Enda Walsh's ROOMS, New Music Series and More Slated for Spring 2017 at Irish Arts Center

Heather Humphreys, Ireland's Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, joins season launch and visits site of IAC's future permanent home, presenting €1 million in new funding from Irish government toward the Center's new home, as well as an additional €200,000 in Culture Ireland funding toward IAC's 2017 programming.

Season highlights include:

- The debut of a new conversation series, Movements, beginning January 25 featuring Senator George Mitchell

- Enda Walsh's Rooms (May 3-28), presented inside the Cybert Tire site, future home of the New Irish Arts Center, alongside the St. Ann's Warehouse presentation of Walsh's Arlington (May 3-28)

- The launch of a new monthly music series, Tobin's Run on 51 (February 23, March 23, April 27), curated by award-winning Irish jazz singer Christine Tobin and acclaimed guitarist Phil Robson

- Edges of Light (June 1-3), a new dance-music collaboration featuring dancer Colin Dunne, fiddler Tola Custy, harpist Maeve Gilchrist and uilleann piper David Power

- Concerts by The Auction Project (April 20-22), a cross-cultural sextet led by New York-based saxophonist David Bixler and Grammy Award-winning Mexican pianist and composer Arturo O'Farrill; Declan O'Rourke with orchestra (February 17-19); Sierra Leoneon Irish soul singer Loah with band (March 22); the Máirtín O'Connor Trio (March 30); fiddlers Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh & Dan Trueman (April 29); Mundy (June 7-8); and more

- The return of the beloved Irish Arts Center series Muldoon's Picnic (February 13, March 13, April 10) and Debut Voices (April 18, May 9)

- Film programming including a screening of Great Gilly Hopkins (February 28), a coming-of-age story featuring Glenn Close; a showing of How to Defuse a Bomb: The Project Child Story (April 25), about Denis Mulcahy's attempt to unite children from Ireland and Northern Ireland in the suburban U.S.; and the LGBT Craic Fest (May 11)

- In the gallery, Marie Connole's As Above, So Below (January 25-April 3), which explores the folklore and customs of Ireland's west coast

This month, as Irish Arts Center (IAC) begins pre-construction work on its heralded new permanent home and enters the final stretch of its $60 million Almost Home capital campaign for the building, the acclaimed institution begins a Spring 2017 season that epitomizes its unique role in the cultural landscapes of New York City, the United States, and the world: as a hub for dynamic, 21st-Century Irish culture. In a wide array of theater, dance, music, film, visual art, family programs, literary events and education initiatives, January 25 - June 16, IAC will showcase some of Ireland's greatest artistic talent, often in multicultural collaborations with American artists and institutions.

IAC revealed the season programming yesterday evening during an event with Heather Humphreys, T.D., Ireland's Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, following a visit to Cybert Tire, the future site of the New Irish Arts Center, which adjoins the Center's existing venue, at 553 West 51st Street, where pre-construction activities have begun. Joined by Irish Arts Center Executive Director Aidan Connolly, Vice Chair Pauline Turley, board member Loretta Brennan Glucksman and Pulitzer Prize winning poet Paul Muldoon, Minister Humphreys presented a grant of €1 million in new funding from Irish government toward the Center's new home, as well as an additional €200,000 in Culture Ireland funding toward IAC's 2017 programming.

IAC's Spring season kicks off with the debut of a new conversation series, Movements, which will bring important global voices to the Irish Arts Center stage to discuss current affairs in the context of culture. Movements launches January 25 with a dialogue between Senator George Mitchell, the legendary statesman who brokered the peace agreement in Northern Ireland, and the acclaimed Irish novelist and journalist Belinda McKeon.

Even before breaking ground on their new home, IAC will welcome audiences into the existing Cybert Tire site for Rooms, a site-specific theatrical installation by the great Irish playwright Enda Walsh (May 3-28). IAC will present Rooms alongside St. Ann's Warehouse premiere of Walsh's new play, Arlington (May 3-28), making for a season of Walsh works in New York, supported by Culture Ireland.

