Lir bring classic Friel play to Town Hall

CLAREGALWAY-Carnmore drama group Compántas Lir bring their award-winning production of Brian Friel's classic play The Loves of Cass McGuire to the Town Hall Theatre, Galway this weekend. The play, which is on its way to the All-Ireland Confined Finals in Wexford next month will run for two nights, Friday and Saturday, March 25-26 and these performances will be the last opportunity for Galway audiences to see it before it heads to the South East for the national finals. The play is produced by Philip Cribbin and includes an experienced cast of Fidelma O'Rourke in the lead role, Vincent Moran, Carmel Kenny, the Hession family of Mike, Liz and Dermot, Paddy Greaney, Ann Moran, Brid Conneely and Ruth O'Driscoll. Compantas Lir have been one of the top amateur drama groups in the country for the past three decades, qualifying for the All-Ireland finals on more than 20 occasions and picking up hundreds of acting and production awards along the way. The play, set in the 1960s, deals with the return to Ireland of Cass McGuire. For over 50 years Cass has worked among bums in Sandwich Bar, a joint in the lower east side of New York, a block from Skid Row. Upon her return to Ireland, her drinking and coarse manners embarrass her respectable family who reject her. Her brother has her committed to Eden House, a rest home for the elderly, but which Cass sees as the workhouse. The play deals with her attempts to discover the home she dreamt of all her life and how she falls under the influence of other residents Trilbe Costello and Mr Ingram. Tickets are still on sale for the two-night run in the Town Hall and are available at €15 and €12 from the box office at 091 569777. The ticket price for the Compántas Lir shows has not changed in a decade as they seek to maintain their loyal following which ensures a sell out run in the city venue each year. Book early to avoid disappointment. Pink Floyd Experience in the Black Box PINK FLOYD fans are in for a treat on Friday April 8 when the Black Box  plays host to a top tribute band, the UK Pink Floyd Experience. The nine-piece group replicates the line up of the full live Pink Floyd touring band of the late 80s and 90s. With state-of-the-art sound and a spectacular light show, the aim is to perfect the atmosphere of the great Pink Floyd at a live show. The two-hour show includes all the well-known songs. The set covers the eras from 'Dark Side of The Moon' through to 'Division Bell', so fans of all ages will find something from their era! The band members are all seasoned musicians and include a choreographed and costumed three-girl backing vocal section. Lead vocalist and guitarist Paul Andrews fronts the band and has a voice that is remarkably similar to David Gilmour's. Paul has worked hard to perfect his vocal delivery aiming to replicate every nuance and intonation used by Mr Gilmour. Needless to say, he can play guitar a bit too! Lecture on historical sisters THE NUI Galway Centre for Irish Studies will host a free public lecture on Tuesday March 29, in the Joseph Larmor Lecture Theatre at 8 pm. The lecture, 'Hanna and Her Sisters: The lives of Hanna Sheehy Skeffington and Margaret Sheehy Culhane Casey, as told by their granddaughters', will be a joint presentation delivered by NUI Galway Lecturer Dr Micheline Sheehy Skeffington and Professor Dara Culhane, Simon Fraser University, Canada. While studying in the then Royal University in Dublin, Hanna became very aware of the lack of power given to women, specifically in relation to the vote. Joining various campaigns for votes for women, she finally co-founded the Irish Women's Franchise League with Margaret Cousins in 1908. She was imprisoned for suffrage activities and then, when her husband, Francis Sheehy Skeffington, was murdered in 1916, she was elected to tour the US to expose the truth behind this and campaign for Irish freedom. She returned in 1918 to serve on the Sinn Féin Executive. In the first presentation, Dr Sheehy Skeffington will give an account of aspects of Hanna Sheehy Skeffington's life, using archive photos and material housed in the National Library, Dublin. The second presentation, by Professor Culhane, is based on a reading of Margaret Sheehy Culhane Casey's letters to her sister Hanna. An actress and elocutionist, Margaret lived in Montreal, Canada from 1922 to1939. Her letters home offer insights into Margaret herself, her life in Ireland and in Canada, and into the relationship between these two sisters. Mary Clancy of NUIG noted, 'The personal and political lives of Hanna and Margaret Sheehy show in fascinating detail how early 20th century Ireland tried to construct itself, in public and in private, as it strove to determine and to define a democratic and progressive national state.' Alex Mathias plays Coltrane AWARD-winning saxophonist and composer Alex Mathias plays John Coltrane in the Crane Bar at 9 pm this Thursday. Mathias and his fine group of young musicians capture the essence of Coltrane's music and style, taking the audience through the different stages of his career as a leader. They play music from early albums such as Blue Train and Giant Steps to later albums such as Crescent and A Love Supreme. Mathias has been working hard on the Irish music scene since returning from his studies at the prestigious Berklee College Of Music in 2006. He has built himself a short but substantial career taking him to over a dozen countries worldwide as a sideman and has developed various projects as a band leader including The Alex Mathias Quartet. He released his debut album Goin' Roamin' on Livenote Records in June 2010 of all original music and has since been received considerable airplay including a four month stint on Aer Lingus in-flight entertainment. You can listen and purchase the album at www.alexmathias.com. He is joined by some of Ireland's finest young musicians, Myles Drennan (piano), Dan Callaghan (double bass) and Tommy Gray (drums). Tickets are €15/€12.50. Showcase reading in city library READINGS by nine writers will be given in the Galway City Library at 6 pm today (Wednesday). They are Ríona Nic Congáil, Úna Ní Fhaircheallaigh agus an Fhís Útóipeach Ghaelach; Tom Duddy, The Hiding Place; Kate Newmann, I Am A Horse; Ann Leahy, The Woman Who Lived Her Life Backwards; Geraldine Mitchell, World Without Maps; Máighréad Medbh, Twelve Beds for the Dreamer; Geraldine Mills and Lisa C Taylor, The Other Side of Longing; Joan Newmann, Belongings. All are welcome.