Skip to main content

KRF: Douglas Kennedy in conversation with Rick O’Shea

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Kildare Readers’ Festival presents a special event honouring acclaimed writer Douglas Kennedy, international bestselling author of The Big Picture, The Pursuit of Happiness, and The Heat of Betrayal. Douglas will discuss his successful career with radio personality and noted champion of literature, Rick O’Shea. Rick has previously curated the Imagine Arts Festival and has hosted

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Ten Books You Should Read with Stefanie Preissner and Ferdia Mac Anna

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Join us for the ever popular Ten Books You Should Read! Our guests Stefanie Preissner and Ferdia Mac Anna will select five books each that they would recommend and delve into the stories to illustrate why we should give them a try. Stefanie Preissner - Munich-born, Mallow-raised - is the creator of hit comedy-drama series

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Joseph O Connor, Kit De Waal and Henrietta McKervey

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

The Kildare Readers’ Festival is delighted to welcome back celebrated novelist, screenwriter, and playwright Joseph O'Connor (Star of the Sea, Ghost Light, Shadowplay), who will be joined by Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year 2017 winner Kit De Waal (My Name is Leon, The Trick to Time) for a discussion moderated by acclaimed author

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Persona Poetry Workshop with Christodoulos Makris

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Participants will be guided by Christodoulos Makris to make use of public texts to compose poetry in the personae of a range of current figures. This is a fun and interactive workshop, with the techniques employed adaptable to writing other kinds of poetry. Participants will also create an 'exquisite corpse' (a communally composed poem). Christodoulos

FREE, booking required

KRF: The First Page: Writing that compelling opening to your next short story

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Pauline Clooney, founder of the Kildare Writing Centre, will lead a workshop about 'openings' and how to make sure that the reader turns the first page and continues with your story. Using a guided free-write as a stimulus, the group will explore the elements of craft expected on the first page of a story, culminating

FREE, booking required

KRF: ‘Hot Off The Press’ event & Dennis O’Driscoll Literary Awards presentation

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Join the participants from 'The First Page' and 'Persona Poetry' workshops led by Pauline Clooney and Christodoulus Makris for a sharing of work created that very afternoon - so 'hot off the press' that it might burn your fingers! We will also present the prestigious Dennis O'Driscoll Literary Bursary awards 2019 to an emerging and

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Ian Maleney and Jamie Goldrick live audio-visual literary documentary

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Set around a small family farm on the edge of a bog, a few miles from the river Shannon, Minor Monuments is a live audio-visual essay unfolding from the landscape of the Irish midlands. Taking in the physical and philosophical power of sound and music, and the effects of Alzheimer’s disease on a family, Ian

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Something Wicked This Way Comes with Niamh Boyce, Stacey Halls and Martina Devlin

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

'Tis the season of Samhain and the Kildare Readers’ Festival will celebrate with an exciting panel discussion examining the depiction and characterisation of witches within the canon of literature. Whether it's horror fiction or historical non-fiction, Witches and Wiccan culture have provided rich material for authors and scholars throughout the years. On hand for a riveting discourse on the topic will be acclaimed novelists

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Sunday Morning Sessions with Dermot Bolger and John Boyne

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Kildare Readers’ Festival is elated that Dermot Bolger (An Ark of Light, The Family on Paradise Pier) will return to our ever popular “Sunday Morning Sessions” for a relaxed and intimate conversation with acclaimed novelist and short story writer, John Boyne (The Hearts Invisible Furies, The Absolutist, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas). In a

FREE, booking advised

KRF: Emilie Pine and Arnold Fanning in conversation with Emily Hourican

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

The Kildare Readers’ Festival welcomes a duo of celebrated Irish authors, Emilie Pine (Notes to Self) and Arnold Thomas Fanning (Mind on Fire: A Memoir of Madness and Recovery), for a candid panel discussion on the most intimate of literature endeavours: memoirs. This event will be moderated by author and magazine editor, Emily Hourican (How

FREE, booking advised

CINEMA: ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Los Angeles under a flaming sunset, rows of towering palm trees swaying in the breeze. Once Upon a Time In Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino's latest masterpiece, is imbued with the aesthetics of the City of Angels' inimitable glamour. Set in 1969, this Hollywood pastiche is the filmmaker's ode to the city of his childhood years, and

