Event of the weekFlorence RoadTuesday, May 26th, Limelight, Belfast, 7pm, £30, sold out; Wednesday, May 27th, 3Olympia Theatre, Dublin, 7pm, €31/€27, ticketmaster.ieSix years ago the childhood friends Lily Aron, Ailbhe Barry, Emma Brandon and Hannah Kelly were banging out cover versions and embryonic self-written songs in a garden shed in their hometown of Bray, Co Wicklow. Last summer Florence Road released their debut EP, Fall Back, which featured five original songs, with production and cowriting credits from US producers John Hill, Dan Wilson and Dan Nigro, a longtime collaborator with Olivia Rodrigo and Chappell Roan. Since then the group have featured on the BBC Sound of 2026 list and gained more than a million monthly listens on streaming platforms (a figure boosted by the recent release of their second EP, Spring Forward). With their earworm songs that mix indie rock-pop abrasiveness and confessional, lightly anxious melancholia, signs of justified mainstream success are as clear as daylight. Catch them while you can. GigsDoseSaturday, May 23rd, Workman’s Club, Dublin, 8pm, €15, eventbrite.comDose, from Tony Clayton-Lea, for The Guide, Saturday, May 23, 2026. Almost three years after they formed, the Dublin-based indie band Dose – Lizzie Fitzpatrick, Lauren Heron, Nicki Meehan and Aoife Spratt – move up a gear with the release of the brooding single Consumed. The song is on their new EP, Sycophantic, for which this gig is the launchpad. Support comes from the Co Louth electro-dance duo BBFT, who will be playing songs from their recent debut EP. Also Thursday, May 28th, Róisín Dubh, Galway, midnight, free, roisindubh.net; Saturday, June 6th, Duke of York, Belfast, dukeofyorkbelfast.com; Friday, June 12th, Beyond the Pale, Glendalough, Co Wicklow, itsbeyondthepale.ie. SugarTuesday, May 26th, Ulster Hall, Belfast, 7pm, £56.50/£52.50; Wednesday, May 27th, National Stadium, Dublin, 6.30pm, €60, ticketmaster.ieOriginally active between 1992 and 1995, Sugar re-formed in October 2025, since when they’ve re-established themselves as the alt.rock guitar band you don’t want to ignore. Fronted by the former Hüsker Dü singer and songwriter Bob Mould, the band’s new songs, including House of Dead Memories and Long Live Love, are as melodically crunchy as they ever were. Long-term fans need not despair, however, as Sugar’s classic punk-pop guitar albums, Copper Blue (1992) and File Under: Easy Listening (1994), will be filleted for tracks.Heineken Greenlight CorkFrom Thursday, May 28th, until Sunday, May 31st, various venues,m times and prices, Cork city, heinekengreenlight.ieHeineken Greenlight, Cliffords, from Tony Clayton-Lea, for The Guide, Saturday, May 23, 2026. This series of events was recently launched in Dublin. It’s now the turn of the real capital of Ireland to host a range of mostly Irish music acts. Headliners include Le Boom (Thursday, May 28th, Voodoo Rooms, 9pm, €10), Inhaler (Friday, May 29th, South Gate Complex, 7.30pm, sold out), Florence Road (Saturday, May 30th, Cyprus Avenue, 7pm, €20, with support from KhakiKid) and the Canadian indie band Men I Trust (Saturday, May 30th, Cyprus Avenue, 7pm, €20, with support from Cork-based Cliffords). DJ sets over the weekend are from Jazzy, Nightmares on Wax, Huey Morgan, Jenny Greene and Stevie G. Arts festivalLuke Kelly FestivalSaturday, May 23rd, and Sunday, May 24th, Smithfield Square, Dublin, free, dublin.ie/lukekellyThe Luke Kelly Festival is a free, family-oriented event celebrating the life and legacy of one of Ireland’s most recognisable voices. Highlights from its fourth edition include two exceptional Dublin music acts, in Gemma Dunleavy and A Lazarus Soul (Saturday, May 23rd) and The Dubliners Encore (Sunday, May 24th). Of particular interest is Sabina Higgins in conversation with the historian Donal Fallon about public service and the arts (Bailey Discussion Tent, Sunday, May 24th).MusicalLes Misérables: The World Arena Concert TourFrom Friday, May 29th, until Monday, June 1st; from Wednesday, June 3rd, until Saturday, June 6th, 3Arena, Dublin, 6.30pm, €126.20/€95.80/€52, ticketmaster.ieAdvance reviews are in, and if this production really is a “blockbuster on steroids with an atmosphere between rock concert and football match”, then we’re in for a very good time indeed. There’s a strong Irish connection in this musical adaptation of Victor Hugo’s historical novel, in that the lead character of Jean Valjean is shared between Co Meath’s Killian Donnelly and Argentina’s Gerónimo Rauch. Donnelly, who in 2008 began in the West End show as a swing – a performer who plays one or more roles in an acting ensemble – has since been closely associated with the multi-award-winning musical.ComedyKilkenny Cat LaughsFrom Friday, May 29th, until Monday, June 1st, various venues, times and prices, thecatlaughs.comKilkenny Cat Laughs features many recognisable names as well as numerous emerging acts from Ireland and Britain. Highlights are plentiful, but perhaps your best comedy bets include Alison Spittle’s Cat Cabaret (Friday, May 29th, Cleere’s Theatre, 9pm, €15, with Roger O’Sullivan and Madeleine Brettingham), Barry Murphy & Friends (Saturday, May 30th, Home Rule Club, 2pm, €15, with Kevin Gildea and Karl Spain) and Pawsome & Clawsome (Sunday, May 31st, 5.30pm, €32.50, with Colm O’Regan and David O’Doherty). OperaNormaFrom Sunday, May 24th, until Saturday, May 30th, Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, 7.30pm, €71.60/€56.25/€33.75, ticketmaster.ie Featuring Casta Diva, one of the most famous arias of the 19th century, Vincenzo Bellini’s opera is considered a foremost example of bel canto. The Georgian soprano Salome Jicia features; the longtime Irish National Opera collaborator Orpha Phelan directs. Conductors are Maurizio Benini (Dublin and Wexford) and Fergus Shiel (Cork). Also, Wednesday, June 3rd, National Opera House, Wexford, 7.30pm, €80, nationaloperahouse.ie; Saturday, June 6th, Cork Opera House, 8pm, sold out, corkoperahouse.ieStill runningOpen Ear 2026From Thursday, May 28th, until Sunday, May 31st, Sherkin Island, Co Cork, 7pmn, €271.55 (sold out), openear.ieThis annual boutique event is catnip for those with curious ears, with many music acts/artists making their Irish debuts. These include the Iranian-Canadian siblings Mohammad and Mehdi Mehrabani-Yeganeh and the Lebanese musician and DJ Rabih Beaini. Irish acts include Negro Impacto, Rún and Ian Lynch’s acclaimed trad/drone project, One Leg One Eye.Book it this weekCairde Sligo Arts Festival, July 4th-11th, cairdefestival.comRhiannon Giddens, Vicar Street, Dublin, September 30th, ticketmaster.ieMuldoon’s Picnic, NCH, Dublin, October 6th, nch.ieSimon Brodkin, Vicar Street, Dublin, December 3rd, ticketmaster.ie