Greetings from Safe Harbour
Cork goes circus-mad this week. The Updown Circus Festival brings street performances, chainsaw juggling and a headline show at Dance Cork Firkin Crane, while the more traditional big tops go up at Curraheen Showground for Circus Extreme and on Centre Park Road for Circus Vegas.
Out past the mainland, Cape Clear Island marks 32 years of its International Storytelling Festival and Spike Island runs its fifth Literary Festival inside a former prison. Connolly's of Leap in West Cork adds two nights each from James Vincent McMorrow and Mick Flannery, with Saturday's Flannery show already sold out.
This is our pick of what's on this week. As always for a full event list check out the link at the bottom of the email.
Let's dive in 👇
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
Updown Circus Festival
Tuesday 1 – Tuesday 8 September · Times vary · Venues across Cork City
Street performances, chainsaw juggling and pop-up shows take over Coal Quay, Patrick Street, Lapps Quay and Douglas Street through the week. The headline show, Runners, plays Dance Cork Firkin Crane, alongside an Apocalypse Clown movie night at The Pav and a table quiz at The Hyde Out hosted by Ronan Leonard.
Cape Clear International Storytelling Festival
Friday 4 – Sunday 6 September · Cape Clear Island
Now in its 32nd year, the festival brings storytellers to venues across the island for a weekend of tales, readings and sessions.
Spike Island Literary Festival
Friday 4 – Sunday 6 September · Spike Island
Now in its fifth year, the festival is dedicated to crime writing and sets its conversations, readings and panels inside Spike Island's former prison, which held inmates across four separate periods over 400 years. This year's lineup includes Mark Billingham, Andrea Mara, Stuart Neville and Catherine Ryan Howard.
Boyce Avenue
Wednesday 2 September · 19:00 · Cyprus Avenue
Acoustic set from the YouTube-famous duo.
James Vincent McMorrow
Thursday 3 September · Doors 19:30 · Connolly's Of Leap, Leap
Ages 18+, unreserved seating
McMorrow returns to the venue where he rehearsed and tried out new songs ten years ago, before the release of his third album. Expect a guitar-based set mixing established material with newer songs. A second night was added on Friday due to demand.
The ELO Tribute Show
Thursday 3 September · 20:00 · Cork Opera House
Tribute concert celebrating Electric Light Orchestra classics with a full live production.
115 Jazz Jam Sessions
Thursday 3 September · 20:00 · 115 Café And Wine Bar
Open-stage jazz jam with the house band backing whoever drops in to play. Musicians turning up to perform are welcome.
Stuart Wilde
Thursday 3 September · 21:00 · Sin É
Independent West Cork singer-songwriter, producer and engineer whose music is described as dark, heartfelt and poetic.
Cranberries Tribute (Performed By The Lizberries)
Friday 4 September · 19:00 · Wavelength, Cyprus Avenue Rooftop
The Lizberries formed in Milan in 2010 and are now the Cranberries' international tribute band, part of a run of Irish dates this week.
James Vincent McMorrow
Friday 4 September · Doors 19:30 · Connolly's Of Leap, Leap
Second night added due to demand
Second night at the venue McMorrow has called one of the greatest weeks of his life. Same format: guitar, established songs and new material.
W!ld: 'New York Pink and Oxford Blue' Album Launch
Friday 4 September · 19:30 · The Roundy
Cork brothers Louis and Perry Wild, both with theatre backgrounds, launch their third studio album. The band's sound has drawn comparisons to David Bowie, Jellyfish, XTC, Steely Dan and the Beatles.
Bí Liom Bí
Friday 4 September · 20:00 · Coughlan's
Aisling Lyons, Becky Ní Éallaithe and Muireann Ní Shé, drawing on the traditions of Cork, Connemara and Clare, present a programme of sean-nós song, traditional music and dance, including newly composed work by Ní Shé and Lyons.
Veins Of Mercury
Friday 4 September · 21:00 · Fred Zeppelins
Cork darkwave industrial trio blending electronics, ritual atmospheres and visual elements, exploring melancholy and transformation.
Salt Peanuts
Saturday 5 September · 14:30 · Ár na Áit, Skibbereen
Jazz jam session.
Mick Flannery
Saturday 5 September · Doors 18:30 · Connolly's Of Leap, Leap
Solo outdoor-stage show, mostly standing with limited seating, mixing well-known songs with new material.
Absolute Eagles
Saturday 5 September · 19:00 · Cyprus Avenue
Tribute act covering the Eagles' catalogue from 1972 to the present, built around five-part vocal harmonies.
Wallis Bird
Saturday 5 September · 20:00 · Briery Gap, Macroom
Live set from the Irish singer-songwriter.
Karen Underwood: The Music of Nina Simone
Saturday 5 September · 20:00 · St. Catherine's Cultural Centre, Kinsale
A live tribute to Nina Simone.
Hot Guitars
Saturday 5 September · 22:00 · Coughlan's
Cork five-piece blues and rock band, together two decades and a Guinness Cork Jazz Festival fixture for twelve consecutive years, drawing on the Rolling Stones, the Animals, Dylan, Muddy Waters, Clapton and Van Morrison.
