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June 05, 2005

Where exactly is the Riverbank headed?

(This version differs slightly from the original published version)

Well, well, well. What have we here? The March to May event guide for the Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge. You'd think they'd have more sense than to send it directly to my doorstep. I was just leaving the house to catch an early morning train when I came across it, in its dainty little white envelope and my name printed neatly on its back. After the last few bumpy months experienced in the Riverbank I was quite eager to see what exactly lay between the pages of this little book. As you'll know doubt remember, the previous manager Denis Clifford left several months ago. Since its opening the Riverbank, under Mr. Clifford's direction, had pulled in thousands of not especially "arty" people who came in throngs to see stand-ups like Tommy Tiernan and travelling theatre companys with spectacular plays and all manner of noted musicians and singers. The board who "looks after" the Riverbank had decided that commercial theatre, dance, gigs, etc was now not part of its remit. They had chosen to take a path of more "community orientated" projects. At the time I vigourously opposed this and still do. I thought that if this was the route to be chosen then it should be a cocktail of the two. Both commercial and community. Monday - Tommy Tiernan, Tuesday - Dance workshop, etc. Surely that way the Arts Centre for the people would be serving all the people and not just a percentage of them. So that was a couple of months ago. Since then a new "project" manager has hired and even given an assistant to help in taking the Riverbank into its new direction. The Arts Centre than began getting a new lick of paint to kick start this new era of community based projects. In fact, the Riverbank was even closed for close to two months while these renovations took place. But now she's back open for business and boy, how I was just dying to read the March to May event guide for the Riverbank Arts Centre. And, as stated above, low and behold they had sent me one. Its new design shows the siluoeete of a skateboarder in mid flight on the cover. Presumably this ties in with all the skaters who use the front of the centre as a skate park. I open the booklett up expecting nothing but community based projects only to find that the board don't seem to have kept to there word. What in heavens name is going on? Where are these preposed community based projects? Surely the handful of workshops thrown into the line up can't warrant a definition of a "change of direction" for the the Arts Centre. Sure we had workshops before! I digress. To my amusement, not only does the new event guide not deliver what the board promised but it actually delivers in abundance what they said they didn't want - outside productions. They come from every corner of Ireland. Kilkenny. Limerick. Belfast. Dublin. Now you may be thinking this has obviously satisfised my beliefs on what an Art Centre should do - provide outside productions as well as community based ones and a healthy measure of commercial gigs but no. Apart from the fact that the Riverbank has seen a great deal many better line ups in its time, this event guide just raises more questions like why didn't the board stick to their original plan and if the Riverbank isn't on the preposed new road, what road is it on exactly? The Riverbank is an excellent space. It should be used to its potential not to its delcine. Oh, and if you do happen to go down there to see a show, listen carefully to the pre-show annoucements as yours truly is the sexy new voice of the fire safety message.

Trains, Buses & Automobiles by Liam Geraghty appears every week in the Kildare Nationalist (page 6)

Posted by LiamG at June 5, 2005 10:29 PM