New Arts Team now in place

Sligo County Council has appointed Averyl Dooher as its new Arts Officer and Glenn Gannon and Sligo’s first ever Assistant Arts Officer. A native of Sligo, Averyl has over 30 years’ experience working as a senior Arts Manager in venues, festivals and organisations in Ireland, including the position of Acting Arts Officer in Roscommon County Council.

Previous experience includes Director of Roscommon Arts Centre for 17 years, during which time Averyl developed a vibrant multi-disciplinary arts venue for the people of Roscommon and created multiple spaces and supports to allow artists at all stages of their careers to explore, create and present their ideas.

As Director of Roscommon Arts Centre, Averyl was a founder member of the NOMAD Theatre network, which has produced and toured numerous theatre and dance productions both in Ireland and abroad, The LIVE Literary Venue Network and The Network for Extra-ordinary Audiences, which creates theatre adventures for audiences of babies, early years and children with complex needs.

During her time at the centre, Averyl oversaw a major capital development project, which transformed the venue, adding a purpose-built visual art space, a workshop/second performance space and two artist studios to the existing venue which also houses a 194-seat theatre space.

Previous to her time in Roscommon, Averyl spent four years as Director of Éigse Carlow Arts Festival; she has also worked with Dance Theatre of Ireland, The Hawk’s Well Theatre and undertook at internship at The Abbey Theatre in Dublin when studying at UCD.

Glenn, who is also from Sligo is a qualified teacher, filmmaker and arts professional from Sligo with extensive experience across education, arts programming and community engagement. His professional background spans primary and special education, documentary and short film directing, creative producing, and project work with arts organisations.

He has a strong interest in the role of the arts in public life and has worked with cultural institutions, community groups and schools to deliver inclusive, participatory arts initiatives. With a focus on storytelling, communication and collaboration, Glenn’s work often explores themes of identity, social connection and belonging.

As a filmmaker, his work includes an RTÉ-broadcast documentary and a number of short films that have screened at festivals both nationally and internationally, with his latest project being a new Irish-language short supported by TG4 and Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland. He brings valuable experience in project management, communications and artist development, and is passionate about strengthening links between artists, audiences and communities.

Glenn holds a Higher Diploma in Primary Education from Hibernia College, an MA in Screenwriting from the Huston School of Film and Digital Media (University of Galway), and a BA (Hons) in Communication Studies from Dublin City University.

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