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Sport and Cultural Council 75th Anniversary Concert at Liberty Hall, Dublin.

Thursday, 22nd April, 2010 - By Louise Browne

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Sean O’Casey, James Larkin and a certain Molly Malone would have tapped their feet, clapped their hands, sang along and maybe even shed a tear of joy had they been in Dublin’s Liberty Hall celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the CDVEC Sports and Cultural Council’s spectacular concert.

Music, dance, drama and public speaking graced the stage, fittingly in a venue that is steeped in Irish history, entertained friends, family, teachers and members of the SCC Committee.

Guest of Honour and President of the SCC Jacinta Stewart spoke openly after the evening’s finale “It was great craic, a great mixture from trad to the dance to good old Dublin songs!

“With acts from 13 year olds to people in their mid fifties and a great representation from all the colleges around the City it was a wonderful performance from all those involved in and around the event”

Ballyfermot CFEMC on the night was Frank Allen of Pathways who introduced the acts with a wonderful sense of banter and guile throughout the proceedings. The first act of the evening saw traditional musicians Tomás Nolan, Philip King, Charlotte Nenert and Anne Maria O’Connor from Ballyfermot CFE perform two pieces of music.

A slow air named ‘Lord Galway Lamentation’ was beautifully performed before the musicians upped the tempo a little with two reels by Michael Russell. Nolan then sang the song ‘Tunnel Tigers’ which was written about Irish men who worked on building the underground tunnels in London.

While he sang the chorus ‘drive the tunnel through the London clay’ playing the guitar his fellow musicians supported him on the harp, tin whistle and bohran with the audience duly applauding a great performance.

The theatre light up for the first solo act of the evening when Fariz Zulkiffli paid homage to Michael Jackson either side of performing his uniquely named ‘shuffle heart style’ dance routine.

The 13 year old student from Larkin Community College, who has only been dancing for two years, entertained the audience by executing dance moves that Michael Jackson would have been proud of to the songs ‘Billie Jean’ and ‘Thriller’ with loud cheers greeting his every move.

Next up Colaiste Dhulaigh students Linda Rigney and Theresa Redmond, who are tutored by Helen Brennan and list Westlife and Britney Spears as their inspirations, sang a beautiful heartrending version of Mariah Carey’s song ‘Hero’.

Then the 2010 winner of the SCC Nelson Mandela Public Speaking Award for Overseas Students, Gintaras Valatka, addressed the audience.

With a single light shinning on him he somberly read out his winning speech, describing vivid details about the events on the 13th January 1991 and the subsequent peoples movement human chain that led to Lithuania’s independence from the former Soviet Union.

Once again music came to the fore with Jessica Curley singing ‘Crawl’. The Kylemore CollegeThe Shadow of a Gunman student who has been singing from an early age has performed in the National Concert Hall as well as St. Patrick’s Cathedral engaged the crowd with an immensely moving rendition of the song.

In an extract from ‘The Shadow of a Gunman’ by Sean O’Casey actors Emmet Dennis (Donal Davern) Ann Marie Thompson (Minnie) Alistair Cotter (Tommy Owens) and Frank Allen (Mr Gallagher) from Pathways Players put in an awe-inspiring display of acting with the biggest cheer of the night given to Donal when he kisses Minnie!

Ireland’s answer to ‘Bob Dylan’ Willie Noonan from Inchicore College is a highly talented singer songwriter who regularly performs on the Dublin folk circuit was accompanied on stage by Keith McGovern on bass guitar.

The duo performed ‘Modern Slave’ a protest song appropriately related to current times. Noonan sees himself very much as a social commentator with his songs speaking to our imagination in these trouble times put his lyrics, music and singing to the test once again in front of a live audience, priceless.

The last act before the interval came from Inchicore’s Dance group of Sarah Jane McDonald, Fionnuala Power, Caitríona Brocklebank, Lauren Byrne, Jennifer Farrelly and Niamh Kenny.

Inchicore Dance GroupChoreographed by Melissa Harmon the dance troupe, who had recently travelled to the Vienna Dance Festival and despite having exams that day and the next morning they performed a stylish yet energetic exhibition of dance.

MC Frank Allen promised the concert goers a rip roaring second half a promise the remaining acts fittingly delivered with flamboyance and vision.

In the case of the Kylemore College Harp ensemble of Shauna Gallagher, Emma Sergeant, Sinead Ni Riada and Anne Marie Bourke the quartet played their chosen pieces of music with elegance, poise and precision.

Under their tutor Anne Marie O’Farrell the Kylemore students have entertained audiences in Dublin’s National Concert Hall and at the Edinburgh Harp Festival.

Chris Keeley of Inchicore CFE may have made a quiet entrance onto the stageChris Keeley but with a voice as powerful as his he literally lifted the roof of the theater with unbelievable renditions of ‘Cry me a River’ and Queen’s ‘Somebody to Love’.

Keeley, from Tallaght, is due to audition for the X Factor’s Most Wanted on May the 15th so remember the name ‘Chris Keeley’ so you can tell your friends you saw him sing at the SCC 75th Anniversary Concert in Liberty Hall before he hit the big time.

The next act was very much a family affair as identical twins Lisa and Clare Watson put on a magnificent show of Irish dance, a dynamic display of magnificent precision throughout, a joy to watch.

The blonde haired sisters from Knocklyn are no strangers to dancing in front of large crowds having performed in places such as Paris and Florida while on the home front they have their own show in Dublin’s oldest pub the ‘Brazen Head’.

The appropriately named ‘Funtones’ brought another dimension to the night’s celebrations as Mick Fitzgerald, Dave Long, Colin Kelly and Mark ‘Caffy’ Caplice encouraged the crowd to click their fingers, clap their hands and sing along.

Formed in 2009, at the Ballyfermot Rock School, the Barber Shop quartet delightfully sang ‘Just another Day’ and ‘So Happy’ with a fusion of fun and quirky lyrics and all to the beat of happiness.

YouthreachFrank Allen then thanked Noel McDonagh and Colm O’Driscoll both of Inchicore CFE, Kylemore’s Ger Flanagan and of course Mr MC himself for their hard work and dedication in organising such a fantastic show.

And so it came to the climax of the evening by way of a ‘Dublin Medley’ with Frank Allen, students from the Transition Centre at Parnell Square’s Youthreach and Ballyfermot College supported by musicians from the 903 Group from Kylemore College.

The group of thirteen students embellished the stage beating bohráns before setting the tone of a typical Dublin street scene playing skipping, singing rhymes like ‘Ring a Ring a Rosey’ and the songs ‘Nelly Mulligan-The Pride of the Coombe’ ‘Dicey Reilly’ ‘Dublin in the Rare Ole Times’ ‘Molly Malone’ and ‘Summer in Dublin’.

Before a boisterous rendition of ‘C’mon you Boys in Blue’ while donning the Dublin colours, waving Dublin flags with even ‘John 3:16’ getting in on the act brought an invigorating conclusion to a spectacular celebration.

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