As always, the season features a rich diversity of music. Exemplifying IAC's commitment to fostering unique collaborations fusing Irish and other cultures, the organization will present The Auction Project (April 20-22), a jazz sextet with heavy elements of Irish, Scottish and Afro-Cuban fusions, led by alto saxophonist David Bixler and Grammy Award-winning Mexican pianist/composer Arturo O'Farrill. Multi-award winning Irish jazz singer Christine Tobin returns to IAC to launch Tobin's Run on 51 (February 23, March 23, April 27), a new monthly jazz series curated by her and acclaimed guitarist Phil Robson. Sierra-Leonian Irish singer songwriter Loah performs her unique brand of music called ArtSoul with full band (March 22). The beloved SongLives series returns as well, capturing the musical atmosphere of Dublin's vibrant Grafton Street with Irish singer-songwriter Cat Dowling and Belfast-based songwriter Hannah McPhillimy (March 9), as well as Irish singer-songwriter AdrIan Crowley (May 19).

Additional music highlights include balladeer Declan O'Rourke, who will perform songs from his new album with a ten piece orchestra under the direction of Henry Hey (Ireland Rising, David Bowie'sLazarus) (February 17-19); a Celtic Appalachian Celebration (March 11) featuring National Heritage Award winners Mick Moloney and Billy McComiskey, Athena Tergis, Brendan Dolan and more; a live performance of The Sunnyside Sessions, the Queens-based music television series (April 7); the Máirtín O'Connor Trio (March 30); Hardanger fiddler pioneers Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh & Dan Trueman (April 29); and the beloved Irish singer-songwriter Mundy (June 7-8), performing in his upbeat and celebratory folk/pop/rock style.

IAC continues to build on its commitment to the development of new work with the second installment in its three year residency partnership with Baryshnikov Arts Center, with a month-long residency for musician Dana Lyn (March 27-April 21). She will incorporate original visuals and text into a musical performance inspired by painter Jay Defeo's The Rose, and will collaborate with Irish poet Louis de Paor on a theatrical staging based on the medieval story Tóraíocht Dhiarmada agus Ghráinne.

IAC's popular monthly series Muldoon's Picnic, hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning Irish poet Paul Muldoonand featuring his house band, Rogue Oliphant, will welcomea stunning lineup of world-class special guests across the spectrum of music and literature, including Lisa Dwan, Bill Flanagan, Damsel and So Percussion (February 13); Marie Howe, Peter Quinn and Colm Mac Con Iomaire (March 13); and Jean Korelitz, Brenda Shaughnessy and The Knights (April 10).

Dance and live music combine in Edges of Light (June 1-3), a new collaboration between dancer Colin Dunne, fiddler Tola Custy, harpist Maeve Gilchrist and uilleann piper David Power. IAC will also present an annual Dance Festival (May 7) at Riverside Park South to kick off the Summer-on-the-Hudson series and celebrate Irish dance and culture.

The season will feature a wide range of film programs, including screenings of Great Gilly Hopkins (February 28), a coming of age story featuring Glenn Close, and How to Defuse a Bomb: The Project Child Story (April 25), about Denis Mulcahy's attempt to unite children from Ireland and Northern Ireland in the suburban U.S. IAC will host LGBT Craic Fest (May 11), featuring the best in LGBT contemporary film, presented by Craic Fest in conjunction with Dublin's GAZE film festival.

Among the numerous compelling literary programs is the return of Debut Voices, a series that highlights the new, bold and exciting authors of New York, with Kathleen Donohue (April 18) reading from her first novel, Ashes of Fiery Weather. Debut Voices will continue with Lisa McInerney (May 9), who will read from her highly successful debut, Glorious Heresies. Also this season will be On Obsession: Belinda McKeon and Lisa Carey (March 1) at Center for Fiction, in which the writers will discuss how their latest novels delve into obsessive desire, the relationship between sexuality and community, and writing unlikeable characters; IAC's 7th Annual Book Day (March 17), when IAC gives out thousands of free books in locations around New York City; and Bloomsday on Broadway xxVI (June 16), a whirlwind tour of Ulysses with authors, actors and devoted Joyceans performing readings from the offensive, subversive, obscene, political, sexual and heretical elements of James Joyce's groundbreaking and sensational novel.

On Open Day (March 12), during St. Patrick's week, IAC welcomes kids and their parents to get to know IAC through live music, dance performances and a sampling of the 40+ adult and children's classes the Center offers throughout the season. Also for families, IAC's Saturday Morning Cartoons(April 8) provides free pancakes and an assortment of the best in Irish animated features, cartoons and shorts. In addition, IAC will be holding three new eight-week courses designed for children and their caregivers to learn together. They include Family Tin Whistle (beginning January 30), Family Bodhrán Drumming (beginning January 31) and Family Irish Step Dance (beginning January 30).

