Piano man set for Townhall solo show
Cormac McCann is preparing for his first solo theatre show in almost 20 years.
Called 'It’s Cormac McCann – The Piano Man!' the show will see the gifted musician perched at the grand piano to present an eclectic mix of classical music, original song, swing jazz music and tributes to the icons of popular music.
“I wanted to treat the audience to a grand piano, a centre piece, the spectacle of it, the unmatchable sound of it,” said the Belturbet man.
His side show “keyboardcormac” where he plays the iconic Casio keyboard, wearing it like a “keytar”. The whimsical keyboardcormac act is enjoying a great response on social media where one post alone attracted 20,000 views and was shared by the content giant “Ladbible”.
“It's a gift from the '80s," explains Cormac. "I think that people like the nostalgia of it and just simply the light-hearted fun of it. Everywhere I go with it, festivals, trains, cafes, supermarkets, people seem to love it. It’s the gift that keeps on giving and as long as people are enjoying it - I will keep doing it.”
Cormac says the motivation for a solo show came after the attention he received from his appearance at this year's Electric Picnic festival, where he was invited to perform on the brand new 'Electric Keys' stage which featured a decorated upright piano.
“The EP was a hard slog. Going down to the festival I felt exhausted. But somehow I overcame the obstacles and found the energy and spirit to capitalise on the opportunity. As well as the scheduled performance on the piano stage, I was parading the festival with the keytar all weekend trying to stir up followers and likes.”
He may have trudged around the festival for three days, but all it took was one 20 second video to capture the attention of 20,000 viewers on TikTok. It was a mixed up version of the 'Cavan Girl' which caught the eye of a singer who posted the video. He received many positive comments with some followers stating that Cormac was “putting Cavan on the map”.
Cormac reveals: “Truthfully it is part of what I am trying to do. To make people think about Cavan differently. But at one point I was going to ask for the video to be taken down. I thought people were laughing at 'Cavan' being sung in a falsetto voice. I didn't want that. I think there are many jokes made about the county and I feel it hasn't done us any favours.
“There is so much good work being done in this county- maybe we don’t deserve these old yarns going around for years still being used – it is a little unfair I feel.”
Electric Picnic selected 12 pianists out of 174 applicants and it came as no surprise to anyone who is familiar with Cormac's remarkable talent, that he was one of them.
Looking back on the year Cormac declares: “2025 has been a good year for me. One might say I got a lucky break”.
It all started when Cormac went to the 'All Together Now' festival in Waterford and brought the Casio keyboard to keep up his practice regime. He was just practicing to himself outside his tent when he noticed some people gathering around to listen. The people then asked him would Cormac play for them while they queued for their burgers – and hey presto 'keyboardcormac' was born.
“I paraded the keyboard around queues for the entire day and missed all the big acts I was planning to see. To me I had found something more important - I had struck gold.”
Cormac opens deeper when he shares, “People ask me - the energy and enthusiasm over the last six months, where has it come from? I suggest two things: one, I walked part of the camino in the height of the summer and since then I have been wearing a 'Triskele' Celtic symbol which I have not taken off since. But I feel the more plausible answer to it is that it is all coming from my Dad who is looking down on me. Smiling and applauding and loving it all. My late father is my biggest fan. I feel he is telling me that, while I have this energy, to entertain and bring joy to as many people as I can.
“I remember a Matthew McConaughey quote from a movie where he asks Jodie Foster, 'If you love your (late) father, prove it'.
“I guess I have a mission now to prove that I love my father.”
Looking ahead to his solo show which hits the stage in Spring, Cormac plans to dazzle you with his piano skills, have you thinking with his satire pieces, have you laughing at his parodies from Bach to Sinatra to Coldplay, and you might even get a private serenade!
“I can promise you a variety of styles, some classical moments, some tributes to the master of pop and rock, some surprises too,” says Cormac.
Tickets are now on sale from the Town Hall Arts Centre website for the solo shows 'It’s Cormac McCann – The Piano Man!' which will take place on Friday, February 20 at the Town Hall Arts Centre, Cavan and also on Friday, April 24 at the Ramor Theatre, Virginia.
You can follow Cormac on Instagram and TikTok: the address is @keyboardcormac.