Encore with Claire O' Brien

Tonight’s Encore follows Portlaoise Community Choir, on location at Tower Hill, Portlaoise as they prepare for their upcoming sing along show on Sunday. Find out what a community choir is, why it brings joy and hear some heartfelt harmonies.

This week's Encore features the wonderful bass baritone, Birr's John Molloy ahead of Birr Stage Guild's upcoming Christmas concert. We hear from David Vesey about his debut album, featuring a traditional take on the music of Turlough O'Carolan and the inimitable Lorna Sixsmith introduces us to the heroine of her first work of fiction, home from London after a break-up and ready to roll up her sleeves on the farm. encore@midlands103.com is the email - drop a line to presenter Claire O'Brien.

Encore with Claire O'Brien

Encore with Claire O'Brien

On this week’s Encore, Offaly’s Aoise O’Dwyer on her passionate journey to discover the solo works for viola composed by women, Barbara Scully chats about the magic of middle age ahead of her conversation with writer Eleanor Mills - all part of the Laois Leaves Festival of Music and Writing and, on the other side of the lectern for a change, Nuala Kelly introduces the Suono Choir, also performing a free concert this weekend. Encore@midlands103 if you’d like to get in touch.

On this week’s Encore: a salubrious musical alternative to the horrors of Halloween with an All Hallows concert in Tullamore, new writing from Lorraine Murphy, storytelling in Rathdowney Library this weekend with Mick Creagh and his crew and Tadhg Devery ahead of his sold-out Day in the Country comedy show in The Bridge House this weekend. Encore@midlands103.com will get you straight to presenter, Claire O’Brien.

Tonight on Encore, we hear about Tullamore Musical Society’s 70th anniversary fundraising concern this Sunday, a Westmeath writer’s foray into short story writing, The Valley of the Squinting Windows on stage - and in Mullingar this week, and ATHLONE Little Theatre’s run of A Skull in Connemara, which begins on Friday. Encore@midlands103.com - drop us a line!

Encore with Claire O'Brien

This week's Encore hears from Sightless Cinema, which brings its new show 'Home' to Dunamaise Theatre on Thursday night. It features a blind and visually impaired cast bringing an audio experience to a blindfolded audience - director Ciaran Taylor has the lowdown. Staying in Portlaoise, for a show also on in the Dunamaise theatre is a Emily Kilkenny Roddy, a dancer from Portlaoise and rehearsal director with Catherine Young Dance. Their dance performance is called 'Floating on a Dead Sea' and features a number of Palestinian dancers and a documentary filmed in Palestine in 2019. It brings to life everyday life in Palestine in a more peaceful time than it knows now. Also, writer Margaret Kiernan from Mullingar has just published her debut collection of poetry with Alba Press. It's called A Mirage of Lost Things and she tells Claire O'Brien all about the inspiration for it. If you'd like to get in contact with the show, encore@midlands103.com is the email address you need.

Where is my mind? Not just a great song by The Pixies but the title of Niall ‘Bressie’ Breslin’s immersive podcast show coming to Portlaoise on Tuesday. We head to Banagher to hear about a fascinating miscellany of words and music to remember Charlotte Brontë and her husband, Arthur Bell Nichols and th woman who kept the Brontë memorabilia intact for decades. And the Snapper is in Tullamore - Colin Hughes chats about his sellout stage play running at Esker Arts Centre. All this and more on Encore this evening - and every Thursday. Encore@midlands103.com if you’d like to get in touch!

On this week’s show we catch up with Paddy Cullivan, musician and historical entertainer about his new show coming to Mullingar next week. James Mac tells us more about his extraordinary exhibition and his work as a make-up artist and illustrator Oisin McGann explains how the art world is different to when he started out, but still a viable career path for the committed visual artist. Encore@midlands103.com is the email address to get in touch with presenter and producer, Claire O’Brien.

On this week’s Encore it’s James Mac. Claire Brien visited Dunamaise Theatre and Arts Centre, where his stunning exhibition Makeup X Art is running. And he has a masterclass on Friday 6th. Also on the show, Janet Stewart introduces The Dresses of St Paul’s, celebrating a century of weddings and wedding dresses at St Paul’s Church of Ireland in Mountmellick. Joe McCarrick directs Athlone Little Theatre’s 1920s/30s take on The Importance of Being Ernest (with a Lady Bracknell twist yet to be revealed!). Music industry lecturer John McFadden will interview one of Oasis’s founders, Tony McCaroll - who lived in Kinnitty - on Saturday night after the official launch of a blue plaque to celebrate his Offaly heritage. Encore@midlands103.com is the email address if you’d like to contact Claire.

Encore with Shannon Fogerty

Encore with Shannon Fogarty - Arts & Culture every Thursday from 7pm on Midlands 103

Encore with Claire O'Brien every Thursday at 7pm on Midlands 103

Encore with Claire O'Brien every Thursday at 7pm on Midlands 103

Encore this week is a very special, featuring a documentary by Sinead Hubble and Amelia Averis on Founder Fable King, a play devised by Mountrath Youth Theatre and their director, Louise White from Abbeyleix. It tells the story of some famous Laois people from history.

Encore with Claire O'Brien

A brand new heritage and arts festival for Mountmellick, Michael Patric introduces his play Sugar, which he'll perform at this week's Scripts Festival in Birr and photographer/videographer Evin O'Toole tells us about his role in Ceangal/Connections, the 2024 iteration of the creative project between Tullamore, Offaly and Chandler Arizona. And Prof Gerard Gillen previews next Tuesday's performance at the Church of the Assumption, Tullamore, for the Tullamore International Summer Organ Series.

On tonight's Encore, filmmaker Gemma Creagh tells us about Conveyance, her short horror film due to have its premier at the upcoming Galway Film Fleadh, the inimitable John McDwyer talks about the inspiration for 'The Pension Plan', his most recent comedy play (staged by his theatre company Beezneez in Moate this weekend) and Courtney Callaghan catches up with singer songwriter Darren Kiely as he prepares to headline The Folly Festival in Cullohill this weekend.