Thousands set to enjoy Culture Night 'adventure'

Artists, musicians, and performers are inviting members of the public to take the streets across the country to celebrate Culture Night.

From learning how to tattoo a banana at Dublin Ink to joining the Galway community circus for one night only, Culture Night has a wide-ranging programme which aims to offer a day and night of exciting and unique events for all age groups.

Now in its 19th year, the event has grown and is now an annual fixture on the cultural calendar where everyone is invited to come and explore arts and culture events, free of charge.

It started as an innovative, but relatively modest local event in Dublin in 2006 and it has grown into a significant national event, with over 1.2 million people taking part last year.

Maureen Kennelly, Director of the Arts Council which hosts the event, said she is optimistic that the number of events on offer this year will be an increase from last year, where more than 1,700 events took place.

Read more: Culture Night: What's on in the west and northwest

"Culture Night has grown to become a part of the nation’s calendar now and we are so proud of the relationships, the connections and the imagination that all the various groups and venues involved bring to this one special day," she said.

She added: "The programme is so impressive now and the access to events and places is growing every year which is so encouraging."

The phrase that The Arts Council is using this year is "how will you culture night".

One of the highlights includes the Abbey Theatre opening its doors into the dress rehearsal to a special audience.

The theatre is finalising its plans for the next major show on the Abbey stage, which is a production of Lady Gregory’s ‘Grania’ which opens next week.

Artistic Director Caitríona McLaughlin explained that they are offering members of the public a chance to sit in on the dress rehearsal.

"We have never done this before, as dress rehearsals are the time when things can go wrong, and you are trying to fix them away from the audience's gaze," she explained.

"For Culture Night we wanted to do something unique, so we offered 50 tickets for a seat at the dress rehearsal and we were thrilled that 1,000 people applied for the lottery.

"It's nerve wracking for us but so exciting and sums up so much of the adventure offered by Culture Night."