Smock Alley Theatre

One of the best venues in the city for unconventional or risqué theatre!
I almost always come away from Smock Alley with a large smile. I’ve seen countless excellent productions here like Pondling, Monster/​Clock and some Neo-​Futurist stuff!
Beautiful space and it’s always a pleasure to see something here

Located on the keys in Dublin it is close to Temple bar etc. Its a beautiful old building with lots of history and character. I was at a banquet show in the upstairs section which was probably the church at some point. Beautiful stained glass windows and ceilings made it the perfect venue for this or weddings etc which Im told do happen here.
The show was great, a DIT graduating class final showcase. Really enjoyable and I will definately be back to this great venue. There is a full bar with Dublin prices of course.

Highlight of my weekend. I took the mammy to a horror-​themed Literary Death Match as part of the Bram Stoker Festival (which is absolutely everywhere this year, it really seems to have reached its potential, yays). We weren’t entirely sure what to expect, but left about 90 minutes later feeling exhilarated, entertained and slightly creeped out. Exhilarated because the people involved were so enthusiastic, talented and fun. Entertained because the speakers (both judges and participants) were articulate, gifted at storytelling, and completely absorbed our attention throughout. Creeped out because each piece delivered by the participants was icky and unsettling. Comprising a cast of sleazy manipulative men, dreamy vampire women, a Dublin which demanded and received a worthy vampiric monster, and cannibalistic academics, these were amazing tales.
Smock Alley Theatre is lovely theatre space, putting me in mind of the atmpophere of the tiny, cramped cellars in Paris used by improv groups and other peripatetic artists, but with a great sense of space and modern comfortable and cool seating. It’s a gem, I wish I’d been before, and intend to become a regular attendee.

A great location on the quays for smaller plays — we visited the venue during the Fringe Fest event. Granted it was the opening day but the ticket office coped remarkably well with people collecting tickets but the bar, not so good with haphazard service and a frustrated queue.
The venue itself is good — all seats have a great view of the stage and allowed the performers to interact with the patrons in the first few rows. Bonus point for being allowed to bring drinks in!

Apart of the dublin fringe festival, loads of shows were taking place in Smock Alley. So I attended here in multiple parts of the venue.
It is surprisingly good size and utilises the spaces well. The staff are very friendly and quite liked that the intro to any show was not only in english and irish (haven’t seen that done anywhere else)
They have a small wee bar and an inside bit to sit down and pre-​wait for the shows to begin. Overall its a great place for shows and centrally located. I think it would be good if they had a smoking area that was covered (this is ireland and it does rain)

Beautiful venue and far bigger than you would think.
Some amazing background history on the venue also.
Very intimate also.

It was my second time in the building but my first time watching a theatre play (the first time was a photo exhibition).
I simply love the atmosphere here. I’m a sucker for old buildings and they did a very nice job in keeping the old structure but bringing it into modern use.
During the break we went upstairs to their banquet hall — what a space. You can easily imagine yourself having a feast — or celebration — here.

Went to see heroin (e) for breakfast here as part of 10 days in Dublin. Lovely, clean, intimate venue. Lots of steps up to the toilet in the main building and had to venture out in the rain to one of the theatres, but this is a lovely venue close to temple bar. Good experience and the show was brilliant.

Well this is a gorgeous space isn’t it.
I’ve walked by here several times in the past and not quite realised what as behind the great glass door.
A beautiful feat of architecture for a start. Lovingly restored Georgian shenanigans, mixed with new steel and shiny glass.
Then there’s the bar. The best stocked bar I’ve ever seen in a theatre that’s for sure. And it has sweets too.
Then there are the shows. Generally smaller more indie types, can occasionally be a little hit and miss, but are always good value, and always lovingly put together.
Housed within Smock Alley, there are a few different spaces. I was in the Black Box, which is just as it seems. There is also the stunning Banquet Hall, The Boy’s School, and the Main Space.
An asset to the cultural scene in Dublin, there ain’t no two ways about it.

The Boy’s School venue at Smock Alley ranks among the most interesting theatre settings I’ve ever experienced. Last time I was here was to see When The Hunter Returns by Lally Katz, a gothic fairy-​tale of love, loss and revenge.
The raw interior worked perfectly with the dark and dramatic story; a witch casting spells in the hope of her lover’s return and angry villagers trying to get rid of the poor woman (who really meant no harm) for good. I didn’t mind that I had to stand through the whole play, it just made me feel more part of the performance. And what a great performance it was.

What a great venue?! It takes something like the Fringe Festival to get you going here. I enjoyed «Live Art Speed Date» which was extremely fun and very Fringe!
I had never been to Smock Alley Theatre before and it’s a great space.

A little known theatre amongst the occasional theatre going crowd. It is wedged between two churches and is something that you would easily walk by.
It was built way back in 1662 and was a prominent theatrical venue in it’s hey day. On either side of it is St Michael and St John’s Church. It’s structure still remains and it opens up into the basement.
It recently got a refurbishment grant so that it could be modelled back to it’s former glory. Its part of Gaiety School of acting and you can catch some good performances. The location is in Temple Bar which adds to it’s historical essence, a real Dublin treasure.