Audience numbers and revenue grow at Visual

OVER 60,000 people visited Carlow’s arts centre Visual last year, with 869 events taking place and steady growth seen across all sectors of the facility, including the theatre, galleries, bar and shop.

Emma Lucy O’Brien, chief executive and artistic director at Visual, and the centre’s financial and operations manager Niall Scully attended the May meeting of Carlow County Council to update members on the centre’s activities. Ms O’Brien said that Visual enjoyed a rich and varied programme of events last year, while also planning events for the future. She stated that the overall picture was “looking good and quite positive, with a full year of great activities planned”.

A total of 869 events were held last year, equating to three or four events a day. The gallery attracted 32,000 people, while overall Visual welcomed 60,579 visitors, an increase on 56,000 the previous year.

Ms O’Brien thanked members for the subvention of €650,000 from Carlow County Council, which has been in place since 2016, increasing by 11% over that period. The centre also received close to €350,000 in 2024 from the Arts Council of Ireland.

Ms O’Brien stated that despite the ongoing challenges of increased utility costs, inflation, upgrade works and increased salaries, the centre’s “net revenue position had doubled”.

Ms O’Brien pointed out that 60% of the Visual’s staff are on “a lower-than-average salary”.

The George Bernard Shaw Theatre held 162 events in 2024, up from 148 the previous year. A total of 148,000 people attended the theatre in this period, up from 112,000 the previous year.

Ms O’Brien said that as the population grows and changes, there is an emphasis on connecting with communities and engaging with a greater and diverse range of people, including children and young people. She outlined some of the many projects Visual was involved in, including Sing Sync, the community-based choir.

Mr Scully spoke about the various metrics and measures implemented at Visual, adding that total revenue of €345,000 increased across all sectors, including theatre, shop, bar and corporate events. Overall revenue was up €90,000, an increase of 33%.

Cllr Fintan Phelan spoke of how impressed recent Pan Celtic visitors were with Visual and said that the centre was “critically important” in attracting such events to Carlow.

Cllr John Cassin admitted that in the past he had been “quite sceptical” about Visual but “overall, less and less sceptical as time goes on”. He asked about ticket prices and the high cost of some events and wondered if they could in “any way be subvented”.

Cllr Paul Doogue described Visual as “invaluable” to Carlow and added his disappointment that there isn’t more government funding for the centre.

Ms O’Brien remarked that an increase in ticket prices is being seen across the country, adding that tickets are expensive right now.

She also said that Visual, which is 16 years’ old this year, will begin retrofit works in early 2026.