MAJOR NEW MUSIC VENUE FOR DROGHEDA

The opening will be hosted by comedy star Deirdre O’Kane and will feature a host of top artists, including the Honey Bees Swing and Jazz Band, St Peters Male Voice Choir, The Murphy Family, Drogheda Brass Band and the Lourdes Brass Band. The show will run until September 26, and proceeds from the opening night will go to the Alzheimer Society. Tickets cost €25 and can be booked by phoning 041-9878560.

With several sectors of the music industry suffering from the worldwide economic downturn, the opening of the venue is seen as a major vote of confidence in the live music scene in Ireland. The theatre, the brainchild of local Sound Shop owner Tommy Leddy, is located in East Coast Business Park in Matthews Lane in Drogheda, and will facilitate up to 1,200 fans, 900 of them seated. The TLT Theatre will be equipped with underground dressing rooms, a baby grand piano and one of the largest stages in Ireland. The custom-built theatre will also include a school of music, rehearsal rooms, a coffee shop and bar facilities in a venue situated only about 30 miles along the motorway from Dublin.

A former musician himself, Leddy is one of the most popular and best respected individuals in the musical instrument business in Ireland, his Sound Shop attracting customers from all over the country.