Dr. Catherine Foley:

I am joined by Ms Patricia Crosbie, another director of the board of Firkin Crane. As Isadora Duncan once said, "If I could tell you what it meant, there would be no point in dancing it." I thank the committee for the invitation to address it on the importance of dance as a performance art and related matters. I have worked at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick for 23 years, designing and directing the first masters course in ethnochoreology at any university in Europe, and designing and directing the first masters course in dance performance focusing on Irish traditional dance at any university in the world. I am a founding director of the National Dance Archive of Ireland and founding chair of Dance Research Forum Ireland. I am the elected chair of the International Council for Traditional Music, ICTM, study group on ethnochoreology and an elected member of the ICTM executive board. My dance performance training and ethnochoreological research encompasses Irish dance, Irish music, archives and festivals, with particular focus on issues of dance performance, dance documentation, identity, community, cultural heritage and tourism. I address this meeting as a performer, an academic and, more recently, a director of the Firkin Crane.

Dance as a performance art has the potential to effect change, transcend ethnic and socioeconomic boundaries, challenge popular ideologies and bridge horizons of understanding between peoples of diverse cultures. Dance as a performance art has the power to transform, educate and challenge.

The Firkin Crane places great importance on dance as a performance art. Historically, this is illustrated by the fact that since the 1980s, it has been home to two professional dance companies, the Irish Ballet Company and the Irish National Ballet, both under the artistic directorship of Joan Denise Moriarty. In the 1990s, the development officer, Mary Brady, made the Firkin Crane home to the Institute of Choreography and Dance, which placed a focus on choreographic research and dance performance. With this focus, new dance work was created which included Michael Keegan-Dolan's 1997 work, "Sunday Lunch", which was launched when he founded Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre at the Firkin Crane. Since 2006, the Firkin Crane has developed dance, dance audiences and dance initiatives in Cork under Paul McCarthy, the current CEO.

The Firkin Crane programme consists of four strands, namely, professional development and training; performance and production development; Cork city dance artists in residence at Firkin Crane; and youth and community dance. The Firkin Crane therefore has a continuing dance legacy which it aims to sustain and develop further. As well as providing access to advanced dance training and skills for dancers to pursue careers as professional dancers and to make and present new dance works, the Firkin Crane aspires to enable this training and knowledge to filter into the wider society. For example, the Firkin Crane is located in a poor area of Cork city where extracurricular dance tuition is financially out of reach for the majority. The Firkin Crane is attempting to address this issue by engaging dance artists in local schools to provide opportunities for young people to dance and to assist in building further audiences for dance as a performance art. Moreover, with an ethos of inclusivity and diversity, the Firkin Crane engages with dancers of different abilities and disabilities across diverse ethnic, gender, age and class boundaries. Examples of these inclusive dance initiatives include the Firkin Crane’s ReCreate partnership with the Cope Foundation's department of arts and creative arts therapies in 2019. This partnership aims to develop and pilot a range of performing arts based classes and leadership opportunities for marginalised adults at risk or unemployed who may wish to transition to employment in the performing arts sector. Accreditation with the education and training board is being sought. This follows an earlier partnership project with the Cope Foundation in 2015, which related to a training programme for carers and dance teachers with people with intellectual disabilities. Other examples include the older people in dance programme, which was developed between the Firkin Crane and the HSE. These collaborative and outreach programmes continue to be indicative of the ethos of inclusivity and diversity of the Firkin Crane.

The Firkin Crane aims to continue to develop as a centre of excellence in dance. It has a twin-track objective. First, it aims to provide advanced vocational training and creative opportunities for dancers to produce and present new dance work in order to pursue careers as professional dancers. Second, it aims to develop inclusive dance which engages the wider community. To realise these objectives, the Firkin Crane is undertaking a reorganisation of management structures, an independent expert review in consultation with the Arts Council of Ireland and the appointment of a new artistic director.

The Firkin Crane is fortunate in that it owns the historical Firkin Crane building on the north side of Cork city with dance studio spaces and a working theatre with a stage. It is one of the few dance facilities in Ireland where dance can be made, produced and presented. This is a valuable resource for aspiring and professional dancers and for audience development and engagement. To facilitate the development of an inclusive dance programme, however, the Firkin Crane is currently securing a lease on the Butter Market House building, another historical building next door to the Firkin Crane. This will also have a dedicated dance studio space. Continued investment will be required to maintain and sustain the Firkin Crane as a leading place for dance in Ireland.

On behalf of the Firkin Crane, I thank the committee for the opportunity to present today.