From January 25 - April 3, in Irish Arts Center's gallery, Marie Connole will present her work As Above, So Below, a reconsideration of the knowledge inherent in folklore and customs from the west coast of Ireland. The work focuses on the mythical Cill Stíopháin, a drowned village in Liscannor Bay said to become visible for just one day every seven years. Cill Stíopháin shares striking parallels with the fabled islands of Atlantis and Hy-Brasil.

Two terms of 40+ educational offerings in Irish language, music, dance, literature and more for adults and children. Winter term begins Jan 30 and Spring term begins April 10.

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Irish Arts Center SPRING 2017 PROGRAMMING:

[TALKS]
Movements: Senator George Mitchell in conversation with Belinda McKeon
January 25 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $35 (members only)

IAC launches a special new conversation series, Movements, bringing important global voices to the Irish Arts Center stage to add a current affairs dimension to its cultural conversation. The series launches with an intimate conversation with the legendary statesman and peacemaker Senator George Mitchell. Moderated by writer/journalist Belinda McKeon.

[VISUAL ART]
Marie Connole
As Above, So Below
January 25 - April 3
Artist talk and reception: Tuesday, February 28 at 6:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
FREE (reservations encouraged)

In As Above, So Below, artist Marie Connole re-considers the folklore and customs of the west coast of Ireland. Connole focuses on the mythical Cill Stíopháin, a drowned village in Liscannor Bay that is said to become visible for one day every seven years. It bears a striking resemblance to the fabled islands of Atlantis and Hy-Brasil.

Connole distills the essence of this tale, and others from her home place, employing the lens of memory, personal narrative and history. Working with sacred iconography and archetypal symbols, she re-imagines a personal legacy through delicate drawings and watercolors.

[EDUCATION]
Winter Term
Starts Jan 30; runs for 8 weeks
Various locations
Over 40 offerings for adults and children, the most comprehensive educational program in Irish culture in New York City.

[LIVE MUSIC]
The Stunning
February 3 & 4 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

Joe and Steve Wall of The Stunning, one of Ireland's most popular bands, perform two rock-filled evenings. Since they exploded onto the Irish music scene in 1990 with their number one album Paradise in the Picturehouse, the brothers Wall have produced a string of hit singles and albums for both The Stunning and in their other incarnation, The Walls. Strong melodies, lyrics and hooks have always been their trademark, and their songs have received heavy rotation on Irish radio and been featured on movie soundtracks for Begin Again and The Snapper. Their song "Brewing Up A Storm" has become an anthem, heard everywhere from football stadiums to TV commercials.

Expect a captivating and dynamic show as they tell the stories behind their songs and play favorites from their body of work, from subtle ballads like "Half Past Two" and "Empty Feeling" to stirring showstoppers such as "To the Bright and Shining Sun" and "Heads Are Gonna Roll," as well as share new material. This is a rare opportunity to hear these songs stripped-down in an intimate setting.

[MUSIC / LITERARY EVENT]
Muldoon's Picnic
Hosted by Paul Muldoon
With music by Rogue Oliphant
February 13, March 13, April 10 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
Premium tickets: $40 ($32 members) / General tickets: $35 ($28 members)

Pulitzer Prize-winning Irish poet, New Yorker Poetry Editor and pop music lyricist Paul Muldoon returns with his series monthly words-and-music jamborees, joined by his house band Rogue Oliphant and a stunning lineup of world-class special guests from the across the spectrum of music and literature. Some of the most surprising moments in an IAC season happen at the Picnic, a quintessentially "only in New York" experience.

February 13 Guests: Lisa Dwan, Bill Flanagan, Damsel, So Percussion
March 13 Guests: Marie Howe, Peter Quinn, Colm Mac Con Iomaire
April 10 Guests: Jean Korelitz, Brenda Shaughnessy, The Knights

[LIVE MUSIC]
Valentine's Weekend with Declan O'Rourke & Orchestra
February 17-19 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Premium tickets: $48 ($38 members) / General tickets: $42 ($34 members)

Direct from the National Concert Hall in Dublin, the acclaimed Irish balladeer Declan O'Rourke returns to Irish Arts Center with a ten-piece orchestra conducted by Henry Hey. Launching his latest studio recording In Full Colour in the U.S., the concert will feature orchestral arrangements of over a decade of musical treasures across Declan's career.

