St Fin Barre's Cathedral in Cork plans to host The Promise (The Promise of Christmas, or Gealltanas na Nollag), a Christmas light and sound show created for the cathedral and supported by Cork City Council. It is scheduled to run from 9 to 19 December 2026, with the visitor experience built around projection-mapped imagery, surround sound and storytelling inside the building.
The show uses projections to illuminate the cathedral interior while telling the story of St Fin Barre, following the River Lee from Gougane Barra to the founding of a monastery on the site where the cathedral now stands. Cathedral artist and curator Orla O'Byrne describes it as a Christmas story about anticipation, hope and the promises passed from one generation to the next.
Production and programme
The experience is being created by Tim and Catherine Mountain of UK-based Evenlode Productions and Evenlode Films. Local contributors are planned: young Cork writers whose poetry is expected to feature in the story, and a Cork actor being sought to record passages for the soundscape. The St Fin Barre's Cathedral Choir will also feature in the soundtrack.
The choir will additionally perform two live Christmas concerts, A Night Full of Promise, on Friday 11 and Saturday 12 December 2026 from 7pm to 8pm, surrounded by the show's light and moving images.
Schedule and capacity
- Run: 9 to 19 December 2026, an 11-night run
- Hours: 5pm to 10pm each evening
- Tickets: approximately 20,000 available across the run, as reported by The Echo on 22 October 2026; this is capacity, not attendance
