From the curator who brought you La Cat Salons, and the event organizer who brings you Lady Windermere's Caffeinated Salons, Synapsis Productions presents EMBRYONYX, a womb for nourishing novelty, a platform in the heart of the city where a black-box theatre is opened to blue-sky thinking. We're looking for a multi-media mish-mash of audiovisuals, storytellers, physical theatre, boundary-breaking novelty and uncategorizable performance experiences! Send your concepts to LadyW at lacatsalons [at] gmail [dot] com if you want to be a part of it.

Or, drop round to the Hangar (just off Wicklow Street - formerly St. Andrew's Lane Theatre) for our unofficial launch party, next Friday (27th February 2015, at 22:30). Say the password "Lady Windermere" at the door for a 50% discount if you arrive before 11pm. Affordable beverages on offer from the Hangar throughout the night, DJ Glamo Frowney spinning the decks and a LIVE set from disco-synth-pop-funksters Plutonic Dust.

See you there to discuss future concepts. Dream big! Official launch scheduled for March 13th.

Beyond Conception

Scene & Screen Cinemas - Temple Bar

In partnership with Lady Windermere, the La Cat Salons team are bringing you evening screenings of classic films based on the work of Dublin writers, accompanied by live performances, every Thursday at 7pm and 9.30pm in Temple Bar (just off Cow's Lane). We have popcorn, homemade lemonade, flashmobs, live music, book readings and quirky happenings, packing a tent draped in elaborate fabrics and vintage charm.

For a full list of films and further details, visit the listing on Lady Windermere's blog.

Larry Beau: Mad as Mist and Snow

Sunday, 15^th December, 7pm

Larry Beau leads a gathering of vagabonds and minstrels for ‘Mad as Mist and Snow’ an unconventional Christmas concert and celebration of all tides Yule at the Back Loft venue. Far from the marketing madness of tinsel-topped shopping sprees, let Beau lead you on a journey of festive feasting and frolics, storytelling songs and lyrical lore, amid live musical marvels and audiovisual awesomeness, mulled wine, royal chai tea and hot incredible edibles!

Larry Beau is a Galway born minstrel, composer and songwriter. He began as resident musician with San Francisco's Omnicircus, before developing his identity as a modern- day Irish Minstrel after twelve months’ story collecting in Dingle in 2002. Since then he has traveled with his show to New York, Hollywood, Edinburgh, Florence and Berlin's traveling vintage tavern -Spiegeltent. Beau has released three critically acclaimed albums to date, including William The Brave and  I Dream of Tiger Rose. He has performed at the Electric Picnic, live on RTE Radio1, Tg4 and Tv3. ‘Mad as Mist and Snow’ will feature special performances of songs from his forthcoming album The Sundance Vagabonds, a celebration of the hope, love and survival of society’s underdogs.

If Kate Bush and John Lennon had a love-child, Larry Beau would be their shy black-clad son. - THE TIMES

Like a stray from the nether regions of Neil Jordan’s Interview with the Vampire, Larry Beau inhabits a gothic underworld where decadence, lust and horror vie with one another for his, and our, attentions. ‘I Dream Of Tiger Rose’ is a heady amalgam of high-camp cabaret and doleful balladry - IRISH TIMES

 

Heartstopping - HOTPRESS

V*A*P*I*D Video Salon

La Cat Explore invited you to V*A*P*I*D, a special Sunday salon of Video Artistic Photographic Imagery Displays; where the videos are anything but vapid!

We offered:
Visual Animated Panoramic Imaginative Diversity!  
Virtual Alternative Pixellated Innovative Dreams!!

Featuring 3D audiovisual-mapping sculptures and kinetic, interactive video installations from media master Jeff O'Riordan, live VJ video-mixing by Mr. Marco Gutierrez, a full line-up of film and animation from local and international filmmaking talent: Moran Been-noon, Stephanie Golden, Lesley Ann Daley, Kate McElroy, Pierre Jolivet, Angie Duignan, Marqu Pop, John Freeman, Lemeh42, Pierpaolo Vitale, Sean Hanrahan, Ciarna Hackett, Marek Bogacki Staszkiewicz, Brigit McCone, Raoul Simpson and Darragh O'Callaghan.

