Olympia Theatre’s next act – brought to you by 3

A controversy has broken out over the mobile network’s eight-year sponsorship deal with the historic Dublin venue

Elaine Carey, chief commercial officer, Three: The Olympia is ‘a legendary symbol of the city and it has such a unique vibe that you can’t replicate in any venue anywhere else. It was a perfect fit for us from a strategic perspective.’ Picture: Naoise Culhane

As plotlines go, it’s not a hard one to believe: struggling theatre venue, pummelled by 18 months of lockdown and worried about its future, meets wealthy benefactor happy to get out the chequebook in return for their name going over the door.

The dramatic backdrop is provided by a chorus of commentators, some of whom are appalled by a deal they say represents the worst of art’s ongoing commercialisation, others who believe such arrangements are ...