted to perform this test concert with the Irish Chamber Orchestra next Saturday. We greatly appreciate the support of Minister Martin and her colleagues in the Department, and we see this as an important step forward. ”
Abbey Theater directors Graham McLaren and Neil Murray said in a joint statement: “This pilot sends a message of hope towards 2021 for theater artists and the wider theater community in Ireland.
“We are delighted to bring Theater for One to life at the Abbey, completing an extraordinary year with intimate performances. We are very grateful to Minister Martin for her tireless work in pushing this forward.
“The reopening is a journey, and one that will be traveled slowly and safely.”
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