Free Entertainment at Cloughjordan Culture Night Friday 23 September

This Friday, 23 September, people all around Ireland will enjoy the unique
experience of Culture Night, a free night of entertainment, discovery and
adventure taking place in a record 30 towns, cities, counties and islands –
including Cloughjordan.

The Cloughjordan Culture Night incorporates art, music, photography,
storytelling, and circus skills, with activities for children and adults
alike. It kicks off at 6pm with two events: Traditional Games of the 1930s
on the meadow, where everyone can play the games their grandparents played, and The Art of Harry Clarke, a short talk by Dom Laurence Walsh OCSO on the Harry Clarke original window in Sts Michael and John Church, Templemore Road.

Art exhibitions will be taking place from 7pm- 10pm in three locations: The
Black Studio, Lower Main Street, which showcases the ceramic work of Thomas Wollen and Gráinne Watts. Thomas will also be demonstrating pottery making in his studio below the exhibition space. A number of artists will be displaying work in Django’s Ecohostel, including photographer Conor
Williams, a Cloughjordan native, and artist Martine Finucane, who is based
in Cork. The old bike shop will host a pop-up art museum with a number of
artists, including members of the Cloughjordan Arts and Crafts Collective,
painter Paul Waldron, glassmaker Mollie Barrow, collagist Stephen Rothwell,
painter Lian Callaghan and photographer Joan Murphy; the Cloughjordan
Painting Group, plus painter Judy Pearson, painter/sculptor Siobhan Bulfin,
painter Antonia O’Keefe, and ceramist Nóirín O’Connor. The new plaza in
Cloughjordan will be enhanced by reed sculptures by Gerardine Wisdom.

Also running throughout the evening will be a photographic exhibition of
Cloughjordan in the plaza. From 8pm to 8.45pm in the Methodist Hall, join Joanna Williams and the Cloughjordan Circus Club to have a go at circus skills. This is a drop-in session for kids over 8 and adults, where you can try your hand at skills such as juggling.

Also in the Methodist Hall, from 9pm to 9.40pm, choral leader Liz Powell
will run a Sing from Scratch session. In just 40 minutes you will learn some
fun music, some vocal and physical warm-ups and vocal techniques, all
celebrating Culture Night in Cloughjordan. Anyone interested can just show
up – there’s no preparation required and no homework afterwards. You will
come away singing and feeling good. Can’t sing? Come anyway!
Stories and poetry will be woven throughout the evening, presented by the
Cloughjordan Writers’ Group and guests and the Cloughjordan Heritage
Society. Children’s story time is at 6.45pm in Sheelagh na Gig bookshop.
Later in the evening there will be stories suitable for older kids and adults, plus a presentation of Thomas MacDonagh’s poetry by the Cloughjordan
Heritage Group. Story time wraps up at 10pm in Sheelagh na Gig bookshop with Tales of Horror. Original writing is by Nigel Quinlan, Pen Fitzgerald,
Bernie Greed, David Fairclough, Una Darcy, and Catherine Conlon.

Also throughout the night will be music to life our spirits. At 7.10pm in
The Black Studio, clarinettist Deirdre O’Leary and sound engineer Denis
Powell will perform a piece for solo clarinet and tape. At 8pm, Yuliya
Shilnikova will present traditional Ukranian songs in the old bike shop on
Main Street. Live music sessions and sean-nós singing will also be occurring
in various venues throughout the night.
Cloughjordan Culture Night incorporates 8 venues and events to keep you busy for the entire evening, all for free. If you need a break from the arts
trail, you can always call in to one of the Cloughjordan food establishments
for a cup of coffee, a meal, or a pint.

The full Cloughjordan Culture Night programme is available on  www.culturenight.ie, Facebook (Cloughjordan Culture Night) or in the  printed programme that will be available on Friday 23 September. Cloughjordan Culture Night is a wholly volunteer effort by organisers and artists, and Culture Night nationally is sponsored by the Temple Bar Cultural Trust and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.