As St. Patrick’s Day quickly approaches, pubs prepare for the influx of tourists, visitors, and locals who will be celebrating all over Dublin. Happenings have also been preparing for the highly anticipated festivities, but they have something different in mind from the drunken crowds.
Happenings plan to kick off their 2015 schedule of events with Paddy’s Day Unlocked, which offers an alternative by removing booze from the equation, creating a safe and healthy environment for visitors and families of all ages involving music, dance, food, and many other performances. ‘We will bring a creative and fun event into the heart of Temple Bar that is a drink-free zone on our national day, thus naming a problem and offering a solution to what can turn into a messy day on the streets of Dublin,’ said Peter O’Brien, Happenings founder. Taking place in Meeting House Square in Temple Bar, Nialler9 will curate the music festivities at the even, while food is provided by The Happy Pear, and there will be a talk by Tony Bates, the founding director of the youth mental health foundation Headstrong.
Happenings began in 2009 holding informal, socially responsible, and environmentally aware, low-impact events in public locations like Dartmouth Square and then throughout Dublin. They strive to offer an alternative to the pub culture of the city, which they believe shouldn’t be the only option. In 2013, they turned Fitzwilliam Square into an open-air cinema from April through June and repeated the feat in Merrion Square last summer. ‘We are about community and a responsible attitude. We have a leave-no-trace policy at our park events, asking out attendees to bring their waste away, our events are alcohol-free and we charge a small entrance fee of €5, so we are not commercially focused,’ said O’Brien. Along the way they’ve garnered praise from Leslie Moore, Head of Parks Services for Dublin City Council, Ray Yeates, the Head of Arts and Festivals for DCC and Sheila Deegan of Limerick City of Culture 2014 who commented that she ‘would love to see Paddy’s Day Unlocked take off in other cities around Ireland’ after its debut in Limerick last year.
For their 2015 season of events, they plan on having more kids’ events, more music, and even yoga and mindfulness events. ‘Our 2015 season is about offering more beautiful events, improving them and getting more creative. We want to deepen the relationships we have with public bodies to expand the concept,’ said O’Brien. This summer we can also expect to see many collaborations from Happenings. ‘We will work again with Phizzfest this May, Bloomsday, Streetfeast and a host of other great groups with similar values to our own, including Home Beat for Another Love Story at Killyon Manor on August 21st to 23rd,’ said O’Brien. Collaborating with other groups and organisations is another way for Happenings to host events full of new ideas and different angles, while also facilitates the sense of community and togetherness the organisation strives for.
Happenings operates of 36 hours notice for most of their outdoor events so sign up for alerts at Happenings.ie, or follow them on Twitter at @Happenings1. Full details of the Paddy’s Day Unlocked event are on Facebook. Tickets cos €5 at the gate, with children under 12 going free.
Words: Rachel Drachman
Photo: Allen Kiely
