Dublin City Council Bram Stoker Festival, returns this Bank Holiday Weekend ready to thrill Dubliners and visitors alike with four days and nights of deadly adventures, including a fiery spectacle, theatrical terrors, immersive art, cinematic treats and free events in the city. From Friday 25th to Monday 28th October, the city will become a haven for the curious and the brave.
A Free Spectacle at Dublin Castle with Fiery Experiments and Monster Mayhem
A fiery spectacle awaits at Frank & McStein’s Monster Laboratory, where the historic Dublin Castle becomes the setting for science gone mad. Across three unforgettable nights, families are invited to witness the wild experiments of Professors Frank and McStein as they attempt to bring the most terrifying creature ever to life in their MONSTER Lab (Ministry Of Nonsensical Science and Terrifying Experimental Research).
Guided by diabolical professors Frank and McStein and their eminent colleagues and their team of Igors, kids will make their way through the fire-powered and interactive stations, earning power-up tokens to feed into the MONSTER-O-METER.
Theatrical Terrors for all ages
Following last year’s sell-out success, the festival returns to the Abbey Theatre with Dracula: Lucy’s Passion, directed by Joan Sheehy: a staged reading bringing the dark world of Bram Stoker’s gothic masterpiece to our national stage. Audiences will be captivated by Lucy Westerna’s tragic transformation, brought to life through letters, diary entries, and dramatic readings by Killian Coyle, Martha Dunlea, Clare Monnelly, Patrick Ryan and Ben Waddell, all accompanied by a haunting soundscape by Tom Lane and lighting design by Suzie Cummins.
MORB in association with Axis Ballymun presents The Haunting of Gusty Nook, a thrilling new show for the coolest 8-12 year olds written by Peter Dunne and directed by Ursula McGinn. In the super weird town of Gusty Nook, strange monsters suddenly appear, and it’s up to young Belinda, the 1501st most popular kid in town, to confront the chaos and battle fear itself. This blend of spooky thrills and comedy is the perfect deadly adventure for young audiences this October. A relaxed performance will take place on Friday 25 October at 4pm and there will be an ISL interpreted performance at 6.30pm on Friday 25 October
Eternal Night: An Immersive Art Experience by Maser
Step into Eternal Night, a free immersive indoor art experience created by internationally celebrated Irish artist Maser. Spanning 300 square metres, this mysterious installation invites you to leave the ordinary behind and explore a hyper-reality inspired by the dark themes of Stoker’s work and the hidden underbelly of Dublin.
Music From Beyond
Step back in time with Voices of the Dead: Ancient Chant & Ritual Songs, an evening of ancient chant, reviving haunting melodies that weave tales of life and death, the miraculous and the supernatural, heaven and hell. Schola Hyberniae, an all female vocal ensemble, will draw from the rich tradition of Gregorian chant and ancient Irish manuscripts, this performance brings our vibrant Irish cultural heritage to vivid life.
SCANRA: Samhain at the Cellar is an immersive night of music, myth, and storytelling that celebrates the Irish origins of Samhain. With performances by a diverse lineup of female and non-binary artists, including composer Éna Brennan and goth folk artist Aoife Wolf, this event promises an unforgettable night of supernatural sounds and eerie tales in the atmospheric setting of the Workman’s Cellar.
At Light House Cinema, the classic film Nosferatu will be accompanied by a live score by Rita Perry & Robbie Perry. The duo’s music highlights how Stoker’s work takes shape and life over a hundred years after Dracula’s publication. In the work, the artists pay due respect to both Stoker, the original story-teller and to the cinematic vision of Murnau, celebrating the intersection of literature, cinema and music.
IFI Horrorthon Takeover
In collaboration with IFI Horrorthon, Slaughterhouse are invading the IFI, for one night only, and turning it into the Slaughterhouse of Horrors, featuring Seanchoíche, a storytelling night which has sold out events across the world, gathering people to tell their stories of ‘The Horror Within’; a 35th-anniversary screening of Pet Sematary; and a masterclass in Irish horror in the final room, featuring Kate Dolan (You Are Not My Mother) and Lee Cronin (Evil Dead Rise), hosted by Billie Jean of the ever-popular Video Nasty Presents. Tickets for all three events include access to an afterparty in the foyer where the crew from HONEYPOT will wake the dead with a brand new soundtrack for the legendary 1922 film Häxan.