On the heels of Valentine's Day, love will surely be in the air at this rare chance to swoon over another unforgettable performance by this Irish Arts Center favorite.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Tobin's Run on 51: From Raglan Road to Green Dolphin Street
Performed by Christine Tobin and special guests
February 23 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

Tobin's Run on 51 is a new series of jazz nights curated by award-winning Irish singer-songwriter Christine Tobin and acclaimed guitarist Phil Robson, who will be joined each night by special guests. There will be something for all music lovers as Tobin and Robson invite some of New York's best Irish and international musicians to play sets and share stories about music's greatest artists and treasures.

This inaugural show, titled From Raglan Road to Green Dolphin Street, will explore Ireland's own jazz journey with tales about topics spanning from the anti-jazz campaign of the 1930s to producing one of the world's greatest jazz guitarists-Louis Stewart-a couple of decades later. Ireland now has a burgeoning jazz scene, and this concert will feature some of today's finest musicians, including the Justin Carroll & Simon Jermyn Trio and David O'Rourke Trio, in salute to Louis.

[FILM]
Great Gilly Hopkins
February 28 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $12 ($10 members)

In partnership with neighbors The 52nd Street Project, IAC presents a screening of this touching coming-of-age story about a feisty young girl in foster care. A talkback with performers will follow.

[LITERATURE & CONVERSATION]
Belinda McKeon and Lisa Carey
On Obsession
March 1 at 7 PM
Center for Fiction
FREE

IAC partners with Center for Fiction to co-present multi-award winning writer Belinda McKeon (Solace, Tender) and Lambda Literary Award-winner Lisa Carey (Every Visible Thing, The Stolen Child). The authors will discuss how their latest novels delve into obsessive desire, the relationship between sexuality and community, and writing unlikeable characters.

[COMMUNITY]
St. Pats for All Benefit
March 3 at 6 PM
Irish Arts Center
FREE

Irish Arts Center hosts the 18th St. Pat's For All Benefit Concert-the annual fundraiser in support of the inclusive St. Pat's for All Parade which takes place in Sunnyside/Woodside on Sunday, March 5th. Run by Ireland's 2016 Presidential Distinguished Award-recipients Kathleeen Walsh D'Arcy and Brenda Fay, the parade and concert celebrate the diversity of the Irish and Irish American communities of New York. Performers include BRIAN FLEMING, Niall O' Leary School of Dance, Honor Molloy,Malachy McCourt and Tony Demarco.

[LITERATYRE & CONVERSATION]
Ryan Tubridy and PJ Lynch: Patrick and the President
March 5 at 5:00pm
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $12 ($10 members)

Ryan Tubridy, one of Ireland's leading and best-loved media personalities, teamed with Children's Book Ireland Laureate illustrator PJ Lynch to create the children's book Patrick and the President. Together they will be talking about their collaboration,the relationship between Ireland and the US (especially during the Kennedy years) and Irish-American identity, in an afternoon event great for adults and families.

[EDUCATION]
Masterclass: Find Your Voice with Christine Tobin and Phil Robson
March 8 at 6:30 PM
Tickets: $60 ($50 members)

Irish-born and now New York-based, the multi-award-winning singer-songwriter Christine Tobin is accompanied by celebrated guitarist Phil Robson, who has worked with a diverse cross section of artists from David Liebman to Barbra Streisand. Together they present a vocal workshop that will also appeal to instrumentalists as much as singers. Both Tobin and Robson have conducted masterclasses at major international festivals and colleges, including Eastman College, as part of the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, Jazz for Kids and many more. Though she is from a jazz background, Tobin is also known for her highly original re-workings of Leonard Cohen, Carole King and more, as well as for composing musical settings for poetry. This workshop will focus on helping people to express their true voices; improve projection, sound and technique; and develop interpretation, stylistic understanding, diction and reading of lyrics. All levels of experience are welcome, and all lovers of good music will benefit.

