The Firkin Crane is a non-profit arts organisation based in the protected building of the same name in the Shandon area of Cork City in Ireland. It is a theatre and dance centre and is a permanent base for Cork City Ballet and Crux Dance Theatre.

History

Building

The Firkin Crane building is located near the Church of St Anne, Shandon close to the

Cork Butter Museum The Cork Butter Museum is a museum in Cork city in Ireland which documents the history of butter production and sale in County Cork. It is housed in the former Cork Butter Market. History The Cork Butter Market building is situated in the Sha ...

and the site of the original Cork City Butter Exchange. The building was opened in August 1855, designed to a rotunda plan by Sir John Benson for the Butter Exchange. The building's name derives from the " Firkin" unit (9 gallons or 80Ibs of butter) and the "Crane" weighing scale. Where the building currently stands is reputed to have been a possible site for a fort belonging to the

MacCarthy MacCarthy ( ga, Mac Cárthaigh), also spelled Macarthy, McCarthy or McCarty, is an Irish clan originating from Munster, an area they ruled during the Middle Ages. It was divided into several great branches; the MacCarthy Reagh, MacCarthy of Mu ...

Clan. The Shandon Butter Factory was housed within the Firkin Crane and the firkins were weighed up there. A

margarine Margarine (, also , ) is a spread used for flavoring, baking, and cooking. It is most often used as a substitute for butter. Although originally made from animal fats, most margarine consumed today is made from vegetable oil. The spread was orig ...

factory (James Daly & Sons) replaced the market in 1924. This closed in 1976.

Dance company

Joan Denise Moriarty Joan Denise Moriarty (died 24 January 1992) was an Irish ballet dancer, choreographer, teacher of ballet and traditional Irish dancer and musician. She was a key figure in the development of both amateur and professional ballet in Ireland. Ea ...

created an Arts Council approved space in the building until a fire destroyed it on 6 July 1980. According to the ''Cork Examiner,'' Moriarty was just about to embark on an IR£400,000 campaign to renovate it. Three units from Cork Fire Brigade fought the fire. Within minutes of the fire breaking out, the structure was an inferno, with most of the building being constructed of wood which had been covered in a thick coating of grease over the years. In response to the fire, Tom Donnelly, general manager of the Irish Ballet Company, said they were determined with their plans to establish there. Gardaí did not rule out the possibility that the fire may have been maliciously started. The building was rebuilt using funds from the

European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisb ...

Architectural Award for Ireland. On 26 April 1992, the building was re-opened by then Taoiseach Albert Reynolds. It became known as the Firkin Crane Centre. By 2000, the Firkin Crane Dance Development Agency was in operation. According to ''The Encyclopedia of Ireland'', by Oxford University Press, it was Ireland's only dedicated dance venue in 2000.

Performances

It held the William Thompson Weekend School in 2003. Ireland's first dance house, The Institute for Choreography and Dance, was based in the building, and became a founding member of the European Dancehouse Network in 2004. It continued as a centre dedicated to choreographic research until 2006. Dance performances were held in the Firkin Crane in 2015 as part of Cork Culture Night. In 2018, a documentary on the history of the Ford Factory in Cork was held in the building. It also hosted a play called ''Cosy'', featuring an all-female cast as part of the Cork Midsummer Festival. As of 2020, it hosted bursary awards. That year, 16 year old James Berkery, a ballet dancer at the Firkin Crane was nominated for a BAFTA in the UK. It was received part of a €290,000 grant to arts organisations from Cork City Council that year. CEO Paul McCarthy departed from the organisation, having held the position for 25 years. Sinn Féin's Thomas Gould and the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...

's Dan Boyle have served on the Firkin Crane's voluntary Board of Directors.

References

External links

* {{authority control 1855 establishments in Ireland Dance companies in Ireland 1980 fires in Europe 1980 disasters in Europe Theatres in Cork (city)