Mick Flannery
Sunday 6 September · Doors 12:00, music 13:00 · Connolly's Of Leap, Leap
Solo matinee performance, described by the venue as an intimate room with nowhere for the songs to hide. Outdoor stage, mostly standing.
Souldriven
Sunday 6 September · 17:00 · Coughlan's
Seven-piece brass-infused soul, funk, jazz and blues band, regulars at Waterford Spraoi, Guinness Jazz Festival and Dun Laoghaire Festival of World Cultures.
Wallis Bird
Sunday 6 September · Doors 18:00 · De Barra's Folk Club, Clonakilty
Bird performs material from her eighth album, I Can See Your House From Here, written around personal and collective grief.
Exhibition: Room Innate by Danny Foley
Now – Friday 25 September · 10:00 to 17:00, Tuesday to Friday · Studio 12, Backwater Artists Group
Danny Foley combines painting, stop-motion video, archival family footage and sculpture in an exploration of the shifting nature of the self. Much of the footage was originally recorded by his mother, Dr Collette Nolan, as part of her own research into childhood play, and now forms material for his contemporary practice. The exhibition was developed through the Backwater Artists Group Moving Image Bursary, awarded to Foley in 2025.
Judy: End of the Rainbow
Tuesday 1 – Saturday 5 September · 19:30 · The Everyman
Closing week of this Irish premiere, with Anna-Jane Casey as Judy Garland during her Talk of the Town concerts in London. Opening night was Wednesday 2 September. Directed by Conor Hanratty, written by Peter Quilter.
Shoot The People
Wednesday 2 September · 16:00 · Triskel Arts Centre
Documentary following photographer and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Misan Harriman as he documents global protest movements, from the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests to Palestinian liberation efforts. The screening includes descriptive subtitles for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences.
By the Light of the Silvery Moon
Thursday 3 – Friday 4 September · 20:00 · Cork Arts Theatre
Storyteller and musician Aindrias de Staic, accompanied by Brian Fleming on bodhrán and Aisling Lyons on harp and concertina, weaves fiddle-led tales drawn from Irish bardic tradition, following sold-out shows elsewhere on this tour.
Bach, Bows and Arrows: An Audience with Julian & Jiaxin Lloyd Webber
Saturday 5 September · 20:00 · Live at St Luke's
Cellist Julian Lloyd Webber and violinist Jiaxin Lloyd Webber explore the story behind Bach's Cello Suites, combining live performance with reflections and archive video drawn from Julian's memoir Bows and Arrows. Audience questions follow.
Michael Starring Ben: The Magic of Michael Jackson
Saturday 5 September (14:30 & 20:00) and Monday 7 September (20:00) · Cork Opera House
Ben Bowman's Michael Jackson tribute production, with a live band, costumes and choreography, covering Jackson 5 and solo hits including Beat It, Billie Jean and Thriller. Not affiliated with the Michael Jackson Estate.
Man in the Mirror
Sunday 6 September · 15:00 & 19:30 · The Everyman
Tribute concert to Michael Jackson featuring performer CJ, with choreography, visual effects and costumes, running the hits including Thriller, Billie Jean, Beat It and Smooth Criminal.
Guggi
Sunday 6 – Wednesday 9 September · Times vary · Triskel Arts Centre
Documentary tracing the creative journey of artist Guggi, from the post-punk energy of late-1970s Dublin to his current solitary practice, with interviews from lifelong friends Bono and Gavin Friday.
The Last Viking
Sunday 6 – Wednesday 9 September · Times vary · Triskel Arts Centre
Ex-convict Anker reunites with his brother Manfred to recover money Manfred buried years earlier, complicated by Manfred's belief that he is John Lennon. Stars Mads Mikkelsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas. The Wednesday 15:45 screening includes open captions.
Playspaces
Now – Friday 18 September · 10:00 daily · St. Peters Cork
A city-wide trail of child-only play pods and dens, designed by Lead Artist Chris Finnegan in response to ideas from Cork children about what their city would look like if they were in charge.
Circus Extreme
Wednesday 2 – Sunday 6 September · Times vary · Curraheen Showground
Rock-scored circus production billed as ROCK IT OUT, combining acrobatics, clowning and a live rock band. Shows run at 17:00 and 19:45 from Wednesday to Friday, with an additional 14:00 show added Saturday and Sunday. The wider run continues to 13 September, dark on 7 and 8 September.
Circus Vegas
Thursday 3 – Sunday 20 September · Times vary (16:30 on some dates) · Centre Park Road
Big-top show featuring FMX freestyle motocross, the Globe of Death, the Wheel of Death, clowns and aerial acrobatics.
Coastal Seaweed Foraging
Thursday 3 September · 15:00 to 17:00 · White Bay Beach
Part of fEast Cork, this guided shoreline walk with forager Samuel Arnold Keane explores seaweed varieties and their culinary uses, finishing with tasters of seaweed-inspired food by the fire. Booking is by email to [email protected].
For a full overview of all events on this week in Cork check out our event listings page
UNTIL NEXT WEEK
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