€6 – €9

ADULT WORKSHOP: Taster Ceramics Workshop with Eleanor Swan

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Join and award-winning artist Eleanor Swan for a 2 hour taster ceramics workshop. Participants will explore the possibilities of working with two different types of clay: porcelain and stoneware clay. Each participant will make a birdhouse (as seen in the photo) and a floral decorative porcelain piece. Everyone’s work will be glazed and fired in

€20

ADULT WORKSHOP: Sewing Workshop for Beginners with Aideen Cross

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Join with designer Aideen Cross for a sewing workshop for beginners and improvers who love to create with fabric. Overcome any fears you might have about creating your own clothes and learn the basic sewing machine skills (bring along your own if you have one). We’ll explore a few interesting projects to get you started

€20

ADULT WORKSHOP: Animation for Beginners with Paper Panther

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

In the workshop, participants will create their own hand-drawn morphing animation through drawing on paper and photographing it frame by frame under a camera. The results will be edited offsite and uploaded to the Paper Panther Vimeo page from which the participants can view and download the video. About Paper Panther Paper Panther are an

€20

THEATRE: Madhouse

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

MADHOUSE is based on the unbelievable true life story of comedian PJ Gallagher. When PJ was ten, his Ma, a nurse, moved six men with schizophrenia into the family home to care for them full time. “It was like this. When you went through our front door and turned right, you were in mad land,

€16 – €18
Recurring

THEATRE: Shackleton

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

“Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold... safe return doubtful.” Shackleton tells the story of the sinking of the ship Endurance on the Antarctic’s icy Weddell Sea in 1916, and the subsequent escape of the Irish expedition leader Ernest Shackleton and his crew from the Antarctic over a period of eighteen months, finally

€18 – €20

WORKSHOP: CREATESCHOOL present BRICK FLICKS

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

What if your favourite LEGO Minifigure came to life and saved the day? What if we could show you how to make that happen? Well - CREATESCHOOL can, by using the magical art of stop motion animation. You'll work in small teams with like-minded young animators to create short films and learn some of the

€90

SPECIAL HALLOWE’EN SCREENING: SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Our Hallowe’en special screening has been revealed…. From the dark imaginations of Academy Award-winner Guillermo del Toro and acclaimed director André Øvredal, based on the iconic book series, comes Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark 1968 America and change is blowing in the wind...but seemingly far removed from the unrest in the cities is

€6 – €9

WORKSHOP: Make Your Own Weather Activity Book with Fuchsia MacAree

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

What’s your favourite kind of weather? Do you like windy days flying kites, sunny days at the beach or building snowmen on a winter’s day? Learn how to make a guide to your favourite day, from designing a cover to illustrating pages of activities. Using collage and drawing, Fuchsia MacAree illustrator of The Great Irish

€10

WORKSHOP: Creative Writing Workshop for Children with Shane Hegarty

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Have you a budding writer in the family? If so, make sure they don't miss this wonderful writing workshop with award-winning author Shane Hegarty as he goes behind the scenes of Darkmouth and brings writing to life with his new creation Boot. For ages 10-13 Shane Hegarty's new book - Boot - follows the adventures

€15

FAMILY MUSIC: ROCKIN’ RHYMES

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Did little Miss Muffett jive around her tuffet? Were Jack and Jill bopping up that hill? Was it a funky beat that made the cradle really rock? Rockin' Rhymes is a new music show by Branar Téatar do Pháistí for music lovers aged 2 to 102. It is a rock-n-roll adventure featuring nursery rhymes as

€8 – €28
Recurring

LOCAL ARTS: NEWBRIDGE DRAMA PRESENTS 45 Seconds from Broadway

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

From America’s master of contemporary Broadway comedy, Neil Simon, here is a take on behind the scenes action in the entertainment world, this time near the heart of the theatre district. 45 Seconds from Broadway takes place in the legendary “Polish Tea Room” on New York’s 47th Street. Here Broadway theatre personalities gather and schmooze.

