page_title: Strabane
section_title: Music and arts
hierarchical_section_title: Strabane / Culture / Music and arts
caption_attribution_description: English: Let the Dance Begin (The Tinnies) Strabane can boast one of the most impressive pieces of sculpture in the North-West - the magnificient "Let The Dance Begin" sculpture, it is located off the roundabout leading towards Lifford. Each statue is approx. 10 metres tall. Just like the locals to nickname these as "The Tinnies"!
context_page_description: Strabane, historically spelt Straban, is a town in west Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
  Strabane had a population of 13,172 at the 2011 Census. It lies on the east bank of the River Foyle and is roughly equidistant from Omagh, Derry City and Letterkenny. The River Foyle marks the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. On the other side of the river is the smaller town of Lifford, which is the county town of County Donegal. The River Mourne flows through the centre of the town and meets the Finn to form the Foyle River. A large hill named Knockavoe, which marks the beginning of the Sperrin Mountains, forms the backdrop to the town.
context_section_description: CRAIC (Cultural Revival Among Interested Communities) a cross-border, cross-community group provides music lessons to both adults and children on a voluntary basis in the local Irish language Gaelscoil. The Barret School of Irish Dancing has produced some of Ireland's best Irish dancers, and the local theatre group, The Puddle Alley Players, has won several awards over the years in amateur dramatic competitions.
  In 2007, the Alley Arts and Conference Centre (designed by architects Glenn Howells and AJA) opened to the general public, offering a 270-seat theatre, art gallery, tourist information centre and cafe-bar. The Alley was Northern Ireland Building of the Year in 2008, and won the Allianz Arts and Business Award 2009 and The Green Apple Award 2008. The venue has hosted the All Ireland Confined Drama Finals (2008) and is the current home of the North West Music Festival, The Stage Write Schools Drama Festival, Sounds Like Summer Music Festival, Strabane Drama Festival, and the Johnny Crampsie Music Festival.
  Strabane plays host to a Saint Patrick's Day Parade each year. One of Strabane's most notable features are five 20 ft (6.1 m) steel structures on the banks of the river: two dancers and a fiddle player on the Lifford side, a flute player on the Strabane side and a drummer in the middle. Designed by Maurice Harron, they were placed close the site of the former British Army base at the Tyrone-Donegal border. The sculptures were originally called "Let The Dance Begin" but have since become known affectionately as "The Tinneys".
caption: The sculpture known locally as The Tinnies on the outskirts of Strabane, beside the roundabout near the Lifford turn-off
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