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This May, RTÉ is delighted to support Bealtaine Festival, Fastnet Film Festival, and Dublin Dance Festival, along with 25 other arts and cultural events all over Ireland spanning theatre, film, literature, music, opera, dance, festivals, exhibitions and more.

Bealtaine Festival, Ireland’s national celebration of the arts and creativity as we age, is celebrating 30 years with events across the month. Fastnet Film Festival will focus on the craft of filmmaking, hosting seminars, workshops and masterclasses with industry experts on all aspects of the film industry. Dublin Dance Festival will feature bold new performances from Irish artists and leading choreographic voices from around the world.

Arts and Minds, Maynooth University’s annual celebration of the best in Irish and international arts and culture events, will include performances by Irish National Opera and movie screenings with acclaimed directors. Writers, artists and poets will congregate in the beautiful heritage town of Listowe in County Kerry for Writers Week Literary Festival, while Cavan Arts Festival will present a diverse range of arts and cultural experiences in the heart of Cavan Town. The annual island-wide celebration of poetry, Poetry Day Ireland, will also take place on Thursday 1st May, with the theme May Day.

A host of music festivals will also take place across the country. In Tipperary, SCS Killaloe Music Festival will take place, in Offaly, Birr Festival of Music will host an array of classical music performances, and Galway Early Music Festival will host concerts, immersive musical journeys, workshops, and a multitude of local and international artists.

West Wicklow Chamber Music Festival and Marble City Music Festival in Kilkenny will present a diverse programme of concerts that is sure to delight audiences, and in Waterford, Blackwater Valley Opera Festival will present A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Music for Wexford Summer/Autumn Series will commence its annual series of recitals by both Irish and international musicians. Crash Ensemble and Chamber Choir Ireland will present: Jóhann Jóhannsson: Drone Mass in Limerick, Letterkenny and Dublin. In Cork, Cork International Choral Festival and Open Ear music festival will take place.

LOVESONG by Abi Morgan will take to the stage at The Gate Theatre, and Dublin International Piano Competition will bring the world’s top young pianists to Ireland to compete. There are also a range of exhibitions taking place, from Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone | The Art of Friendship in Dublin’s National Gallery, to Words on the Wave: Ireland and St. Gallen in Early Medieval Europe, Changing Ireland and Dead Zoo at Large, at the National Museum. IMMA Collection: Art as Agency also continues this month.

For more information about the events we are supporting this month, check out the websites listed below:

Dublin Dublin Dance Festival | www.dublindancefestival.ie

Dublin IMMA Collection: Art as Agency | www.imma.ie

Waterford Blackwater Valley Opera Festival | https://blackwatervalleyopera.ie

Wicklow West Wicklow Chamber Music Festival | https://www.westwicklowfestival.com/

Kilkenny Marble City Music Festival | www.marblecitymusicfestival.com

Dublin / International International Literature Festival Dublin | https://www.ilfdublin.com

Nationwide Bealtaine Festival | https://bealtaine.ie/

DublinMainie Jellett & Evie Hone: The Art of Friendship | https://www.nationalgallery.ie/art-and-artists/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions/mainie-jellett-evie-hone-art-friendship

Dublin and Cork Forgotten Peoples | https://www.chamberchoirireland.com/events/forgotten-peoples/

Kildare Arts and Minds Festival | www.mu.ie/artsandmindsfestival

Nationwide Poetry Day Ireland | https://www.poetryireland.ie/poetry-day/

Cork Cork International Choral Festival | www.corkchoral.ie

Tipperary SCS Killaloe Music Festival | www.killaloemusicfestival.com

OffalyBirr Festival of Music | https://www.birrfestivalofmusic.com

Cork Open Ear | www.openear.ie

Cavan Cavan Arts Festival | www.cavanartsfestival.ie

Dublin Dublin International Piano Competition | https://dipc.ie

Wexford Music for Wexford Summer/Autumn Series | www.musicforwexford.ie

Kerry Writers Week Literary Festival | www.writersweek.ie

Galway Galway Early Music Festival | https://www.resurgam.ie/

Limerick, Letterkenny, Dún Laoghaire Crash Ensemble & Chamber Choir Ireland present: Jóhann Jóhannsson: Drone Mass | https://www.crashensemble.com/events/johann-johannssons-drone-mass—letterkenny

Dublin Lovesong at The Gate | https://gatetheatre.ie/production/lovesong-2025/

Dublin Words on the Wave: Ireland and St. Gallen in Early Medieval Europe | www.museum.ie

Dublin Changing Ireland | www.museum.ie

Dublin Dead Zoo at Large | www.museum.ie

Cork Fastnet Film Festival | www.fastnetfilmfestival.com

Nationwide Irish National Opera | www.irishnationalopera.ie

Dublin Abbey Theatre | www.abbeytheatre.ie

Every year, RTÉ supports 170 arts and cultural events all over Ireland through the RTÉ Supporting the Arts scheme. Spanning film, music, dance, opera, festivals, literature, theatre and exhibitions, and with dedicated promotion on RTÉ’s television, radio and digital services, and extensive support across RTÉ’s social channels, the RTÉ Supporting the Arts scheme is a lifeline to Ireland’s creative and cultural sectors.

To find out more information about RTÉ Supporting the Arts and to apply visit 
About RTÉ Supporting the Arts – About RTÉ (rte.ie)

Find out what’s happening near you on www.rte.ie/culture