Viewers were invited to roam around and explore our special video niches for a solo viewing experience: our Media Tank of Audiovisual Assault features intense video works from Lynda Phelan, Naomi Vone, Darragh O'Callaghan and Sarawut Chutiwongpeti. Our Mysterious Musings television space screened meditative works from filmmakers Karen Forrester, Catherine Harty and John Thompson and Eva Richardson McCrea.

The event was absolutely free, on Sunday 8th December from 4 - 9p.m. Featuring a fully stocked cafe with feasting, frolics and great raffle prizes.  

La Cat Explore is part of the inhouse-curated programme of the Back Loft venue, 7-11 St. Augustine Street, Dublin 8, and is sponsored by the Arts Council Small Festivals Scheme.

V*A*P*I*D! - Video Art Salon Needs You!

La Cat Explore is proud to announce a one-of-a-kind salon of Video Artistic Photographic Imagery Displays - V*A*P*I*D! lighting up the depths of winter with screenings of short experimental films, video art, animations and visual explorations on Sunday, December 8th.

We are looking for:
Visually Amazing Picturesque Imaginative Dioramas!
Virtual Animated Pixellated Innovative Displays!
Va-va-voom! Alternative, Panoramic, Intriguing Delights!

vapid (ˈvæpɪd ) - adjective

1.

offering nothing that is stimulating or challenging; bland.

synonyms:

uninspired,colourless, uninteresting, feeble, flat, dead, dull, boring, tedious, tired, unexciting, unimaginative, lifeless, zestless, spiritless, sterile, anaemic, tame, bloodless, jejune, vacuous, bland, stale, trite, pallid, wishy-washy, watery, tasteless, milk-and-water, flavourless

So if your vid's not vapid, submit it to V*A*P*I*D!

Submission deadline: Sunday 24th November. 

Maximum length - 15 minutes approx. 

Email your submissions to lacatsalons@gmail.com with either a link to an on-line screener of the film (e.g. vimeo / youtube), or sending the film in .mp4 or .mov format via a file-sharing programme.

Story-smelling line-up!

 

La Cat Explore, proudly presents the Story-smelling Salon on Tuesday 12 November, at 7pm! 

A unique multi-sensory storytelling experience, we implore you to smell, feel and hear the tales come to life all around you. Featuring the delicate Gothic eeriness of Nadia Gativa, the shivering psychological thrills of Devon Baur and Jack Murphy, the uncanny jolt of Ken McGrath's short fiction, the narrative windings of James Moran (of the BlueBottle Collective), tales from West Cork by Johnny 'Donkey' Morrissey, and a lyrical Celtic folktale given a new spin by Brigit McCone. Also featuring special surprise guests and one piece of frankly filthy and reprehensible pornographic smut offering fifty shades of farce.

So don't miss it ... only €5 entry to help fund a bowl of soup for our starving artists (this is not a joke, their children need wine).

Mamuska returns 8th November!

Mamuska Dublin swings back into action on Friday 8th November, featuring a packed line-up of live performance and video screenings to challenge and inspire. Audience and artists mingle in an atmosphere of play and discovery. Doors open 7pm. Show starts 7.30 sharp.

Mamuska Dublin is a free event supported by the Arts Council Small Festivals Scheme and curated by the La Cat Salons inhouse programme of La Catedral Studios. Come one, come all!

EVENT LINE-UP

1. EL Putnam  - 'Tea for Two' - PERFORMANCE

2. Tommie Soro (dir) - 'Branded'  and Katya Torres (dir) 'Honey' - VIDEO ART

3. Enda Moran - 'Lostness' - MULTIMEDIA AERIAL PERFORMANCE

4. Ciara Lindsey - 'Regret' - VIDEO ART / LIVE MUSIC

5. Marcus and Marco - 'Why the Stars Hold Their Peace' - MULTIMEDIA STORYTELLING

6. John Freeman (dir.) - 'Murder of Crows' / Roland Gomez and Adiraj Sharma - 'Duo Hang and Tabla' VIDEO ART / LIVE MUSIC
7. Boaz and Vered Zur - 'Relationships' -  PERFORMANCE

8. John Freeman (dir) 'You're the One That I'm Thinking of' followed by Odette 'Sleeping Beauty' - VIDEO ART / DANCE - MIME

9.  David Bickley (dir.) 'Under' and Lesley-Ann Daley 'Primary Narcissism' - VIDEO ART

FEATURED IMAGE: A still from 'Primary Narcissism' by Lesley-Ann Daley