Stage is being set for Abbey’s much-needed renaissance

THERE’S no denying that Dublin’s north inner city is crying out for a shot in the arm such as a revamped and remodelled Abbey Theatre.

What could be a more uplifting addition to the down-at-heel area than a state-of-the-art performance facility stretching from the theatre’s current spot on the corner of Abbey and Marlborough Streets right over to Eden Quay?

There is a template already with Temple Bar, a derelict part of the city before its rebirth as a cultural quarter in the 1990s. While humble ateliers and members of the local community may have felt pushed out by the arrival of mass tourism, for which read raucous hen, stag parties, trendy children’s centres and gleaming galleries, there’s no doubt that for all the drawbacks, Temple Bar brings vitality and variety to the city.

Its identity as a tourist or cultural destination must be the envy of the National Theatre which has, in recent years, fallen off its perch as a beacon of Irish culture. After it opened its doors in 1904 the Abbey became synonymous with the Literary Revival and the carving of a national identity. From the 1960s it enjoyed a renaissance, premiering the work of literary dramatists from Brian Friel to Tom Murphy and Frank McGuinness. Of late, it has languished in the shadows of cultural life, bogged down in rows about employing

Irish actors and funding Irish productions.

As the redevelopment of the Abbey enters the next stage, the headache may not be about rents or tenders from contractors but renewing the purpose and programme of a cultural icon that seems to be dying on its feet.