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heritage · Friday 18 September 2026 · 4:15pm 
Culture Night: Give Sean Nos a Go
At Nenagh Arts Centre · Banba Square, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary
At Nenagh Arts Centre · Banba Square, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary
Nenagh Arts Centre marks Culture Night 2026 on Friday, 18 September with “Give Sean Nós a Go,” a beginner-friendly workshop in sean-nós, Ireland’s older, freer style of solo step dance. Dance leader Ranóg Townsend takes the session from 4:15pm to 6:15pm, and no previous dance experience or partner is needed. It is free to attend, in keeping with Culture Night’s nationwide policy of free access to arts events for one evening every September.
Sean-nós dancing is danced close to the floor, typically solo and improvised, with the dancer responding to the rhythm of the music rather than following a set pattern - it differs sharply from the more formal, rehearsed style associated with stage Irish dancing. It survives strongest in Connemara, Cork and Kerry, but sessions like this one are part of a wider push to keep the style alive in places like Tipperary, where its living tradition is patchier. Expect a relaxed, hands-on class rather than a performance: basic steps and rhythm first, then time to try dancing to live or recorded traditional tunes. Culture Night itself is a nationwide, free evening of arts and culture held annually every September, with venues across the country opening their doors for one night only. Nenagh Arts Centre’s full Culture Night programme runs alongside this workshop, so the building is busy with other free events on the same evening.
Nenagh Arts Centre is on Banba Square in the centre of Nenagh, within walking distance of the town’s car parks and the Pearse Street bus stop. Nenagh is served by Bus Éireann and Irish Rail on the Dublin-Limerick line, so the workshop is easy to reach without a car.
Culture Night is a good excuse to see more of Nenagh after the workshop, with the castle keep and the old Governor’s House heritage centre both close to Banba Square. There is more to see in Nenagh and across Co. Tipperary.
Heading to Nenagh Arts Centre in Nenagh? Tipperary has plenty more to see. Read the Nenagh area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.