DANCEHALL MEMORY GATHERING
DANCEHALL MEMORY GATHERING
In 2025, Luail connected with older people in communities across Ireland, to hear stories from the old dancehalls – the music, the fashion, the showbands, the camraderie – ahead of the company’s revival of Dancehall by Emma Martin with Andrew Hamilton.
Dancehall Memory Gathering was part of Luail’s engagement and outreach ahead of its revival of Dancehall, by Emma Martin, with composer Andrew Hamilton. These national events took place for older members of the community; involving some gentle movement, followed by tea, cake and conversation.
To coincide with Dancehall’s six venue tour, we partnered with Project Arts Centre in Dublin, Cork Opera House, Dance Cork Firkin Crane, and Town Hall Theatre in Galway to host two memory gathering events with those who remember the era of the dancehalls. This was a great way to connect to a wider audience and to introduce new audiences to Luail and its wider body of work.
