After Dark shows light up Cork stage

It’s a big night in town next Wednesday, July 24, when Summer Revels opens at the Opera House.

This brand-new yet harking-back musical comedy is a real family show that is more than just entertainment - it’s a celebration of Cork, for Cork, by Cork!

Directed by Killian Collins and John O’Brien, with a keen eye to the best talent and the newest ideas, it also honours our wonderful tradition of Leeside summer variety shows of the past, like The Swans and the original Summer Revels.

Slick choreography, big numbers, hilarious comedy sketches and plenty of high jinks, this show is rooted in our much-loved, everyday humour that will have you laughing and dancing in the aisles.

Evenings at 7pm, but matinees also at weekends. Book quickly - tickets are going fast! www.corkoperahouse.ie, or 021 427 0022.

First, don’t forget to get on your late-night gear for The Everyman After Dark this Friday to Sunday, July 19-21, from 10pm.

This series of events, in association with Coughlans Live, offers Irish folk, contemporary singer-songwriters, and comedy.

On Friday, it’s singer-songwriter Jack O’Rourke with Blarney Community Choir, Emma Langford and Anna Mitchell.

On Saturday, Ye Vagabonds, Iarla Ó Lionáird, Cormac McCarthy, Matthew Berrill, and Niamh Regan.

On Sunday, comedy with Vittorio Angelone, Alison Spittle, Bernard Casey, Andrew Ryan, and more. A laughter-filled event guaranteed.

On Monday night, another special event, when The Kabin Studio and Irish National Opera present Kabin Crew: The Sound Of The Northside. This promises to be an electrifying performance uniting the raw energy of hip-hop with the big sound of an orchestra, plus an unforgettable celebration of creativity and community. 7pm start, note.

On Tuesday and Wednesday at Everyman, Seabright Live presents Brendan Murphy’s worldwide comedy award-winner, Friend (The One with Gunther). One barista, 70 minutes, ten seasons. The entire 236 episodes of the hit ’90s TV show Friends, retold through the eyes of Gunther, Central Perk’s very own ‘seventh friend’.

Settle down in Gunther’s café to hear the true insider story of what happened to Ross, Rachel, Phoebe, Chandler, Monica and Joey, from the character who kept them caffeinated through all the highs, lows, affairs and failed auditions along the way! Pure nostalgia!

And more nostalgia Thursday to Saturday, when I Wish My Life Were Like a Musical comes to The Everyman. This comedic revue covers the journey from wide-eyed drama student to brattish diva, past-it chorus member or bitter has-been (or never-was), lifting the lid on awful auditions, debilitating dance routines, mid-performance mishaps, backstage backstabbing, super-fans and harsh critics - plus those magical moments that make it all worthwhile.

Following four Edinburgh Fringe seasons and two London runs, this show has been a sell-out everywhere.

All Everyman bookings: www.everymancork.com or 021 450 1673.

The West Cork Literary Festival is in full swing in Bantry, with talks, exhibitions, workshops, and more. A particularly charming event takes place at Future Forests up the road this morning at 11.30am, when John Connell, the best-selling author of The Cow Book, explains what Twelve Sheep, a very special flock, mean to him and to his life.

Cork Stories, from Jamie O’Connell and Eileen O’Donoghue, is in Bantry Library at 1pm, while in the Maritime Hotel at 6.30pm, Roxanne de Bastion is in conversation with Sue Leonard about her book The Piano Player of Budapest: A True Story of Holocaust Survival, Music and Hope.

Colm Toibin tomorrow, among a galaxy of other brilliant writers and events. See https://www.westcorkmusic.ie/literary-festival/programme/.