Kinsale Arts Weekend Celebrates 10th Anniversary With Over 50 Events

Kinsale is preparing for its milestone 10th Kinsale Arts Weekend, running from Thursday 9 July to Sunday 12 July 2026, with more than 50 events spanning music, theatre, film, visual art, literature and dance taking place across the seaside town.

Established in 2016, the festival is an entirely community-rooted and largely volunteer-led celebration of independent arts in West Cork.

Among this year's highlights is GHOSTIS: Celebrating the Origins of Welcome, a panel discussion curated by artist and writer Jennie Moran, taking place at the Methodist Church in Kinsale on Friday 10 July at 6pm. The event will explore hospitality customs across cultures, with contributions from human rights advocate and founder of One Community Cork, Ali Hamou; Cecilia Gámez Campanella, a founding member of the Mexican Community in Cork who builds cultural bridges through music and art; and Virginia O'Gara, co-founder of My Goodness and the Cork Urban Soil Project.

On Saturday 11 July, the festival will present The Lament for Art O'Leary, a contemporary operatic reimagining developed in collaboration with the Joseph Walsh Studio. The performance features a score by composer Irene Buckley and text by poet Vona Groarke, opening with an outdoor introduction to the tradition of keening led by Professor Tríona Ní Shíocháin, before moving indoors for a concert featuring sopranos Emma Nash and Kim Sheehan.

The weekend also celebrates female voices in Irish arts and storytelling. Rí Rá Mná: Live Podcast, a live recording of the UCC Radio podcast hosted by Sinéad Moynihan and Susan Brown, takes place at The Post House Café on Friday 10 July at 12:30pm, featuring guest Gilly McArthur, an acclaimed cold-water swim coach, free climber and author, alongside performances from Kinsale's all-female Sound Waves Choir. On Sunday 12 July at 1pm, the Carmelite Friary will host a screening of Trína Súile, an Irish-language short film by Darina Clancy exploring the legacies of historic Irish women, presented with English translations provided and followed by a discussion with journalist Clodagh Finn.

The festival's information office is based at the Temperance Hall in Kinsale and will remain open to visitors throughout the event. The festival is supported by funding from the Arts Council and Cork County Council, alongside Festival Friends and a team of dedicated volunteers. Full programme details and tickets are available at kinsaleartsweekend.com.