EXCLUSIVE: State of the art creative hub to open in Thurles later this month

The Dwan Academy, and in more recent years Limelight Theatricals, have become two cornerstone organisations when it comes to nurturing the artistic and creative talents of Tipperary’s youth.

The Dwan Academy theatre school in particular has provided children aged 4-18 with a healthy combination of drama, singing, and dance classes under the stewardship of Therese Maher for over a decade.

In 2023 she, alongside co-founder Emily Matthews, created Limelight Theatricals with the aim of providing Thurles and the surrounding areas with a much needed youth theatre group to stage annual cabarets and summer productions.

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Limelight has grown from strength to strength with stellar performances of Fame (2023), The Addams Family (2024), and most recently Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in July of this year, which boasted a 50-strong cast of young performers.

This autumn marks an exciting time for both organisations, with both the Dwan Academy and Limelight set to find a new home as part of Therese Maher’s latest undertaking; The Encore Studio Space in Thurles.

Ahead of its official opening on Saturday, August 30, Therese spoke to the Tipperary Star about her vision to create a “one-stop shop” for all creative disciplines for the young minds of the Premier County.

“So it won’t just be the home of the Dwan Academy anymore,” Therese began.

“Obviously that’s the main reason because the school has expanded so much and we want the future to be bigger, better, and brighter. But this will be a home for the Dwan Academy, Limelight, and our new course, First Act Theatrical Training, which will be available from 2026.

“I kind of figured this needs to encompass lots of different things. You never know where something like this can lead, we’re thinking about being able to rent studio spaces, facilitate band rehearsals and recordings, and for other groups to be able to use the space too. So it really is basically an arts hub for the people of Thurles.”

Boasting a top of the range dance studio, a performance space, several one-to-one tutoring rooms, an animation room, a sensory room, and a band rehearsal suite, it’s clear that The Encore Studio Space is as diverse as it is ambitious.

“Most of the downstairs will be taken up by our massive new dance studio, which I’m so excited about. That’s going to be fully kitted out with dance floor, mirrors, ballet bars, and a speaker system. I’m hoping at some point to turn it into a bit of a performance space too for recitals, small concerts, and one-act plays, and things like that.

“We also have a brand new sensory room, a lot of our student base are neurodivergent or have some additional needs and they need a space to be able to take some time if they become overwhelmed or overstimulated by what’s going on in the classes etc.

“Upstairs includes our big music room with ability of holding choirs, a proper speaker system, and a piano. We also have our drama studio which can double up as a smaller secondary dance studio if needed. Then we have the group teaching rooms which can fit around five or six people for guitar lessons and things of that nature. Our animation room will have a countertop and projectors and all the tech needed for students to be able to show their work on the wall.

“Finally there’s the band room which will be fully kitted out with drum kit, keyboard, bass, guitar, and everything else needed. The purpose of that, as well as the band that have formed in our student base, is to have somewhere where kids will be able to come, hang out, and jam, because really that’s how most great bands start out!”

Many of the children who will avail of what’s on offer at The Encore Studio Space will have recently taken part in Limelight’s summer production of the classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which ran for five shows across four days at The Source Arts Centre in Thurles.

Therese was quick to point out the talent and commitment she sees on the regular from performers aged 14-19 and that appetite for musical theatre that never seems to fade in the local area.

“I’m so proud of this incredible bunch of teenagers. We did auditions for Chitty across the June bank holiday weekend and started into rehearsal straight away and they just worked phenomenally hard over the six weeks. That’s all we get is six weeks of rehearsals. We move into The Source the week before the show which is great that we have that, and we essentially plot through the entire show piece by piece.

“The joy that they get from performing was one of the things that was really important for us when myself and Emily were setting up Limelight. We just wanted to create a space where kids could come and just enjoy themselves. That’s our biggest goal. Obviously we want to put on high quality productions, but our main goal is that kids have fun.

“Honestly it doesn’t matter what your level, whether you can sing, dance or act, everyone is welcome.”

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As if operating a performing arts group, a youth theatre group, and opening a first-rate hub for the arts in Thurles wasn’t enough, Therese is also developing First Act, a new and exciting musical theatre training facility that aims to give students their first step on the journey to vocational training.

Launching in September 2026, the purpose of the 30-week course, is to help post Leaving Cert students who want to refine their skills to get ready to audition for musical theatre and performance degrees at third level.

“The reason I wanted to do something like this is unfortunately Ireland is way behind in terms of musical theatre. We have two fantastic degree courses between American College Dublin and MTU down in Cork. But there is a huge gap to getting to that point because a lot of towns don’t have the training facilities. So there’s this gap between the level where they’re at when they finish school and the level they need to be at to audition to get into musical theatre college.

“So this foundation course is essentially an audition preparation course. It’s a year to immerse yourself in musical theatre training with industry professionals to get you ready for audition. There will be classes in musical theory, basic keyboard skills, warm-up skills, the basics of stage management, lighting, sound, so that you can better improve your own craft.

“There’ll be a module that helps students develop their CV and voice reels which they’ll need throughout their careers, essay writing, referencing, nutrition as a performer, dealing with casting agents, networking, and all the things that come with this life that people don’t always think of.”

That course will be available at The Encore Studio Space from September 2026, and those interested can visit firstact.ie.

For now, Therese is concentrating on the official opening of TESS later this month, and moving both the Dwan Academy and Limelight into their new home with facilities like they’ve never known before.

She also hastened to add that for anyone who thinks either group might be something for them to express themselves, that the first step in the door is the hardest, and what you’ll find once you’ve taken that step is the most welcoming bunch of teenagers that you could possibly imagine.

“You’ll make your new best friends in that group,” she continued.

“Genuinely you’ll never look back. No matter your race, sexual orientation, neurodivergence, anything at all, you are absolutely welcome in our space”.

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