Call to future-proof Mayo's Linenhall Arts Centre building

THE Linenhall Arts Centre in Castlebar is fully back in business after Covid, with a packed programme of events lined up to the end of June.

The centre has its eye very much on the future, with interim director Fiona Neary seeking county council support in future-proofing the building on Linenhall Street.

Ms. Neary gave a presentation at a recent Castlebar Municipal District meeting where she sought financial support, which, she said, will give the Linenhall leverage to draw down more significant funding at department level.

Councillors, thankfully, were unanimous in their support for the centre.

Ms. Neary explained how in 2019, some 10,000 tickets were sold for events such as film, music and theatre, while a further 12,000 people attended free events, such as visiting the art gallery. Three thousand school children also visited the centre.

In the short-term, she said, works required at the centre include painting, fixing leaks, and addressing dampness in some upstairs rooms.

In the medium-term works include roof repairs, insulation and sound proofing.

And long-term there is a need to have a coherent plan for the years ahead and to future-proof the building.

Ms. Neary, from Pontoon Road, Castlebar, said: "It is so exciting that we are reopening and reconnecting. We have spent the last 10 days packing out the programme from now until the end of June.

"We have a newsletter to distribute with over 5,000 subscribers. We will have the hard copy brochure of all the activities out by the end of the month."

She added: "We have been booking theatre, Philharmonic orchestra, world music, and folk music. We have so much coming. We have a fantastic night on March 16 with new Mayo music from Mayo musicians.

"All our children’s and young people’s programmes are reopening. We have Leaving Cert students coming in for films while primary schools get to come here for live theatre and live music.

"We have a performance coming on March 21 and 22 called Stings Things for primary school children. We have new playwrights for young people who are mentored to write a short play which then goes on in our theatre."

The theatre has 144 seats but because they can be pushed back or brought forward they can do different arrangements for audiences.

Some of the forthcoming shows, which she describes as ‘intimate gigs’, are equal in quality and standard as those staged in Dublin.

Fiona continued: "We hope that we are a cultural feast for everyone in Mayo. We are here for everybody in Castlebar. It’s arts for all at the Linenhall.

"We are very honoured that we are the caretakers of the building Lord Lucan left to the people of Castlebar. Taking care of heritage buildings requires ongoing investment.

"We have to keep putting into the building or it will fall down around us. We have problems with leaks and insulation. There are rooms in the building that are not used at all because they are not up to scratch.

"The more that we can get the building up to scratch the more we can offer the people of Castlebar.

"The investment in this building is all about opening up the building more and more for the people of Castlebar and all our visitors and ensuring it is still here and functioning and fit for purpose and that we are keeping our heritage holdings alive."

The Linenhall, she said, is a highly successful and ambitious arts centre, adding: "We have built up an exceptional annual programme, and continue to expand and develop our offering to everyone in Mayo, and our visiting audiences.

"Throughout all developments we remain grounded in our core value - Art for All at the Linenhall.

"We consistently reach out to individuals and communities where barriers to the arts continue to exist, to eliminate these.

"The Linenhall Arts Centre is embedded in the history of our building which has cultural, social and architectural significance in the Castlebar streetscape and public realm."

Fiona is delighted to join the Linenhall team, and is looking forward to guiding it through this current period of change, bringing her expertise in leadership and organisational management, with an abundance of plans for the year ahead.

Ms. Neary has had various hands-on roles in the arts sector, including chair of Galway Arts Centre during its restructuring in 2020/21.

She has produced successful theatre projects such as ‘Are you there Una?’, advised on the programming, restructuring and recruitment of Cuirt International Literature Festival, and guided multiple arts agencies - most recently supporting An Taibhdhearch in actioning a ground-breaking arrangement with An Fibin sa Taibhdhearch.

She has also curated the Galway African Film Festival and remains involved with Galway Theatre Festival.

She said: "My family are Mayo on both sides, as far back as any of us can remember - hailing from Ross, Lacken, and Mulranny. Like many Mayo natives, we emigrated for economic reasons, for a decade or so, and returned to a small farm in Castlebar, out the Pontoon Road.

"On my way to school, I walked past the arts centre building when it was in the Mall. Now it’s moved into the heart of Castlebar at the Linenhall.

"The Linenhall will continue as an accessible, vibrant community arts centre, harnessing the learnings from recent years and moving forward with exciting new ventures such as the inaugural Mayo International Film Festival."

The current director, Bernadette Greenan, is on leave until January 2023.

"Bernie and the team," Fiona said, "have done a tremendous job, working with artists and audiences throughout the pandemic. The arts proved essential during lockdowns and self-isolating, connecting us with each other, our community, stories, traditions and our creativity."

The Castlebar Arts Centre started life in 1976 as the Education Centre located in the old Methodist Church on the Mall. It was funded by the Department of Education and set up as a pilot project to take temporary exhibitions from the important collections in the National Museum, the National Gallery and the National Library.

Quite quickly the centre also began to develop its own programme of exhibitions, theatre, music and cinema, focusing on the contemporary arts and bringing quality performances into the area. In 1986 the centre moved to its present home in the Linenhall.

The team at the Linenhall consists of interim director Fiona Neary; technical and building manager Sean Reynolds; administrator Mary Callaghan; and arts access officer Deirdre Melvin.