5 Lamps Arts Festival
The Five Lamps Arts Festival is a creative encounter at the heart of an inner-city community. The mission of this annual festival is to promote community development and social inclusion through the arts and to showcase the uniqueness of this geographic area to residents and to visitors.
Dates: 30th March – 6th April
For more information check: http://www.fivelampsarts.ie/new/
Limerick Fringe Festival
Limerick Fringe is a new vibrant, multi-genre performance based event hosted in Limerick Ireland. It is a not for profit organisation that looks to support artists and producers to promote new, vibrant and daring arts to a wider audience utilizing non-traditional spaces.
Dates: 30th March – 1st April
For more information check: http://limerickfringe.com/
Franco-Irish Literary Festival
This year, the Franco-Irish Literary Festival will address these themes through a varied programme, including several round tables carefully moderated by highly qualified experts in their fields.
Dates: 31st – 2nd April
For more information check: http://www.francoirishliteraryfestival.com/
MusicTown
Now in its third year, MusicTown celebrates the rich music heritage and contemporary artistic lifeblood of Dublin City, one of the world’s most musical cities. Over 11 days and nights in April the beat of the city will be set by the eclectic mix of musical performances and events taking place across Dublin.
Dates: 7th- 17th April
For more information check: http://www.musictown.ie/about/
Pilgrim Paths Week
Pilgrimage has been defined as “a meaningful journey to a place of spiritual significance” and the practice is almost as old as recorded history. In Ireland the pilgrim journey has strong historic resonance with early Christian scholars coming to Clonmacnoise; medieval penitents journeying to Lough Derg, and Glendalough, while others sought heightened spirituality by visiting Skellig Michael or climbing Croagh Patrick.
Dates: 11th – 17th April
For more information check: http://www.pilgrimpath.ie/
BD Festival
This staple of the festival calendar stirs together music, art, community, cuisine, BYOB, on a day where everyone else’s doors are closed. This is a special event and a special year, as it marks the 10th anniversary of BD FESTIVAL, since it’s inception in 2007.
Dates: 14th April
For more information check: http://bdfestival.ie/index.php
Racing Home Mallow Festival
Our 3 day festival coincides with the traditional Easter racing meeting at Cork Racecourse Mallow, where there’s a great combination of National Hunt racing and flat racing to be enjoyed.
Dates: 15th – 17th April
For more information check: http://www.racinghomeforeaster.com/about/
Barrow River Arts Festival
Taking place in Borris House, there will be a selection of arts exhibitions, live music and readings.
Dates: 21st-23rd April
For more information check: http://www.barrowriverartsfestival.com/about-us.html
West Waterford Festival of Food
This is one festival where there is definitely something for everyone – a full children’s programme, foraging trails, bus tours, cooking demos, dining experiences from high end to very casual plus of course our markets. Taste the best of the county with our local Farmer’s Market on Thursday, our weekly Country Market on Friday, the festival’s quayside market on Saturday with a seafood theme, all culminating in our famed Festival Market on Sunday when over 100 stalls fill the town centre to bring you the best of local and Irish artisan food. Bígí linn!
Dates: 21st-23rd April
For more information check: http://www.westwaterfordfestivaloffood.com/
Irish Surfing Festival
Now in its fifth year, the festival sold out all shows in its first three years at the Light House Cinema in Dublin before moving west to Sligo, the natural home of surfing. In 2017, the festival returns to Sligo Along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, This stretch of coastline is a mecca for surfers and creatives, home to some of Ireland’s biggest waves including Mullaghmore and a flourishing surf community in Strandhill. It is a home to the creatives who have chosen to live their lives on this dramatic and unfolding Northwesterly edge of Ireland.
Dates: 22nd – 23rd April
For more information check: http://www.shoreshots.ie/what-we-do/
Cuirt International Festival of Literature
An international festival of literature in Galway city and county. Celebrating the best in Irish and international writing.
Dates: 23rd-30th April
For more information check: http://www.cuirt.ie/en/get-in-touch-with-cuirt-festival/
Connemarathon
The Connemara International Marathon is one of the world’s most scenic events, set in the dramatic scenery of the west of Ireland. 2017 will mark its sixteenth year in running, growing in numbers each year from 73 runners to our sell out point, in excess of 3,000 runners.
Dates: 23rd April
For more information check: http://www.connemarathon.com/
Drogheda Arts Festival
Set against the backdrop of the Boyne Valley’s cultural capital, Drogheda will be filled with artists both local and international, each daring to display, perform, exhibit and lay bare their work in an attempt to amuse, provoke, entertain and inspire you, their audience.
