We understand that this is a difficult time for everyone but there are still opportunities to enjoy the arts and creativity as we social distance and isolate. We at Age & Opportunity arts have been impressed by the many organisations around Ireland who have taken their work online and made it fully accessible at this time. So, to make it easier for anyone who wants to taste all of the amazing work out there no matter what age they are, we’ve decided to gather a list of online opportunities across a range of activities – from watching opera to dance classes – which you can take part in without having to leave the house. These are categorised by theme, so we hope there’s something for everyone.
We know that a lot of focus right now is on accessing the outside world through the online world, and that this isn’t possible or easy for everyone. Many of the arts and crafts activities can be printed out so if you know someone who would appreciate it, why not print some off to leave at their door step?
People Making: creativity at home (including care homes)
Golden Ireland has launched a new writing competition, HomeBirds – Share Your Story, judged by Felicity Hayes-McCoy and her husband Wilf Judd. Closing date is April 25th.
Irish artist Jacob Stack is creating free colouring pages that can be emailed to you or found on the Nenagh Arts Centre website.
Harvard University are running free online courses.
Discover the history of books from 1450 to 1800 in this online course from Trinity College.
Check out Jigsaw Planet for a whole host of free online jigsaws.
Dalkey Creates Writing Festival is holding free daily writing sessions on Zoom, every morning from 9 – 10. Send a message to their Twitter page to get the details.
The Seamus Heaney: Listen Now Again exhibition team are hosting book clubs, close readings, and workshops online. Keep an eye on their Twitter and Instagram pages for details. They also have a ‘Crafty Corner’ and poetry guides on their YouTube channel.
Christina Thatcher has posted a month’s worth of writing prompts on her website.
Anne Tannam is offering free online poetry coaching sessions for Poetry Day – book here.
Mary Culloty O’Sullivan is providing free simple vocal exercises and sing-alongs on YouTube.
Arts For All are sharing daily activities on their website.
The Glucksman are continuing their Creativity at Home series.
The Museum of Modern Art in New York is offering 9 free online courses, from fashion as design to post-war abstract painting.
Attending online events: listings
‘Dear Ireland’ is a series of 50 monologues commissioned by the Abbey Theatre to be self-taped by actors in isolation and streamed on the Abbey’s YouTube channel from April 28th.
The Show Must Go Online, created by Robert Myles, is a series of weekly readings of Shakespeare plays by a global cast.
Coronavirus Theatre Club stream live theatre every Sunday from 7 PM on YouTube.
National Theatre is an online theatre space – check out their YouTube.
City Theatre Dublin’s production of John B. Keane’s ‘The Matchmaker’ is free to watch on the Civic Theatre website.
The New Theatre and TakeYourSeats.ie have curated Fight Back Festival 2020, featuring 12 short plays available for free on The New Theatre Facebook page (with the option to donate).
Royal Court Theatre’s production of Cyprus Avenue by David Ireland and starring Stephen Rea is available to watch free on YouTube until April 26th.
The International Online Theatre Festival is running from April 15th to May 15th.
The Shows Must Go On! are streaming Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals for limited times on YouTube.
National Theatre at Home presents free shows that stay on-demand for a week.
The Barbican has a range of theatre and dance performances to watch freely on their website. They also have a podcast.
Alongside their online dance classes, CoisCéim present films from their archive.
The Irish National Opera have added Rossini’s ‘The Barber of Seville’ to their list of available streams.
OperaVision have a YouTube channel with performances available to watch for free.
Cúirt Festival have moved some of their events online via Zoom from April 23rd – 25th. Events are free but you need to register for access.
The Holding Cell has a whole calendar full of live readings from writers in their homes.
Oliver Jeffers is hosting readings of his books and discussing the making of them. Watch back on his website or tune in live on Instagram.
RTÉ are posting a Poem of the Day every day on their website.
Unlaunched Books is a weekly podcast introducing new books of poetry that are unable to have a ‘proper’ launch during the pandemic.
Music Network presents online concerts and their specially commissioned Butterfly Sessions.
The Ruby Sessions have moved their weekly concert series online, featuring performances from Irish musicians like Villagers, Lisa Hannigan, and more.
Radiohead are releasing footage of past concerts every week on their YouTube.
Playlist Choir have taken their performances online – you can enjoy them on Facebook and YouTube.
DeBarras in Clonakilty present the Sitting Room to Sitting Room Sessions live on their Facebook page every night at 9:30 PM (8 PM on Sundays).
The Montreux Jazz Festival is offering free streaming of over 50 concerts via Stringray Quello – details on how to avail of this 30 day offer here.
The National Gallery of Ireland have a series of virtual tours on their website.
The Louvre has a selection of virtual tours on their website.
Luminate Festival in Scotland have moved some of their events online in the form of short videos – everything from dance to collage!
Irish video editor Luke Byrne creates a weekly documentary series, ‘Lost Together’, which is open to submissions from anyone via voice messages and videos. Episodes premieres= on his Instagram page every Monday evening.
Comedian David O’Doherty makes a daily podcast from isolation on Achill Island, available here.
Tips & tricks for creativity leaders
Music Therapist Clara Moynihan has made a series of relaxation videos for use in care homes or other group settings
The Arts for Health podcast series features artists, healthcare professionals, participants, and partners of their creativity in hospital settings initiative.
