Governance
partners
Liz Roche Company
Liz Roche Company has been presenting evocative and compelling contemporary dance for 25 years. Known for its finely wrought and crafted choreographic style, the company presented the works of choreographer Liz Roche in collaboration with artists, dancers and designers of the highest calibre from 1999 – 2024. The company has performed throughout Ireland and internationally in the US, Europe, Australia and China, and has been in residence at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at UL and Dublin Dance Festival.
Maiden Voyage Dance
Maiden Voyage Dance is a Belfast-based contemporary dance commissioning company offering discoveries in dance with, by and for artists, audiences, and participants through new work commissions with national and international choreographers and collaborators, bespoke artist development opportunities and wide-ranging participation and engagement programmes for schools and communities. Founded in 2001 by Artistic Director Nicola Curry, Maiden Voyage Dance has performed in festivals and venues across Ireland, the UK, and Europe and is principally funded by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.
Irish World Academy of Music & Dance, University Limerick
The Irish World Academy of Music and Dance is a centre of academic and performance excellence housed at the University of Limerick, Ireland. Founded in 1994 by Professor Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, the Academy has a strong international presence, with over 50 countries represented by its current student body and alumni, alongside a faculty of excellent performers, academics and industry professionals. Taught undergraduate and postgraduate courses in music, dance, and related subject areas are on offer and its research is at the forefront of these fields of inquiry worldwide.
Board of Directors
Helen Meany
Board Chair
Appointed March 2024
Helen Meany is an arts consultant, writer and curator; founder of Classics Now festival in 2020. She works extensively as a facilitator and coach in the arts. Previously she was Literature Advisor with the Arts Council of Ireland; Curator of Critical Voices; Editor of Irish Theatre Magazine; arts journalist with the Irish Times. Helen was Chair of the Board of Dublin Dance Festival for seven years.
Caroline Armstrong
Appointed March 2024
Caroline is CEO of Ulster Garden Villages, a grant-giving organisation supporting charities across NI. A professional fundraiser by trade, she has worked for organisations such as Unicef, the Bristol Old Vic, the Lyric Theatre Belfast and Ulster University. Caroline also worked as a consultant helping to access funding for small arts organisations. She is the former Chair of Maiden Voyage Dance and is passionate about dance as an art form.
Finola Cronin
Appointed March 2024
Dr. Finola Cronin studied dance in Dublin and London. She worked with Vivienne Newport (Frankfurt), Pina Bausch (Wuppertal), and Raimund Hoghe (Düsseldorf). In Ireland she has performed with Liz Roche Company and Junk Ensemble. She is Emeritus Assistant Professor in the School of English, Drama, and Film at University College Dublin.
Matthew Higgins
Appointed June 2024
Matt is widely regarded as one of Northern Ireland’s leading Criminal Solicitors. He has extensive experience in all aspects of the Criminal Law and related Civil Litigation. Over the past thirty years Matt has been involved in some of the most high profile criminal/civil cases throughout the island of Ireland.
Phil Mullen
Appointed June 2024
Dr Philomena Mullen is Assistant Professor of Black Studies in the Department of Sociology at TCD. She co-chairs the Race, Ethnicity, Equality Working Group. She is a trustee of the Association of Mixed Race Irish (AMRI) and a member of the African Scholars Association of Ireland (AFSAI). She is also a member of the Irish steering committee for the UN International Decade for People of African Descent.
Helen Phelan
Appointed March 2024
Helen Phelan is Director of the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick, Ireland. As Professor of Arts Practice, she is an internationally recognised advocate for the integration of artistic methods into research cultures. She is a multi-award winning Irish Research Council recipient for her work on music and migration. She is Co-Director of the UL Participatory Health Research Unit, a WHO Collaborating Centre.
Tanya Quinn
Appointed August 2025
Tanya is a Chartered Accountant with over 25 years experience in various industries and areas of expertise. She trained and qualified with EY Dublin after which time spent a number years working in banking and finance in Sydney, Australia and thereafter in Dublin. In the past decade, she has moved to freelancing, where she works with SMEs and founders in a number of sectors including Film, Arts, and IT with the aim of providing the ground work to help them develop their businesses and provide a structure and framework around their financial operations.
Luail – Ireland’s National Dance Company is a registered charity and is committed to complying with the Charities Regulator’s Charities Governance Code.
Senior Staff remuneration bands
Artistic Director, Executive Director Creative and Executive producer €70-80K
3 x management staff €50-60K
Luail Company Number: 759487
Registered Charity Number (RCN): 20207082
CHY number: CHY23442
VAT number: 4280058MH