Dates: 24th April-1st May
For more information check: http://droghedaartsfestival.ie/
Cork International Choral Festival
Founded in 1954 to be a dynamic force in developing choral music in Ireland, the Cork International Choral Festival is held annually over the five days preceding the first Monday in May. Cork welcomes choirs from across the world for a programme of Gala concerts, Schools Concerts, National and International Competitions, and world-class performances, as thousands of participants bring the city to life for a celebration of choral music in all its many forms
Dates: 26th- 30th April
For more information check: http://www.corkchoral.ie/
JestFest
JestFest returns to Wexford this May Bank Holiday weekend – it’s the comedy festival where you can see your favourite comedians doing their thing in intimate, atmospheric venues all over town. Plenty of family events are taking place too with our Street Theatre Arena and Vintage Fairground on the Quay Front for the duration of the Festival.
Dates: 21st April – 1st May
For more information check: http://www.jestfest.ie/about-the-festival/
Poetry Day Ireland
Poetry Ireland receives support from The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and The Arts Council of Northern Ireland and we enjoy rewarding partnerships with arts centres, festivals, schools, colleges and bookshops at home and abroad. Our commitment to creating performance and publication opportunities for poets at all stages of their careers helps ensure that the best work is made available to the widest possible audience, securing a future for Irish poetry that is as celebrated as its past.
Dates: 27th April
For more information check: http://www.poetryireland.ie/
Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival
Founded in 1999, the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival has quickly established itself as one of the most vibrant and dynamic arts festivals on these islands with a broad-ranging programme that focuses on younger, less mainstream and less traditional arts attenders as well as music, comedy and literature fans from right across the social spectrum.
Dates: 27th April – 7th May
For more information check: http://cqaf.com/2017/
Inishbofin Arts Festival
Inishbofin Island is looking forward to the annual Arts Festival over the May Bank Holiday Weekend, April 28th to 30th 2017. The 2017 festival will welcome old friends and new to the island!
Dates: 28th – 30th April
For more information check: http://www.inishbofin.com/
Riverfest
Limerick will become a mecca for families, foodies, fun runners and watersport enthusiasts during the May Bank Holiday weekend for Riverfest 2017! Highlights of the city’s premier summer festival will include Riverfest on the Shannon, the Riverfest BBQ Competition, the Riverfestival village in Arthur’s Quay Park, the Barringtons Hospital Great Limerick Run and a spectacular fireworks display.
Dates: 27th April – 1st May
For more information check: https://www.limerick.ie/riverfest
Bray Jazz Festival
We have some great shows lined up, including headliners from four countries in Scandinavia, the United States and the UK. Elsewhere there will be visiting performers from Switzerland, India and Australia on the bill, together with some of the very best musicians working in improvised music in Ireland.
Dates: 28th – 30th April
For more information check: http://www.brayjazz.com/
Sligo International Chamber Music Festival
Taking place in St Columba’s Church Drumcliffe and The Model Sligo over the May bank holiday weekend, Sligo International Chamber Music Festival is a highlight in the annual calendar of music events. Under Artistic Director Tim Vogler, the festival offers its loyal audience and new visitors alike the opportunity to experience high standards of programming through a fresh choice of artists performing alongside our internationally acclaimed ensemble-in-residence,the Vogler Quartet.
Dates: 28th April – 1st May
For more information check: http://www.sligochambermusic.ie/
Kilkenny Roots Festival
Since 1998 the festival has attracted some of the finest names in the Americana/Roots canon, including Calexico, Giant Sand, Ryan Adams, Alejandro Escovedo, Guy Clark, Chuck Prophet, Ray LaMontagne, Richmond Fontaine, Rodney Crowell, Phosphorescent, Sturgill Simpson and Alabama Shakes. Audiences wind their way through the medieval streets sampling the huge range of music in the 30 plus venues, hosting over 40 Irish and international acts, with over 90 ticketed and free shows from early afternoon until late into the night. There’s a mixture of old and new acts on the free pub gig trail and all styles are catered for, from swing to bluegrass, rockabilly to cajun, folk, blues and beyond.
Dates: 28th April – 1st May
For more information check: http://kilkennyroots.com/
City of Derry Jazz and Big Band Festival
The festival, now in its 16th year will offer music lovers a fantastic programme of live music between 27th April and 1st May and is one of the region’s most anticipated and talked about social events of the year. We will welcome back a number of festival favourites and welcome for the first time, a variety of hotly tipped Jazz acts from across the globe. Organised by Derry City and Strabane District Council, the Jazz Festival features live music acts at over 70 venues and featuring over 200 musical acts during the Bank Holiday weekend.
Dates: 28th April – 1st May
For more information check: http://www.cityofderryjazzfestival.com/
Feile na Bealtaine
Dates: 28th April – 2nd May
For more information check: http://feilenabealtaine.ie/home/
Bright Lights Tag Festival
Bright Lights Tag festival is a new pre-summer season tag festival established with the aim of raising awareness and donations for both Aware and Pieta House. Bipolar disorder, depression and suicide are effecting more and more families and following the sad and unexpected passing of our close friend Stephen Lucey in December 2016, a group of his friends wanted to raise awareness and help others in similar circumstances.
Dates: 29th April
For more information check: http://www.brightlightstag.com/
