Draiocht Competitors

The Abbey Theatre is Ireland's National Theatre. The Abbey Theatre, founded by W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory, first opened its doors in 1904 to ‘bring upon the stage the deeper thoughts and emotions of Ireland’. Since then, it has played a vital and often controversial role in the literary, social and cultural life and landscape of Ireland. The Abbey’s reputation for presenting world-class productions has made it an ambassador for Irish arts and culture at home and abroad.

For 146 years The Gaiety Theatre has given the people of Dublin opera, musicals, drama, revues, comedy, concerts, dance, festivals and pantomime. Amid the laughter and tears, through times of war and times of affluence, The Grand Old Lady of South King Street has remained a vital and ever changing expression of Irish culture and Irish society. Long home to the familiar faces of Maureen Potter, Niall Toibin, John B. Keane, Anna Manahan, Des Keogh and Rosaleen Linehan, whose bronze handprints, are set into the pavement in front the theatre, together with those of Luciano Pavarotti and Brian Friel, are testament to the longstanding association these great artists have had with Dublin’s Gaiety Theatre.

Project Arts Centre (PAC) is Ireland’s leading centre for the presentation and development of contemporary art, dedicated to protecting the independent sector and nurturing the next generation of Irish artists across all forms of the performing and visual arts. Located in Dublin’s cultural quarter, Temple Bar, PAC offers a gallery, two performance spaces and a bar. For nearly five decades, PAC has been a pioneer of alternative ideas, bold ambition and artistic freedom in Irish culture. With a packed year round programme there is plenty to fuel your imagination. “… the city’s most interesting venue...You never know what to expect, which makes it all that more fun…”- Lonely Planet. As the busiest arts centre in the country, we present over 600 events and curate and co-ordinate a number of exhibitions each year. Choose from theatre, music, dance, visual arts and everything in between. More than just a venue, PAC is a hub for production, a place where art and artists are given the space and support to develop and grow. Through our Project Artists initiative, we nurture, mentor, partner, collaborate, network, co-produce and present the work of independent artists on both the national and international stages. PAC began in 1966 as a three-week festival at the Gate Theatre. Since then PAC has developed from an artist-led co-operative to a full-time artist-driven company; now at the forefront of contemporary artistic practice in Ireland. As we near our 50th Anniversary, we celebrate an eventful history and evolution, one that has mirrored the political and cultural trends of its time and helped to shape, and to launch, the careers of many Irish artists including Gabriel Byrne, Liam Neeson and U2. Committed to supporting artists across all forms of the performing and visual arts, PAC is a not-for-profit organisation funded by the Arts Council and Dublin City Council. We rely greatly on the contributions of individuals, corporations and foundations.