The Devil’s in the Dance Hall

A powerful, joyous live performance rooted in Irish social history and music.

The Devil’s in the Dance Hall is inspired by the true story of Jimmy Gralton and the suppression of Ireland’s rural dance halls in the early 20th century; a time when gathering to dance, to play music, and to think freely was seen as a threat.

Drawing on oral history, folk memory, and the energy of the big-band era, Edwina Guckian has created an immersive theatre performance that brings to life the world of the parish hall as a place of movement, learning, courtship, argument, and possibility, and asks what happens when church and state attempt to dictate how a community socialise.

At its heart, the performance celebrates the collective joy of dance as a form of defiance. Through spoken word, song, and the roaring sounds of The Gralton Big Band, it tells how Ireland’s old dance halls became centres of community life, offering music, learning, debate, and freedom of expression, until church and state moved to close them down through the introduction of the 1935 Dane Hall Act.

As the performance unfolds, the boundary between stage and floor dissolves, and the audience are invited to dance the night away. The hall fills with movement, laughter, and connection across many generations, echoing the spirit of the original dance halls.

‘The dance hall door is the gate of Hell, and too many are queuing to enter” –  FR. BROWNE – LISTOWEL, CO. KERRY 1936

Presented in partnership with Belfast TradFest.

Ticket Options

Dance Floor Ticket – £30
Join the action on the floor. Includes the full show and participation in the dancing.

Balcony Seated Ticket: £25

Settle into your reserved seat in the balcony and watch The Devil’s in the Dance Hall unfold beneath you. Ticket does not include access to or participation in the dancing on the ground floor.

Cast & Crew

The Gralton Big Band: Cathy Jordan • Ryan Molloy • Stephen Doherty • David Doocey • Matthew Berrill • Jim Higgins • Conor Caldwell • Brona Graham • Ben Castle

Actors: Mikel Murfi • Roseanne Lynch • Darragh Scannell

Swing dancers: Melanie Casabone • Gabriel Rodriguez

Áirc Damhsa: Aidan Vaughan • Grainne Langton • Ellen Langton • Deirdre Kerins • Tara Noone • Ryan Owens • Róisín Faughnan • Liam Taylor • jack Hughes • Aisling Burke • Niamh Doherty • Claire Flanagan • Molly Grady • Clodagh McCaffrey • Aoibhín Doherty • Megan Walsh • Croídhe Doherty • Ailíse Maxwell • Ava Glancy • Siofra Mooney

Choreography: Edwina Guckian & Áirc Damhsa

Musical director: Stephen Doherty

Script: Vincent Woods

Theatre director: John O’Hare

Lighting design: Michael Cummins

Sound engineer: Tom Doherty

Costume: Maura Logue

Photography: Cían Flynn

Illustration & graphic design: Jesse Smith

Production team: Mary Kerins, Karen Tansey

Creator, Director & Producer: Edwina Guckian

Funded in partnership with the Arts Council of Ireland and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland through the Government of Ireland’s Shared Island Fund.