€12 – €15

LOCAL ARTS: Newbridge Drama Group Presents – 45 Seconds from Broadway by Neil Simon

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

From America’s master of contemporary Broadway comedy, here is a take on behind the scenes action in the entertainment world, this time near the heart of the theatre district. 45 Seconds from Broadway takes place in the legendary “Polish Tea Room” on New York’s 47th Street. Here Broadway theatre personalities gather and schmooze. Great acting

€12 – €15

VISUAL ART: The State of RoY

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

From lines on maps to drinking coffee, knowledge and power are integral to this work. The State of RoY, the first solo exhibition by Michelle McBride, explores entrenched notions of history, tradition and destruction. What is now the Republic of Yemen has had a long and changeable history. Yemen borders the entrance of ‘The Gates

CINEMA: Kursk: The Last Mission

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Based on the gripping true story of the Kursk submarine tragedy of 2000 in which 118 men lost their lives, Kursk: The Last Mission is a tense submarine thriller from critically acclaimed director Thomas Vinterberg (The Hunt, Far From the Madding Crowd). When a Russian naval exercise goes horribly wrong, the Kursk submarine erupts in

€6 – €9
Recurring

SCHOOLS: Ger Carey Live – A Comic Journey Inside The Teenage Mind

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Ger Carey is back with his hilarious stand-up comedy show for transition year students. By secretly observing his subjects in their natural habitat, such as leaning on lampposts, in chippers, outside chippers, in shopping centres and sitting on any kind of steps, Ger has uncovered the weird and frightening world of the teenager! The aim

€10

THEATRE: EGGSISTENTIALISM by Joanne Ryan

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Joanne Ryan's internationally acclaimed, multi award-winning show is a funny, tender and moving exploration of reproduction in 21st-Century Ireland. Looking down the barrel of her final fertile years, one modern Irish woman goes on a comical quest to uncover the ifs, hows and crucially the whys of reproducing her genes. Mixing animation with stand-up, monologue

€14 – €16

VISUAL ART: THE FAERIE TAILOR

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

The Faerie Tailor exhibition is a journey into tiny, magical worlds created by artist, Emily Bazeley. The artwork in this exhibition has been crafted from natural materials which have been found on forest floors, in gardens, on beaches, and also in places where you would not expect to find faerie inspiration, including city streets and

Recurring

THEATRE: TOM CREAN

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Tom Crean, the intrepid Antarctic explorer and one of Ireland’s unsung heroes, is brought to life in this dramatic and humorous solo performance by Aidan Dooley. Hear the riveting true stories of Crean’s Antarctic explorations as one of the few men to serve with both Scott and Shackleton and survive the three famous expeditions: Discovery,

€18 – €20

FAMILY: LORDS OF STRUT – Absolute Legends

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

All their lives, Sean and Seamus have wanted to be famous. To get there they need to make the perfect dance routine; they need your help. In this dance fantasy adventure, the brothers rock out banging moves, run into trouble, have a few tantrums, cause a bit of mayhem and find out if fame is

€12 – €15

CINEMA: THE SOUVENIR

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

1980’s London. Julie (a breakout performance from Honor Swinton Byrne) is a shy film student from a privileged background, who wants to use her work to better understand the realities of the world. When she meets the older and mysterious Anthony, Julie finds herself caught up in her first serious love affair. While her mother

€6 – €9
Recurring

LOCAL ARTS: Kildare Youth Theatre present WUTHERING HEIGHTS

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

'He's more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” ― Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights In this modern adaptation of Emily Brontë’s Gothic fairy-tale, Jane Thornton infuses Wuthering Heights with quick-fire dialogue and an urgency that brings the age-old tale to life for a modern audience. In

€6 – €10
Recurring

COMEDY: DES BISHOP – Take the Points

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

"Take the points..." - That’s good advice on the pitch but an even better metaphor for life, especially when you don’t take advice well. How hard can it be for a man to say “point taken!” Des Bishop’s new show tries to digest the incredible changes we have seen in society in the last year

€25

SECONDARY SCHOOLS WORKSHOP: Super Paua Steam Powered Workshops

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Artist collective Super Paua were delighted and relieved to hear that our jobs are pretty safe from robots, according to recent scientific evidence. But then we wondered- why? What is it about the human mind's problem-solving ability, it's flexible and funny and absurd way of doing things, that cannot be automated? Join Super Paua for

