Pat Fleming

This recording took place in the Everyman Palace Theatre, where Pat Fleming is now front of house manager. He recalls his introduction to theatre fifty years ago, when he joined the Cork Operatic Society, one of the oldest musical group in Ireland. He goes on to recall Sean Donnelly, who set up a secondary school in the early fifties, where Pat received his education. He declares that there was an outpouring of interest in amateur singing and acting in Cork from the fifties onwards. He himself sang with the choir in the Opera Society, which consistently put on two shows annually. He came to the Opera House as Manager in 1975, and remained there until 1982. He speaks about the turbulent times there, though it managed to stage a performance for 50 weeks of the year. It was fascinating to record the coming together of the Ballet Company, the Folk Dance Group and the Operative Society, which provided the dancers and the choreography for the productions at various venues around the city.