Fun and festivities
ABBEYEFEST will be kicking off this weekend with a hectic schedule of events for three days to suit all members of the family. This community festival encompasses all the good things about the tightly knit community of Abbeyleix with music, art, film, sport and much more throughout the weekend.
The festival kicks off tomorrow with the opening of an exhibition by artist Conor Brennan at Abbeyleix library. A number of events for children will be taking place on Friday, beginning with a reading by Children’s Author Oisin McGann at the town’s library at 10am and 12pm. The festival will be officially launched at 6pm by Minister Mary Hanafin in McEvoys Bar, before a flamenco guitar performance by John Walsh at 6.30pm. A blues evening in the Horseshoe Inn will begin at 9pm and will feature Dermot Byrne, Dave Morrissey and friends, and soccer awards will take place in the Golf Club at the same time.
Saturday’s festivities will kick off at 9am with a farmers market in Market Square running until 3pm that afternoon. 12pm will see a street theatre performance by The Gombeens, followed by a 12.30pm children’s performance by Puca Puppets in the library. Throughout the afternoon street artists will be doing walkabouts in towns shops and cafes and at 1.30pm there will be a recital by students of Laois School of Music at Quinn’s Coffee Shop. From 1pm to 4pm there will be circus workshops in Market Square. At 2pm Dermot Bolger will be reading in the library and at 2.30pm the Laois School of Music string quartet will be in Bramleys.
At 3pm there will be a street theatre performance by Colm O’ Grady in the Market Square, followed by a recital by students of Laois Schools of Music in Caf Odhran. The theatre performance, ‘Stories of a Yellow Town will be in McEvoys Bar and Bistro at 4pm. From 4pm to 6pm the screening of four documentaries made about the history and people of Abbeyleix featuring many well know local faces will take place. This will be followed by an awards ceremony for the Abbeyfest Documentary Film Competition. Benny’s Pub will be hosting trad and folk at 4pm featuring Ceoltas Ratheniska, Emer Dunne, Dave Furey and guests, Dorothy Cotter and Tony Leddy.
Meanwhile Maura Shanahan’s School of Irish Dancing at 4.30pm will be performing their much awaited ‘Titanic’ at the Manor Hotel. There will be an open call for musicians and singers to the traditional Irish session in The Horseshoe Inn from 4.30pm. The Physical Theatre Company Cirque de Legume will be performing at Preston House at 7.30pm and from 8.30pm to 12.30pm Preston House will host an evening of music featuring Preachers Son, Beef Supreme and Eva Queen.Sunday afternoon at midday sees Pignut Productions present ‘Ahhh!’ and Monsters and Things a show for 4 to 8 year olds at the Preston House. The Dove House Fete will kick off at 2.30pm. The closing ceremony will begin at 6.30pm in Preston House with Feedback and Planetopeace.
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Weather for Portlaoise
Sunday 26 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 10 C to 15 C
Wind Speed: 21 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Heavy rain
Temperature: 5 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: South west
