Poetry is our thing here!
The Illuminations poetry open mic has been held on the first Thursday of every month since way back in 2013, when it was first staged as a part of the North West Pride Festival at the Bookmart. Hosted by Patrick Curley attended by a friendly cast of regulars, you might even see the owners of the bookshop (Donal and Adam) perform a bit of poetry at it!
Illuminations is a welcoming environment that we hope anyone can feel a part of, no matter who they are.
At the moment, we’re very happy to be able to hold our poetry nights in the Model on the Mall! The bigger space allows us to hold even bigger nights than we used to- and we’re very happy to see so many new faces. We still hold our meetings at 8pm on the first Thursday of every month, hope we’ll see you there :)
Gigs @ Bookmart
We’ve hosted dozens of alternative and outsider musicians, from local legends like Gulpt and Marge Bouvier to touring artists like Bell Lungs, Ocean Floor and Joey Molinaro.
The gigs are intimate and surprising- always worth being a member of the select audience.
And we make sure the artists who perform get everything from the ticket sales after expenses, so you know you’re supporting them directly when you see an act here.
At the moment, we aren’t doing gigs, but if we do start back up, you’ll find out al the latest news on our instagram @bookmartsligo