Recurring

FAMILY THEATRE: BOSCO’s Magic Garden & Sleeping Beauty

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Bosco is Bosco, not a boy, not a girl, just a Bosco: a cheeky, lovely, funny, slightly-cracked, irrepressible, eternal five-year-old who lives in a box and who loves nothing more than to just be Bosco and meet all the boys and girls. After starring on Irish TV for three decades, you’ll see why Bosco remains

€10

CINEMA: Birds of Passage

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

From the directors of Embrace of the Serpent comes a tale of the Colombian marijuana trade of the 1960/70s and a resulting tribal war, which through greed and corruption caused the downfall of a respected indigenous Wayuu family. When Raphayet pursues Zaida for his bride, he cannot afford the dowry. A chance deal with some

€6 – €9

DINNER THEATRE: Faulty Towers- The Dining Experience

Kildare House Hotel Dublin Road, Kildare Town, Ireland

Born in Brisbane in April 1997, Faulty Towers -The Dining Experience is a worldwide hit and the most successful interactive comedy show of its kind, appearing in around 20 countries. Chaos greets audiences as soon as they walk through the door. In this fully immersive experience, the audience become diners in the infamous ‘Faulty’ restaurant,

€3 – €48

DINNER THEATRE: Faulty Towers – The Dining Experience

The Westgrove Hotel, Clane Abbeylands,, Clane, Kildare, Ireland

Born in Brisbane in April 1997, Faulty Towers -The Dining Experience is a worldwide hit and the most successful interactive comedy show of its kind, appearing in around 20 countries. Chaos greets audiences as soon as they walk through the door. In this fully immersive experience, the audience become diners in the infamous ‘Faulty’ restaurant,

€3 – €48

LOCAL ARTS: Odd Theatre Company presents LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

The Odd Theatre Company is proud to present the smash-hit musical Little Shop of Horrors, a comedy that has wowed audiences on Broadway and beyond for over 35 years. From the creative team of Howard Ashman and Alan Menken (Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin), this deviously delicious show contains some

€18 – €20

MUSIC: ABBA FOREVER

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Abba Forever , the ultimate tribute band formed by Dennis Scally, replicates the unique Abba sound with an incredible attention to detail, using a six-piece and featuring Lucinda O’Connell and Marie O’Hara on lead vocals. From “Waterloo” to “Dancing Queen”, this show is a dazzling performance of the most iconic hits - Mamma Mia, S.O.S,

€23

CINEMA: TRANSIT

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Like many others, German refugee Georg has fled Paris to escape the impending war. He has assumed the identity of a famous but deceased writer, and plans to use the man’s documentation to obtain a transit visa and immigrate to Mexico. But when Georg encounters the dead man’s wife Marie in Marseille, he finds himself

€6 – €9

SCHOOL SCREENING: NT Live HAMLET

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Benedict Cumberbatch (BBC’s Sherlock, Doctor Strange) plays the title role of Shakespeare’s great tragedy. Now seen by over 900,000 people worldwide, the original broadcast returns to international cinemas to mark National Theatre Live’s 10th birthday. As a country arms itself for war, a family tears itself apart. Forced to avenge his father’s death but paralysed

Recurring

SCHOOLS SHOW: Heart of Winter

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Christmas is coming and Sally can't sleep - it's too hot! The weather has gone topsy-turvy. No-one can remember the last time it snowed, or even rained, and her father can't sell any of his umbrellas. Will a snowy bedtime story from Dad help? That night Sally has a dream that changes everything - a

FAMILY THEATRE: Heart of Winter

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Christmas is coming and Sally can't sleep - it's too hot! The weather has gone topsy-turvy. No-one can remember the last time it snowed, or even rained, and her father can't sell any of his umbrellas. Will a snowy bedtime story from Dad help? That night Sally has a dream that changes everything - a

€8 – €28

CINEMA: PAIN AND GLORY (Dolor y Gloria)

Riverbank Arts Centre Main Street, Newbridge, Ireland

Veteran director Salvador Mallo (Antonio Banderas) currently suffers many health issues, which he blames for the creative rut he finds himself in. As he tries to recover, he reflects on his life. Whilst recalling memories from the past, including those of his humble upbringing by his doting mother (Penélope Cruz), in the present he reconnects

€6 – €9