Designed and built to world-best standards, Vicar Street opened in the autumn of 1998 pledging to give Dublin a mid-sized venue that would 'punch above its weight'. The roll-call of performers who've graced the Vicar Street stage in the past year testifies to a promise well kept.
Those privileged to catch the visit of the mercurial Al Green still tell of how the earth moved (the singing Reverenddoes have God on his side).
Other legends had to make do with simply raising the roof, including John Cale, Marianne Faithfull, Ian Dury and the Blockheads, Lloyd Cole, Donovan, Grant McLennan and Robert Forster of the Go Betweens, Jonathan Richman, deejays Belle and Sebastian, Dave Brubeck, Billy Bragg and Giles Peterson.
For performers and audiences alike, Vicar Street exerts an appeal that boils down to physical attraction. This is no accident - every square centimetre of this remarkable complex was painstaking designed to provide the perfect viewing and listening environment. From the foundation stone to the final coat of paint there was just one consideration - get it right! The venue has superb in-house lighting and sound systems, with unimpeded sight-lines to the stage and no seat more than 44 feet from the action.
And then there's the little extras such as the magnificent oak-furnished surroundings, the pre-bookable seating, the fast and friendly table service and the secure Thomas Street car park right across the road.
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