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Minister Martin welcomes the first nightclub event in 18 months taking place in the Button Factory tonight

Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Catherine Martin TD, has welcomed the pilot nightclub event taking place in the Button Factory, Temple Bar tonight (30 September). It is the first event of its kind to take place in more than 18 months.

 

The event, which is part of a series of pilot events in the arts and culture sector, is being rolled out by Hidden Agenda Ltd/District 8, in consultation with Give Us The Night, key members of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce. The event will showcase some of Ireland’s best talent in the electronic music sector. It will feature Cailín, R.Kitt, Sunil Sharpe, DART, Kelly Anne Byrne, Sim Simma, Breen, Cáit and Sam Greenwood.

 

Speaking today, Minister Martin said:

 

“I am delighted to be supporting this pilot event tonight. This is the first indoor nightclub event in more than 18 months and is an important step as we prepare for a further reopening in October.

 

“The Report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce, which was published earlier this month, highlights the importance of the electronic music sector and club culture. I believe that this is a small step forward in providing support to this sector as they plan their reopening, and tonight’s event also highlights some of the wonderful talent that we have in Ireland.

 

“There are many challenges ahead for the live performance sector, particularly in a post Covid-19 context, and it is essential that we continue to learn from pilots such as this one. This pilot is important for this industry to help it plan for a safe full reopening on 22 October, subject to the public health situation.”

 

It is hoped that the event will help pilot the logistics of event ticketing, venue admittance, the impact of antigen testing and ventilation to ensure a safe and financially sustainable reopening of the nightclub sector, currently set out in the reopening plan for 22 October.  This event is coming at the end of a series of live music pilot events.

 

It will be a fully standing show, based on a 60% capacity and attendees will be allowed to behave as normal within the club.

 

To ensure the safety of attendees, staff and artists, a range of control measures are in place. Some of the measures in place are as follows:

 

  • All attendees must produce a Digital Covid Cert and a negative antigen test.  Attendees are required to attend a test centre close to the Button Factory today to undertake an antigen test;
  • Full contact details of those attending will be required for contact tracing;
  • All attendees must wear masks when queuing and will be reminded to replace their masks when they leave the clubs;
  • Ventilation system will be maximised and CO2 levels monitored throughout the event;
  • Entering and exiting the venue will be carefully managed by the event organisers and venue management.

 

ENDS