CULTURE NIGHT IS taking place across the country this Friday and towns and cities across the island of Ireland will transform into cultural hubs of music, dance, art and more.
There will be live performances, family fun activities, events at heritage sites and organisations and businesses will open their doors to the public.
We gave a little taste of what is to be expected this Friday to a busload of TheJournal.ie competition winners on a Culture Night preview bus tour of Cork City.
We were entertained along the way by members of the Cyclone Rep Theatre Company who performed pieces of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar (with President Donald Trump costume included).
Our first stop on the Bus Éireann bus was to the Tyndall National Institute on Dyke Parade, which specialises in information and communications technology research.
We got to see the work of scientists who are developing new technology like smart wounding dressing that can monitor your vitals and send out an alarm to your GP if necessary.
On Culture Night at the Tyndall you’ll be able to talk to the scientists, visit the laboratories and facilities, and watch of the technology being worked on.
Our next stop was the newly redeveloped Páirc Uí Chaoimh Stadium, where readers got to step out onto the field and explore the locker rooms, conference rooms, players’ gym facilities and warm-up areas for a behind-the-scenes look.
It has already played host to many top class GAA matches and more than 130,000 people attended the recent Ed Sheeran concert. On Culture Night it will be open from from 5pm to 7pm.
We hopped back on the bus and headed to the Backwater Artists Group studios and Cork Printmakers, who gave us a tour of their work and the process behind their creations.
On Culture Night the artists will hold public workshops on stencil relief printmaking and will hold screen-printing demonstrations. Visitors will get to talk to different artists about their creative journey.
Finishing up our sneak peek we took our readers to traditional Irish pub Crawford and Co who have a 21st century twist – an added grocer and cafe element where people can pick up fruit, vegetables, coffee beans and then a coffee or pastry or two on their way out of the pub.
You could be lucky enough to catch their coffee cupping talk from Badger and Dodo coffee company on Culture Night, or whiskey tastings with an expert from the Jameson Distillery in Midleton who will teach people how to nose, taste and savour the flavour.
Watch how the preview tour went in our video above.
Find out what’s happening near you on Culture by visiting the official website.
Check out our Culture Night guides for the East, and the Midlands and the West.
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