Uncover Dublin’s Dark Literary & Historical Secrets
A discovery of major historical and literary significance about Bram Stoker has been made and in mid October, all details will be revealed to the world. At the festival, this discovery will be discussed in detail at a worldwide exclusive public event in the Pillar Room at the Rotunda Hospital with Miriam O’Callaghan interviewing the person who made this discovery, Brian Cleary as well as Paul Murray (Stoker’s pre-eminent biographer) and visual artist Paul McKinley about Brian’s incredible find, the fascinating and heartwarming story behind it, and what it means for the legacy of Bram Stoker.
At the Supreme Court at the Four Courts there will be a special recording of Newstalk’s Talking History podcast: Talking History – Petty Sessions: Weird and Wonderful Court Cases from Victorian Ireland. Hosted by Dr. Patrick Geoghegan, with guests Paul Kelly, President of the District Court, Zoe Reid, Keeper at The National Archives of Ireland and Professor Jarlath Killeen, Head of the School of English, Trinity College Dublin. The panel will dive into the weird, wonderful and fascinating tales from the Petty Sessions of the 19th century and how they help us understand the Ireland of Bram Stoker’s time as well as the author himself.
Historian Donal Fallon will host The Women of Bram Stoker’s Life: Three Castles Burning Live and explore the lives of Charlotte Stoker, Bram’s mother, who raised him on folklore and stories of her own youth; Speranza (Lady Jane Wilde, the mother of Oscar) a key influence in expanding on his knowledge of Ireland’s folklore and mythology and Florence Balcombe, the woman he would marry and who Oscar Wilde had earlier pursued. Donal will be joined by Marion McGarry, author of the acclaimed book Irish Customs and Rituals and an authority on Jane Wilde and Charlotte Stoker to discuss some of the women central to Stoker’s life and work. Eva Jane Gaffney will bring their words to life. This event will have ISL interpretation.
History fans are in for a treat at Who Did What Now? Podcast: The Victorians Ruined Everything. Join Katie Charlwood as she explores the mystical and macabre obsessions of the Victorian era in The Victorians Ruined Everything. This entertaining and informative event promises to spill the tea on all things eerie in 19th-century Dublin and is set in the historic Graduate Memorial Building in Trinity College. This event will have ISL interpretation.
An annual favourite, Spooky Stories at Marsh’s Library invites guests to wander the darkened galleries where books of witchcraft and heresy are to be found. This free, eerie experience is sure to send shivers down your spine, just as it did for a young Bram Stoker who visited the library many times.
Finally, immerse yourself in the history of life, disease, and death at Collins Barracks with two unique events. A World Full of Miseries and Woes and Troubles offers a free tour exploring the hardships of life as a soldier in Dublin’s 300-year-old barracks, while Hands-on History: Malady, Mourning, and Mystery allows participants to interact with museum artefacts and learn about how people in the Victorian era fought illness and mourned their losses.
Spooky Fun for the Little Monsters
St. Patrick’s Park will once again transform into Stokerland, a pop-up Victorian fun park where families and the eternally young can enjoy a day out filled with spooky delights. With the stunning cathedral as a gothic backdrop, this free event offers street theatre, face-painting, a food market and a Victorian style carousel. Fancy dress is encouraged, so don your best costume and join in the ghoulish games and macabre thrills from Saturday to Monday. A relaxed session of Stokerland will take place on Monday 28th October from 11am – 1.30pm.
The festival offers plenty of creative fun for younger audiences, including the Freaky Flipbook Workshop, where children can craft their own Halloween-themed animations. Led by the award-winning team from Speak Broccoli, this hands-on workshop is perfect for budding artists and provides a unique keepsake from the festival. There’s more make and do at Making Faces, a mask making workshop at the National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts and History, hosted by visual artist Carrie Lynam. This drop-in session encourages participants to explore colour and texture as they design and construct unique masks inspired by the intriguing objects on display at the National Museum.
At Dracula’s Disco, a free (ticketed) event at The Round Room at The Mansion House, Dracula’s favourite DJ, Donal Dineen, will be spinning the decks with spooky hits and Halloween classics, inviting young zombies, ghosts, and all music-loving monsters to get their freak on.
This year’s Bram Stoker Festival promises something for everyone, from literary enthusiasts and art lovers to families and thrill-seekers. As always, the festival’s unique blend of Gothic fun and cultural intrigue ensures that Dublin will be the place to be this Hallowe’en.
For more information, visit www.bramstokerfestival.com and follow the festival on social media using #BramStokerFestival. Dublin City Council Bram Stoker Festival is produced and presented by Schweppe Curtis Nunn Ltd.
