Working to bring the Dean Crowe stage back to life

If our journey out of lockdown goes according to plan, August 10 is the date when venues such as Athlone's Dean Crowe Theatre will be able to open to the public again.

The manager of the Dean Crowe, Killian Collins, said "new ways" of operating will be needed, but he believes that, with everyone in the Arts industry focusing on the issue, solutions can be found that will allow the public attend performances again.

"I think there will be ways of doing it," he told the Westmeath Independent this week.

"We will be looking at socially distanced venues, procedures that involve some of - if not all of - the wearing of face coverings, ensuring that people wash their hands immediately, maybe longer queues and specific times to arrive at the theatre...

"Maybe you won't be able to collect your tickets at the box office, maybe you will have to do everything online. We don't know for sure yet, but those are the options," said Killian.

"The most likely scenario is that you'll see venues like us, and others, trying to start with small events and then build capacity.

"So you might be looking at things like art galleries and art exhibitions, and a one-man play, building towards having a larger cast and more 'bells and whistles' over time.

"Like in every industry, it's a bit of a minefield in the sense that you could make a decision today and then next week you'll have a bit more information and it might not feel like the right decision any more.

"But the work is ongoing and I have to say that the sense of community in our industry has, in some ways, never been stronger."

The Dean Crowe closed on March 12 and had to cancel a number of events since then, most notably the RTE All Ireland Drama Festival and the National Band Championships organised by the Irish Association of Brass and Concert Bands.

Shows by satirist Oliver Callan and singer Michael English also had to be rescheduled - for October and April respectively - while a scheduled performance of 'Menopause The Musical 2' on June 18 won't go ahead on that date.

Killian said there was some consolation in the fact that Athlone Musical Society had completed its annual show as normal at the beginning of March, but he conceded that the venue had taken "quite a hit" overall.

Although the stage remains empty, activity has been ongoing behind the scenes, and last week Dean Crowe sent out an "audience feedback survey" to gauge attitudes toward attending shows again, and the types of safety procedures people would like to see implemented.

Last week also saw the launch of an 'Artist Development Space' initiative which is offering artists a chance to use the venue "as their own creative and productive space" for a period of time this autumn.

Artists who are successful in their applications for the initiative will be given a €300 stipend to cover their food and transport costs, and will also be offered accommodation for up to seven nights in Tommy O'Neill's Coosan Cottage eco guesthouse.

Killian said he had been thinking about launching this initiative for some time, because he felt there was more scope for artists to use the venue's facilities midweek.

"Our biggest and best resource, at the Dean Crowe, is space," he said. "We have got a lot of Mondays to Thursdays where there's really nothing happening from the point of view of creative work on the stages.

"So we've taken a look at that and said we need to see it as an opportunity for artists."

He said the artist development space initiative was not confined to any one discipline. It was designed to be as "flexible and open as possible" and it's expected that two to three artists will ultimately be chosen to avail of the scheme.

* Applications for the 'Artist Development Space' initiative can be made until June 25. For more details, email: manager@deancrowetheatre.com