MONDAY
Sure Thing
Bewley's Café Theatre @ Powerscourt. Ends Jan 23 1pm €8-€12 (light lunch €4) bewleyscafetheatre.com
A young father has a chance to redeem himself; a philosophical bookie wagers on his own decency; a nervous guy gambles on romance; and his gauche friend just bets he can fit in – there’s a lot riding on this day in the life of a Dublin betting office.
Win or lose, though, Eric O’Brien and Jed Murray’s fleet play, revived from its first punt during last year’s Show in a Bag, finds the odds stacked against their characters, all slavishly in thrall to the chase. An economical performance, it alternates between brisk multiple-role-play, staccato lyricism, inner monologues and demotic dialogues, sometimes becoming overloaded. “I can admit when I’m beat,” says one noble character, where others tragically cannot, but the play finally pulls back from truly bleak losses. It’s a close-run thing, but redemption stories are usually a safer bet.
TUESDAY
Massive Attack
Olympia theatre Dublin 8pm €50.65 (sold out) ticketmaster.ie. Also Wed, Dublin (also sold out)
The best aspect of Bristol’s returning heroes, Massive Attack? Just when you think you can pigeonhole them, along they come with further tricks up the collective sleeve. New tricks (and Tricky, of course) notwithstanding, you can safely bet that most of the people at these two sold out shows will be holding breath for the likes of Unfinished Sympathy, Protection, Teardrop, and other trip-hop classics.
Lucinda Williams
Vicar St Dublin 7.30pm €49 vicarstreet.ie
If ever proof was required of the value of earned knowledge of a woman in her early 1960s, then Louisiana-born Lucinda Williams is it. The three-time Grammy Award-winner doesn’t perform in Dublin often, so you’re advised to grab a seat or some standing space for a rugged, murky Americana experience.
WESNESDAY
Matthew E White
Róisín Dubh Galway 9pm €16-18 roisindubh.net Also Thursday, Dublin
With two acclaimed albums (2012’s Big Inner, 2015’s Fresh Blood) under his belt, Richmond, Virginia songwriter White (right) has a handle on fashioning modern Americana/gospel/soul like very few others. The man has also takes big topics seriously: if you’re looking for convincing, slow-burning music and contemplative thoughts on love, God and death, then you have the right man.
The Poor Little Boy With No Arms
Project Arts Centre. Previews Jan 18-19 8.15pm €12-16 Until Jan 23 projectartscentre.ie
One obvious effect of The Lir’s objective to quickly establish itself as a world-class academy of dramatic arts is that it has very briskly become a sort of alternative production house, feeding graduates and class projects directly into the industry. The Tiger Dublin Fringe has seen new plays, such as Jane Madden’s The Windstealers fit happily into its folds; Bewley’s Café Theatre has absorbed short two-handers such as Contractions into its programme; and now a devised physical piece, by Mikel Murfi in collaboration with students (currently operating under the new banner One Duck) reaches a wider audience of external examiners. In Skibberceannigh, the “world’s most liveable community”, new arrival Ruby receives a friendly welcome from the townsfolk. But out walking one night she finds a mysterious man with no arms and discovers all is not what it seems. Word from the Lir has been understandably encouraging. It already made the grade. PC
THURSDAY
Shills – Pádraig Spillane 126 Artist-run Gallery, Flood St, Galway Until Jan 24 126.ie
Shills are fraudsters, and Pádraig Spillane usually employs borrowed or contrived elements to convey intimations of “desires and intimacies” that appear to be genuine but may well not be. The implication is that the infinite deferral enshrined in the surrogates and substitutions of consumer culture leave us far removed from the reality of our feelings. The show emerges from an ongoing collaboration between Engage Art Studios and 126 in Galway.
Night Beats
Grand Social, Dublin 7.30pm €14 thegrandsocial.ie
Say hello to this US band, which channels the spiky spirits of Nuggets-era garage rock/pop not only in their live shows, but also with new album, Who Sold My Generation (the title of which points to a particular affiliation with classic 1960s Britpop). Special guests are very fine Irish groups Twinkranes and September Girls.
Conor Guilfoyle’s Conclave
JJ Smyths, Aungier St 9pm €10, jjsmyths.com
Conor Guilfoyle is Ireland’s undisputed Afro-Cuban percussion guru, a drummer not only steeped in Cuba’s rich rhythmic traditions but also a harbinger of their future directions. Renowned as a teacher as well as a player, Guilfoyle literally wrote the book on applying Latin clavés to odd meters. His Conclave, including conguero Eddie McGinn and Venezualan pianist Leopoldo Osio, is a talented bunch – and they’ll need to be to play some of Guilfoyle’s futuristic grooves.
