An Grianán Theatre

An Grianán Theatre
The front view of An Grianan Theatre in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal
General information
Type	Theatre
Architectural style	Modern
Location	Letterkenny, County Donegal, Republic of Ireland
Completed	1999
Opened	October 1999

An Grianán Theatre (Irish: Amharclann an Grianán) is the largest theatre in County Donegal. Located in Letterkenny's Port Road district, its current Director is Patricia McBride. The theatre was named after Grianán of Aileach (‘Stony House of the Sun’), a prehistoric ring fort located in Burt believed to date back to 1700 BCE. With a seating capacity of 383, the theatre provides a range of programming including drama, comedy, music, pantomime, and family shows as well as workshops and classes.

It is used annually as a festival venue, including for the Earagail Arts Festival, and has twice hosted Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann. It is a main partner of the Earagail Arts Festival, which takes place each year in July, the Irish Aerial Dance Fest which takes place each June and the Letterkenny Trad Week which takes places each January.

In 1995, Labour politician Seán Maloney advised the then Minister for the Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht Michael D. Higgins to view a site in Letterkenny in exchange for a lift to a Labour Party function in Donegal. Higgins visited the Rectory Field, declared it the best site for a theatre he had ever seen and approved a £1.5 million grant the following February for what would become An Grianán Theatre.

An Grianán first opened its doors on Monday 4 October 1999 and had its official opening later that year on 12 November. Magic of the Musicals was the first show performed on the An Grianán stage.

It hosted Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in the summers of 2005 and 2006. It hosted the Pan Celtic Festival in 2007.

On Saturday 12 May 2007, a Rathmullan based graphic design studio picked up the 2007 European Design Award in Athens, Greece. A jury of Europe's top design critics selected the studio's variable design for An Grianán Theatre from a pool of work by many other top European designers.

In 2015 it won an award for its Disability Access

In 2013 it won an award as the IMRO Ulster Music Venue of The Year