by Saoirse Anton

We’re a month into the school holidays and with the weather decidedly not having been on-side for much of July, many parents around the country are desperately rummaging in the backs of their minds for ways to keep their little ones entertained for another month. If you’re looking for ideas on how to keep your brood busy over the coming month, read on for my recommendations of events to fill those long sunny and not-so-sunny summer afternoons.

Silver Tree at Axis Ballymun

Come and sit near the Silver Tree with your baby and learn the legend of the Ursitoarea from Romania. Three gifts for life. What will you choose and what will your child choose? Cliodhna Noonan’s storytelling event for parents and young children promises to be a delightful morning.

Silver Tree is at Axis Ballymun on the 3rd August. For more information and to book visit: Silver Tree (ticketsolve.com)

Family Fun Day at Farmleigh

This August Bank Holiday Moday, Dublin Book Festival and OPW are hosting a family fun day on the lawns of Farmleigh. With a jam-packed programme featuring Niamh Donnellan, Shane Hegarty, Emma-Jane Leeson, Leona Forde, Muireann Ní Chíobháin, Alan Nolan, Children’s Books Ireland and Music Generation Dublin City, there’s sure to be something to please everyone in the family!

For more information and to book your free tickets visit: Farmleigh and Dublin Book Festival Family Fun Day - Dublin Book Festival

Playground at Bestseller Café

For older families of parents and teens, why not check out a smorgasbord of new plays at the Glassmask Theatre’s Playground at Bestseller Café on Dawson Street. An annual carnival of mini play readings by both established and emerging playwrights, this year’s edition presents six ten-minute plays based around the theme of ‘The Happy Mask.’

Playground runs at Bestseller Café from the 13th - 17th Aug. For more information and to book visit: PLAYGROUND (ticketsolve.com)

Young Playwrights at the Everyman

Graffiti Theatre and the Everyman Theatre Cork are bringing the future of Irish theatre to the stage on the 18th August with the Young Playwrights Presentation. Back in April, these young writers were mentored by Katie Hollie and John McCarthy to hone their script-writing skills and create the eight short works that will be brought to the Everyman stage by a cast of professional actors directed by Katrina Foley and Al Dalton on the 18th of August.

For more information and to book visit: Exciting Project: Young Playwrights Presentation | 18 Aug 2024 (everymancork.com)

Garden as Gallery at Gorse Hill

Garden as Gallery returns for its final year with six outdoor performance events. In Joan Davis’ Garden as Gallery, dancers and performance artists step into the gardens to create an unplanned event of dance and sound which takes shape as the audience and setting influence the path of the creation. A unique and exciting way to explore the outdoors, this is an experience not to be missed.

The remaining Garden as Gallery performances take place on the 24th, 25th, 27th and 28th August. For more information visit: Garden as Gallery - August - Mermaid Arts Centre

BCP Workshops and Shows with the Ark

Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) are public locations which have been selected to receive high-speed connectivity as part of the National Broadband Plan. The Broadband Connection Point (BCP) initiative has brought connectivity to almost 300 publicly available sites across the country, such as community centres, sports clubs and libraries. As part of several projects instigated by the Department of Rural and Community Development, the Ark is bringing live online workshops with playwright, Luke Casserly and visual artist, Duffy Mooney-Shepperd, as well as two streamed productions, The Making of Mollie by Anna Carey and The Race by Marc Brew. We are all well acquainted with online arts offerings since the pandemic struck, but this is a fresh and exciting way to bring people together both online and offline, building community and decentralising arts offerings.

For more information and how to book a workshop or show visit Discover The Ark at a Broadband Connection Point near you this summer! | The Ark, Dublin. Creative Arts Activities for Children.

Dreamers Space at Draíocht

Sometimes you just need a change of scenery, a place to take a breath and enjoy some time to play. In the Dreamer’s Space at Draíocht Theatre in Blanchardstown, dreamers are invited to explore their dreamier side and spend time making and creating with provided materials in their own time, at their own pace and in their own way, with their family. Open throughout the month of August, it is a space to escape for a little while and enjoy playing and creating together.

For more information visit: Dreamer's Space | Draíocht Blanchardstown (draiocht.ie)