A new immersive sound and visual experience created by Gabriela Mayer with Regina Crowley and Anastasia Karandinou, designed especially for the Planetarium at Blackrock Castle Observatory, photography by Alan Giltinan.
What happens when we stop, and listen?
Inside the Planetarium at Blackrock Castle Observatory, sound, words and light come together to create a space between the intimate and the infinite.
A voice speaks. Music emerges and disappears. Images of distant skies and more drift across the dome. Sounds gather, collide and dissolve.
Drawing on literature, science, piano music and the night sky, this immersive installation invites you to wander through a mysterious tapestry – and listen – to the sounds around you, to the space above you, and perhaps to the thoughts and memories within you.
For a little while, there is nowhere to go and nothing to do but listen.
A small audience. A darkened dome. A sky above you.
And the chance to lose yourself in the infinite embrace of sound and light
NOVUM is the fourth collaboration between pianist Gabriela Mayer and theatre maker Regina Crowley, following Time and Time Again, Notes to a Star and Prometheus Now. They are joined by London-based architect Anastasia Karandinou, who has created the visual elements. Original photographs of Cork night skies taken by astronomer Alan Giltinan from the Blackrock Castle Observatory are incorporated into the visual counterpoint to the music and text.
The work brings together music by Schubert, Scriabin, Ginastera, Shostakovich and J.S. Bach, with words by Mary Oliver, Carl Sagan, Carlo Rovelli and Rebecca Elson, alongside new writing and live piano improvisation.
Supported by the Cork City Arts Office Project Grant and Blackrock Castle Observatory.
Eventbrite link to tickets – 15 euro/ 10 euro concessions (plus handling fee)
Performance Details
- 7 -15 November 2026
- Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork
40-minute timed performances - Maximum 15 people per show
- Planetarium shows at 5 p.m. 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. – 7-8 Nov and 13-15 Nov
- Accessible shows at 2 p.m. – 8 and 15 Nov – BCO Lecture Theatre (ground floor)
Please note that access to the BCO Planetarium involves walking up the spiral staircase in the Blackrock Castle. Seating will be on cushions on the floor of the Planetarium – max. 15 participants per show. Accessible shows are offered in the BCO Lecture Theatre and can be booked separately.