[LIVE MUSIC]
SongLives: Cat Dowling and Hannah McPhillimy
March 9 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $18 ($14 members)

SongLives returns as the acclaimed Irish singer-songwriter and former member of electro band Alphastates (formerly Babelfish) Cat Dowling's beautifully dark pop songs meet Belfast-based songwriter Hannah McPhillimy's jazz-inflected indie melodies.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Celtic Appalachian Celebration
Featuring Mick Moloney, Athena Tergis, and the Green Fields of America, Brendan Dolan, Billy McComiskey, Liz Hanley, Jerry O'Sullivan, Erynn Marshall,
Carl Jones, and Sheila AdamsMarch 11 at 8 PM
Symphony Space
Premium Orchestra Seats: $60 / Rear Orchestra: $50 ($40 members) / Balcony: $40 ($32 members, $25 students & seniors)

Our annual rousing tribute to the thriving Irish and Appalachian traditions and shared musical lineage returns St. Patrick's week. With constantly evolving material and an unmatched energy, Mick Moloney the Green Fields of America, including 2016 NEA National Heritage Fellow Billy McComiskey, and a star-studded ensemble of musicians, singers, and dancers will leave audiences feeling uplifted.

The beloved Irish American group will be joined by old-time musicians Erynn Marshall and Carl Jones showcasing their southern song-duets and soaring fiddle, guitar, mandolin, and banjo tunes; ballad singer, storyteller, and claw-hammer banjo player, Sheila Adams; and New York City's own Megan Downes.

[CHILDREN'S EVENT]
Open Day
March 12 at 12 PM
Irish Arts Center
FREE

Kick off St. Patrick's week with the family by getting to know Irish Arts Center. The place will be abuzz with authentic music and dance performances, and filled with chances to try out some of the 40+ adult and children's classes that are on offer throughout the season. Learn the basics of Irish language or a new dance step, get your face painted, create art with children's crafts or simply relax with a cup of tea to experience a taste of Ireland's rich culture. For all ages.

[LITERATURE & COMMUNITY]
7th Annual Book Day
March 17 at 7 AM
Citywide
FREE

On St. Patrick's Day, Irish Arts Center pays homage to Ireland's rich literary tradition by giving the public free books by some of the most celebrated writers in Ireland and Irish America. This year, in an effort to expand the mission of bringing attention to rich cultural histories that are sometiomes underrepresented, IAC will partner with Mano a Mano and offer books by Mexican and Mexican American authors alongside Irish and Irish American works. With hundreds of titles to choose from ranging from children's books to poetry, and fiction, nonfiction and translated books, there is something for every New Yorker on offer at one of the many pop-up stands IAC will set up across all five boroughs.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Loah
March 22 at 8pm
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

Following her U.S. debut as part of our Ireland Rising concert in April, Irish-Sierra Leonean singer-songwriter Sallay Garnett, aka Loah, returns with her full band for an intimate show in the Donaghy Theatre showcasing her unique blend of musical styles which can only be described as ArtSoul. One of Ireland's most exciting rising talents, Loah has mesmerized audiences at Electric Picnic and the Dublin Fringe Festival, performed with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, and co-wrote the song "Someone New" on Hozier's latest platinum selling debut album.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Tobin's Run on 51: The Melting Pot
Performed by Christine Tobin and special guests
March 23 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

In the late 70's legendary jazz bassist and composer Charles Mingus invited Joni Mitchell to collaborate with him. The result was Mitchell's wonderful Mingus albuM. Mitchell wrote profound lyrics for his compositions and opened the door onto a new style. This show will explore "the song" in jazz and will feature artists who excel when crossing genres: Kate McGarry, Keith Ganz Duo Palooza and Ingrid Jensen.

This event, entitled The Melting Pot, is the second show in Tobin's Run on 51, the new IAC jazz series curated by award-winning Irish singer-songwriter Christine Tobin and acclaimed guitarist Phil Robson.

[RESIDENCY]
Dana Lyn
March 27 - April 21
Baryshnikov Arts Center
FREE

IAC collaborates once again with Baryshnikov Arts Center, this time provide a residency to New York musician Dana Lyn. She will incorporate original visuals and text into a musical performance inspired by painter Jay Defeo's The Rose, and will collaborate with writer Louis de Paor on a theatrical staging based on the medieval story Tóraíocht Dhiarmada agus Ghráinne.

[EDUCATION]
Fiddle and Banjo Master Classes with Cathal Hayden
March 29 at 6:30 PM (banjo) & 8:15 PM (fiddle)
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $50 ($40 members)

Cathal Hayden's virtuosity on fiddle and banjo, and his genuine love for the music he plays, places him deservedly among the ranks of the living legends of traditional Irish music. Cathal will teach well-known tunes and demonstrate variations as well as build on technical skills in both his banjo and fiddle masterclass. Cathal encourages his students to come with questions. Cathal is a founding member of Four Men and a Dog, and a member of the Máirtín O'Connor Trio, Cathal's inventive brilliance on fiddle and banjo has been central to the huge success enjoyed by both bands for decades, as well as his frequent collaboration with other great Irish musicians.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Máirtín O'Connor Trio
March 30 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $30 ($24 members)

Legendary accordion player Máirtín O'Connor brings his remarkable trio to Irish Arts Center for a vibrant evening of tunes to redefine one's concept of Irish traditional music.

