ABOUT THE BOARD
Dan Boyle (Chair) is a former member of Dáil Éireann, Seanad Éireann, and Cork City Council. He is a Community Development Worker and is active in many arts organisations and events in the Cork area. In addition to chairing the board at Firkin Crane, he is currently chair of the board of Corcadorca Theatre Company, as well as a board member (and former chair) of Cork Art Society/Lavit gallery. He is also formerly the chair and board member of Wandesford Quay Artists Studios and Gallery and a former board member of the Glucksmann Gallery, Triskel Arts Centre and Crawford Art Gallery.
Catherine Clancy
Yvonne Coughlan, MA Theatre and Drama studies, UCC, is from Kinsale, Co. Cork. A writer, director, producer and performer, she founded her company RSVP (Red Sandstone Varied Productions) in November 2006, and has co-created many arts participatory projects in short film and theatre, site specific theatre projects and community arts projects, since that time. Work has been performed in Scotland, Australia and Ireland, and next up for 2017 is Greece. Though her heart lies with the artistic direction of the actor on screen or stage, she is also the producer of music video, short film, advertising shorts, musical theatre, and a variety of events with various companies, as well as working as a casting director. Yvonne is also the presenter of a radio arts show entitled Irish heArts on the digital Cork based station Irish Radio International, and she is the Cork South West coordinator for the National Campaign for the Arts (NCFA). She has had the honour of working on many shows in The Firkin Crane, and is delighted to be a member of the board at such a prestigious and well loved theatre. www.rsvpireland.webs.com
Patricia Crosbie, a native of Cork, was a member of Irish National Ballet (Cork) for 6 years and was a principle ballerina with London Ballet Theatre (London) and Vienna Festival Ballet (London). She toured worldwide with the renowned rock band, The Kinks, choreographing and performing in their concerts. Patricia is now Ballet Mistress with Cork City Ballet (Firkin Crane, Cork) for whom she has choreographed many ballets, including her critically acclaimed full-length dance interpretation of The Playboy of the Western World. She has conducted workshops and Master classes for Irish National Youth Ballet, Crux Dance Company, Siamsa Tire, Cork School of Dance and for Dance Ireland, which included ‘Summer Intros’ in 2012.
Patricia taught on the Diploma in Dance Course at Cork’s College of Further Education (CSN) for 12 years and teaches open ballet classes for Cork City Ballet at Firkin Crane. She is now ballet tutor on the MA and BA courses at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance Limerick University. Patricia contributed to Dr. Ruth Fleischmann’s book Joan Denise Moriarty: Ireland’s First Lady of Dance, and spoke at its launch in UL. Patricia was awarded her MA in Dance from UL in 2012 and has been appointed Associate Artist with Dance Ireland (Dublin) for 2015/2016. She has been a Director of the Board at Firkin Crane since 2012
Thomas Gould is a Sinn Féin Councillor for Cork North Central since 2009 is the leader of the Sinn Féin party in Cork City. He is originally from Knocknaheeny but now lives with his wife Michelle and two children, Aoife and Orlaith – on Cathedral Road in Gurranabraher, which is very close to the Firkin Crane. He went to school in the North Monastery and to college in CIT as a mature student where he received a diploma in Business Studies. Thomas is now a Logistics Manager for JDS Foods, which is based in Churchfield. He is currently the Chairman of St. Vincent’s H&F Club and is also involved with St. Vincent’s Camogie Club with whom his wife and daughters play. He has coached both underage and adult teams for the past 30 years.
Thomas is on the Board of Management of Gaelscoil Pheig Sayers, Farranferris and is a member of Parents for Equal Access to Education (PEAE). He is the chairman of the Northside School’s Coaching Initiative. He is also on a number of committees in Cork City Council: the Environment & Recreation Strategic Policy Committee, Housing & Community Functional Committee, Finance & Estimates Functional Committee, Environment & Recreation Functional Committee, School Meals Committee, Southern West River Basin District Management Committee and the Sports Committee. He became a member of the board of the Firkin Crane in 2014.
Kieran McCarthy has actively promoted Cork’s heritage with its various communities and people for over twenty years. He has led and continues to lead successful heritage initiatives through his community talks, City and County school heritage programmes, walking tours, newspaper articles, books and his work through his heritage consultancy business. For the past 16 years, Kieran has written a local heritage column in the Cork Independent on the history, geography and its intersection of modern day life in communities in Cork City and County. He holds a PhD in Cultural Geography from University College Cork and has interests in ideas of landscape, collective memory, narrative and identity structures. Kieran is the author of seventeen books on Cork and its region. In June 2009 and May 2014, Kieran was elected as a local government councillor (Independent) to Cork City Council. He is also a member of the EU’s Committee of the Regions. More on Kieran’s work can be seen at www.corkheritage.ie and www.kieranmccarthy.ie.
Linda O’Halloran has been working in Cathedral Credit Union for almost 17 years, starting off as a teller then moving on to Marketing and Promotions Officer. She has been involved in many community groups over the years, including the role of Chairperson of the Parents Council in St Aidan’s Community College, SARA (Shandon Area Renewal Association), Shandon Business Association, one of the organisers of the Age Action Inter Generation Quiz and in the past 11 years one of the two main organisers of the Award Winning Shandon Street Festival. Linda has just become the most recent addition to the Board Directors of Firkin Crane and she looks forward to being part of the exciting times which are planned for the amazing building.