Arts Sara Keating: Spectacular Shakespeare in Belfast reminds us of the bard’s popular rootsThe Lyric Theatre’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream was a delight
Arts Becoming Brian Friel: The new book shedding light on the early life of ‘the Irish Chekhov’In Brian Friel: Beginnings, the American author Kelly Matthews provides a fascinating insight into the author’s early years
Culture Sara Keating: From House of the Dragon to the RHA exhibition, embroidery is being reclaimedLong dismissed as ‘women’s work’, the art of tapestry-making is seeing a resurgence
Culture Sara Keating: Whether you’re a fan or not, Taylor Swift has changed your worldLongevity, flexibility and the reassertion of her artistry have all combined to make the American singer, who arrives in Dublin shortly, a true icon
Culture Sara Keating: Cork’s midsummer festival comes to life with stunning sculpturesFrom human forms to bronze peacocks, the very best in contemporary sculpture is on show this month in Ireland’s second city
Culture Sara Keating: Dublin set to Bloom into life as annual festival to mark Ulysses takes centre stage The Bloomsday Festival 2024 includes walking tours, traditional Ulyssean breakfasts and live readings of the iconic book by James Joyce
Culture Sara Keating: Cruinniú na nÓg 2024 seeks to build on the global success of Cork’s Kabin CrewNow in its sixth year, Cruinniú na nÓg has proven hugely successful at connecting kids from marginalised communities with new art-forms
Culture Sara Keating: The legacy of The Wizard of Oz endures, even if it has been diluted To return to the original book, published in 1900, is to be reminded of just why its tale has remained so popular
Music Sara Keating: Lyric FM continues to shine amid all the gloom at RTÉThe station has marked its 25th anniversary with its listenership at an all-time high
Culture Sara Keating: The troubled history of public art and Dublin’s north sideThe fate of the Dublin portal reflects other incidents in the area
Culture Sara Keating: Find what moves you at this year’s Dublin Dance FestivalFrom May 14 to 24, this year’s festival runs the gamut of performance locations and dance styles
Culture Sara Keating: Eurovision organisers tread a fine line as song contest loomsThe presence of Israel in the annual song contest continues to generate controversy with less than a week to go before the first semi-final
Culture Sara Keating: Echoes of Yeats’ September 1913 are everywhere in Ireland’s Venice Biennale entryEimear Walshe’s multimedia installation is undercut by a deep objection to the sacrifice of personal security for capitalist gain
Culture Sara Keating: Is this a poem, and other thought-provoking questionsTwo initiatives invite us to reconsider our perception of the art form
Culture Sara Keating on Culture: The reimagined Renaissance fresco writing women back into historyThe project from art collective Na Cailleacha takes a tongue-in-cheek approach to subverting the patriarchal canon
Arts Arts analysis: Why book clubs are making a come backA recent RTÉ series showed that reading is becoming a social activity again, long may it last
Arts Sara Keating: Easter is a perfect time to explore the work of sculptor Imogen StuartThe German-born Stuart, who died last week, was inspired by key Christian rituals such as the Stations of the Cross
Culture Sara Keating on culture: Is bad publicity better than none when it comes to posthumous work?The publication of Gabriel García Márquez’s Until August raises many questions about respecting the wishes of artists around their work
Culture Sara Keating: From Cork to Texas via LA, Irish stars take a stand over Gaza In the run-up to the St Patrick’s festival season, Irish performers have been using their ‘green’ platforms and cultural capital to speak up about the crisis
Theatre 100-year-old family drama with echoes of today’s referendumsIrish artists have a long tradition of questioning the sanctified position of the family in Irish life