Saturday 16th August 2025
Location: Market Cross
8 August 2025
8.30pm
St Canice’s Cathedral
A: €39 / €37 B: €34 / €32
75 min approx. (no interval)
BOOK TICKETS
Wheelchair accessible
“
strikingly original
”
The New York Times on Kamala Sankaram
“
one of the most exciting opera composers in the country
”
The Washington Post on Kamala Sankaram
The spirits of two remarkable women encounter each other across the centuries in this haunting and intimate opera by celebrated Indian-American composer Kamala Sankaram, with lyrics from Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Paul Muldoon.
The tragic life story of Savita Halappanavar and that of the Cork-born pirate Anne Bonny are interwoven in a groundbreaking fusion of traditional Irish and Indian classical music. Muldoon’s libretto – inspired by everything from sea shanties to Hindi ghazal – forges unexpected connections between the women while Sankaram’s score draws inspiration from medieval music and classical Indian ragas.
Talented young soprano Anchal Dhir and dazzling mezzo-soprano Michelle O’Rourke sing the main roles, accompanied by Crash Ensemble and renowned accordion player Danny O’Mahony. Directed by award-winning filmmaker Alan Gilsenan, with musical direction by the brilliant Kate Ellis, and semi-staged in St Canice’s, Custom of the Coast is a strikingly original collaboration and a deeply moving reflection on the treatment of women in Ireland through the ages.
Custom of the Coast was developed in a Works & Process LaunchPAD residency at Potash Hill and presented in workshop form in New York City by Experiments in Opera and Works & Process.
Artists
Composer Kamala Sankaram
Librettist Paul Muldoon
Accordion Danny O’Mahony
Crash Ensemble

Cast
Anchal Dhir
Michelle O’Rourke

Artistic Team
Musical Director Kate Ellis
Stage Director Alan Gilsenan
Book Tickets
Book Tickets
Fri 8 Aug, 8.30p.m. A: €39 / €37 B: €34 / €32 BOOK NOW
Organisers Website

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