Despite the success of Irish music in the last decade venues all over the country have been struggling to survive so it’s great to see that the Kino in Cork will reopen under new management, with promoters Ed O’Leary and Joe Kelly stepping into the breech.

The duo are the brains behind It Takes A Village festival and Live at St Luke’s and a host of other regular events around Cork.

Photograph: Louise Barker

“We’re really excited to take on this new venture. The Kino is an iconic landmark building in Cork city going back to its poolhall days through to its life as an art house cinema.” says Ed O’Leary. “We’ve been on the hunt for this exact size and type of venue the past few years and the timing is perfect for both us and the city. We’re going to spend a month working on refurbishments and will be installing a brand new sound and lighting set up.”

O’Leary and Kelly plan to reopen the Kino in mid-September and have already been busy booking acts which they plan to announce soon.

“We have also partnered up with some exciting Cork festivals, namely Sounds from a Safe Harbour, Cork Podcast Festival, Cork Folk Festival, and the Guinness Jazz Festival, for some quality live performances.“

It sounds like The Kino will be a fine addition to Cork’s cultural life.