Drawing on elements of swing, bluegrass, and more, Máirtín's fluid accordion style blends perfectly with the fiddle playing of Cathal Hayden, an All-Ireland champion and member of Four Men and a Dog. Rising young guitarist Patrick Doocey rounds out the trio. Bron in Worcester, Massachusetts and raised in County Mayo, Patrick is an All-Ireland multi-instrumentalist who has toured with such Irish stars as Lúnasa and Sharon Shannon.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Sunnyside Sessions
April 6 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

The show "The Sunnyside Sessions" is broadcast on Irish TV and based in Sunnyside, Queens, NY. Hosted by singer Cathy Maguire, it features musical artists that come to her garden to play music and have a chat. Series 1 featured a wide array of artists including folk legend Judy Collins, comedian Des Bishop, Irish bands Ham Sandwich and Mundy, and even a song from local Congressman Joe Crowley.

Due to overwhelming demand, The Sunnyside Sessions is launching its spring season with live concert at The Irish Arts Center. The lineup will comprise artists who have been featured on the show-and some surprise guests.

[CHILDREN'S EVENTS]
Saturday Morning Cartoons
April 8 at 11 AM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $5 per person or $15 for a group of 4

Snuggle up on the Irish Arts Center stage and enjoy free pancakes, a playdate with puppets, and watch some of the most imaginative and entertaining cartoons from Ireland. New to our popular Saturday Morning Cartoons this season is puppeteer Nicola McEldowney who will join us with her band of storytelling puppets for a cozy session of stories, music, and interactive games before the screening. Pajamas encouraged!

[EDUCATION]
Spring Term
Starts April 10; runs for 8 weeks
Various locations
Over 40 offerings for adults and children, the most comprehensive educational program in Irish culture in New York City.

[LITERATURE & CONVERSATION]
Debut Voices: Kathleen Donohoe
April 18 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
FREE

Debut Voices highlights the new, the exciting, and the bold, and gives new authors a platform in New York City. For audiences, it means a chance to hear important new artists first. The fourth season of the series kicks off with Kathleen Donohue, who will read from her first novel, Ashes of Fiery Weather, about generations of women in Brooklyn, connected by the firefighters in their family.

Previous Debut Voices authors include Johanna Lane (Black Lake) Darragh McKeon (All That Is Solid Melts Into Air), Eimear McBride (A Girl Is A Half-formed Thing), Colin Barrett (Young Skins) and Sara Baume (spill simmer falter wither).

[LIVE MUSIC]
The Auction Project
April 20-22 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Premium tickets: $32 ($26 members) / General tickets $26 ($21 members)

Fusing Celtic, jazz, and Afro-Latin influences, super group The Auction Project-led by Mexican Grammy-Award winning pianist and composer Arturo O'Farrill and alto saxophonist and composer David Bixler-create a surprising, richly textured, and thoroughly enjoyable sound. Join us at this special three-night engagement to find out how a traditional fiddle phrase fits atop a breezy, post-bop groove as this quintet sextet makes history and stakes out uncommon musical territory.

[EDUCATION]
Irish Language Day
April 23 at 12:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $35 ($28 members, $20 students and seniors)

Explore the Irish language with a full day of activities for Irish enthusiasts of all levels! Celebrating the oral histories from New York to the Gaeltacht, this day-long immersion in the language will connect you to other language enthusiasts through education, literature, music, film and storytelling.

[LITERATURE & COVNERSATION]
Alan Titley: Cré Na Cille
April 23 at 5pm
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $12 ($10 members)

As part of our annual Irish Language Day, celebrated academic and author Alan Titley will discuss the joys (and challenges) of translation arguably the funniest novel in the Irish language.

