About
HISTORY
Claremorris Town Hall was built in 1969 as a community/dance hall. It is a social enterprise and non-profit making, community facility. The Hall is owned by the community through a parent company – Clár Regional Centre CLG (Company Limited by Guarantee,) with a board of voluntary directors, and is a registered charity – RCN 17164.
During the first 20 years of its operation, the hall was very successful as a Dance and Big Band venue, attracting all the best-known bands of the time. The venue hosted many varied activities throughout the years, including snooker, ballet, boxing, opera, drama, musicals, Irish dancing feiseanna, card-games, bingo, farmers’ markets, art exhibitions and meetings. The local District Court was held in the hall, for many years.
As a result of its activities, the venue generated surplus income. This was distributed to local clubs, groups and committees, to fund the development of much of the sporting and leisure infrastructure in the Claremorris area, including GAA, Golf, Swimming and Athletics clubs.
The Town Hall hosts the annual Claremorris Amateur Drama Festival, and has hosted the All-Ireland Confined Amateur Drama Festival on three occasions and will host it for a fourth time in 2025.
CAPACITY
The main theatre can be configured to hold from 100 to 600 seated patrons, (depending on demand,) and up to 900 standing. The Studio, which also doubles as a meeting facility, can hold up to 90 patrons. Full technical specifications of these spaces, can be found HERE. We have two additional meeting rooms, each with a capacity of 30.
BOMBING OF CLAREMORRIS TOWN HALL
The venue was bombed on two occasions. In November 1972, a bomb detonated on the east side of the building causing some damage. A second bomb detonated on the morning of March 17, 1973. This bomb caused much more damage than the first one. As there was a dance due to be held in the Hall later that night, the local community rallied together to make the venue serviceable for the event.
Initially, it was thought that the bombing was a spill-over of the conflict in Northern Ireland, which was ongoing at the time, however it was later discovered to be the work of a competitor – a woman who ran a smaller hall 33kms away. The story of the bombing was featured in a radio programme, ‘Dancing Nancy’ – the Doc on One on RTE Radio One. You can listen to the documentary HERE.
THEATRE DEVELOPMENT 2013
The venue was redeveloped in 2013/14 with a new roof, the installation of retractable tiered-seating, new lighting, a new sound system and many enhanced features, transforming the old hall into a modern theatre. The venue has attracted all the top touring acts in a concert environment. It hosts many of the events as previously, including meetings, training, musicals, drama productions and many more.
FULL BAR AND SHOP FACILITIES
We have a licensed bar and offer a range of beers, wines and spirits, along with teas coffees and soft drinks – all at very competitive prices. Please bear in mind that the nature of theatre bars and shops is such that everyone looks to be served at the one time, (typically, immediately before a show, or at the interval,) and without having one-for one staff to customer ratio, it is impossible to avoid some delays at these peak times. We serve our customers as quickly as possible and ensure that all are looked after.
ONLINE TICKETING AND BOX OFFICE FACILITIES
We have a secure, fast and reliable online ticketing system for all our events. Tickets can also be purchased at the Box Office which is opened from 9.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. The Box Office may be open at other additional times, depending on the demand/event.
ACCESSABILITY
The venue is fully assessable.
RENTAL/CO-PROMOTING
The venue can be rented for various community and commercial purposes. We also co-promote events on a profit-sharing basis. Please contact us for full details.
OTHER FACILITIES
We have a large greenscreen for film and video production. We have chairs, tables, whiteboards, projectors, screens, printers and photocopiers, for meetings and conferences.
CAN DO ATTITUDE
Our staff are constantly thanked for our ‘Can-Do’ attitude and our policy of ‘Aiming for Yes.’ If you have a particular need or query, please do not hesitate to contact us.
