Another twist to town hall seating drama

July 2005

In another twist to the long-running saga of the seating in the town hall auditorium, the theatre has closed for the summer months so that the present seating can be replaced.

The retractable raked seating system was put in place at a cost of approximately €450,000 less than two years ago as part of a refurbishment following lengthy debate.

Councillors and various local amateur drama groups had campaigned for the seating to be raked when the original plans for the multi-million-euro refurb proposed leaving it unchanged.

Dundalk-born Abbey veteran Tomás MacAnna added his voice to those calling for raked seating.

The cost of installing the raked seating had to be funded from the council’s own resources as a €2.1 million grant from the Department of Arts, Culture and Heritage was for the original proposals.

The retractable system which was installed utilised the existing seats but reduced the capacity of the auditorium from around 700 to 350.

However, it quickly emerged that the new system didn’t provide adequate legroom and audiences complained of feeling cramped during performances.

There were also complaints regarding facilities for wheelchair-users.

Now, the 182 seats in the stalls are being replaced to address the issues of legroom and comfort.

‘We are also relocating the aisles to the side to make access easier for elderly people who will be able to use the handrails,’ explains manager Barry McKinney.

The hall will reopen in September and we are chock-a-block with bookings from then on.’

Cllr Mark Dearey adds: ‘We have to put our hands up and say we got it wrong. When you make a mistake it’s important to rectify it.’