[FILM]
How To Defuse a Bomb: The Project Children Story
April 25 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $12 ($10 members)

In 1975, Irish immigrant Denis Mulcahy of the NYPD bomb squad began a scheme, offering children from Northern Ireland respite from the Troubles. Project Children ultimately brought more than 20,000 Catholic and Protestant children to suburban USA for summer-long visits where they forged unexpected friendships and found they had more in common with the "enemy" than they thought. Featuring evocative TV archive of the scheme and contributions from Bill Clinton, Martin McGuinness and the now-adult children, the participants' personal stories are positioned within the wider political story Northern Ireland.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Tobin's Run on 51: Rip Rig & Panic
Performed by Christine Tobin and special guests
April 27 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

A brand new series of jazz nights curated by award-winning Irish singer/songwriter Christine Tobin and acclaimed guitarist Phil Robson. Joined each night by special guests, there will be something for all music lovers as Tobin and Robson invite some of New York's best Irish and international musicians to play sets and share stories about jazz music's greatest artists and treasures. The third installment takes its name from an album by the late Rahsaan Roland Kirk, whose music will feature in the evening.

[LIVE MUSIC]
Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh & Dan Trueman
April 29 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $24 ($20 members)

The musical interaction between fiddlers Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh and Dan Trueman stretches and abstracts the DNA of Norwegian and Irish fiddling into something new, sparse and stunning. Their sound ranges from the near silent to the nigh-on orchestral, at times exploding joyously from their two beautiful hybrid 10-string fiddles, at times barely there, holding time still. Utterly unique, this is music of an exceptional and unusual beauty.

[THEATER]
Rooms
Enda Walsh
May 3-28
Cybert Tire, the future home of the new Irish Arts Center
Tickets: $20 ($16 members)

Three absorbing new texts - Room 303, A Girl's Bedroom, and Kitchen, by one of Ireland's most internationally celebrated playwrights Enda Walsh, are presented as installation in a site-specific gallery setting.

In the U.S. premiere of Room 303, an old man lies alone, waiting, as his time nears an end. In the New York premiere of A Girl's Bedroom, a 6-year old girl leaves her bedroom and family home and walks, never stopping... until now. And in the U.S. premiere of Kitchen, standing by her sink-a wife wills her implosion.

[DANCE]
Dance Festival
May 7 at 1 PM
Riverside Park South
FREE

IAC returns to Riverside Park South to kick off the Summer-on-the Hudson series and celebrate all aspects of Irish dance and culture. Enjoy a day filled with performances from top Irish dance companies, and plenty of opportunities for the whole family to join in with participatory workshops, music sessions, céilís, Irish language lessons, children's crafts and more. Curated by Niall O'Leary.

[LITERATURE & CONVERSATION]
Debut Voices: Lisa McInerney
May 9 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
FREE

Hailed as "arguably the most talented writer at work in Ireland today" (The Irish Times), Lisa McInerney comes to IAC to read from her hugely successful debut novel, Glorious Heresies.

Moving and darkly funny, Glorious Heresies tells the story of how an accidental murder affects the lives of five misfits who exist on the fringes of Ireland's post-crash society. Set in the Cork criminal underworld, McInerney shines a light on the darkest corners of contemporary Ireland, and has celebrated writers praising it at every turn.

Debut Voices highlights the new, the exciting, the bold, and gives new authors a platform in New York City. It gives audiences a chance to hear important new artists first. Previous Debut Voices authors include Johanna Lane (Black Lake) Darragh McKeon (All That Is Solid Melts Into Air), Eimear McBride (A Girl Is A Half-formed Thing), Colin Barrett (Young Skins) and Sara Baume (spill simmer falter wither).

[FILM]
LGBT Craic Fest
May 11 at 7:30 PM
Irish Arts Center
FREE (reservations encouraged)

Enjoy some of the best short films directly from Dublin's GAZE International LGBT Film Festival.

[LIVE MUSIC]
SongLives: AdrIan Crowley
May 19 at 8 PMIrish Arts Center
Tickets: $18 ($14 members)

A Choice Music Prize winner and critically acclaimed singer-songwriter of over eighteen years, AdrIan Crowley is "the best songwriter that no one's heard of" (Rolling Stone).

[DANCE]
Edges of Light
June 1-3 at 8 PM
Irish Arts Center
Premium tickets: $40 ($32 members) / General tickets: $35 ($28 members)

Prodigiously talented dancer Colin Dunne, fiddler Tola Custy, harpist Maeve Gilchrist and uilleann piper David Power-all of whom have appeared at IAC individually-come together in a remarkable new collaboration. This newly-commissioned work from Ireland's Music Network is a kaleidoscope of melody and rhythm inspired by the natural sounds and shimmering patterns of light that announce Ireland's day.