COUNTRY music star Nathan Carter performs to a packed house at Ardhowen Theatre tonight (Thursday). Highly acclaimed alternative-folk group The Young Folk return to the Gallery Bar on Friday and the darkly gripping tale of ‘Jonathan Harker and Dracula’ will send shivers down your spine on Saturday.

THE YOUNG FOLK The Young Folk return to the Ardhowen Gallery Bar following an outstanding performance earlier this year. Comprising of Anthony Furey (guitar, vocals), Tony McLaughlin (bass, mandolin, and vocals), Paul Butler (keyboards, vocals) and Karl Hand (drums, vocals).

The Young Folk have appeared at Westport Music Festival, Electric Picnic, The Cambridge Folk Festival, opened for Imelda May in Dublin’s Vicar Street, appeared at Mitchelstown Caves with Mick Flannery and Castlepalooza 2014, and even count President Michael D. Higgins as one of their biggest fans.

The four piece will in the Ardhowen Gallery Bar on Friday at 9pm.

JONATHAN HARKER AND DRACULA Ulster Theatre Company and Theatre at The Mill present ‘Jonathan Harker and Dracula’ on Saturday at 8pm. Adapted and directed by Michael Poynor, this new adaptation of Bran Stoker’s iconic masterpiece, uses multiple cameras, backing screens, projections, surround sound and a newly commissioned score.

In a stunning one-man performance Gerard McCarthy plays both Jonathan Harker, whose diaries chronicle the bloody tale, and the greatest supernatural monster of all time, DRACULA! The production also features Kym Marsh, Rachel Tucker and Jayne Wisener as the brides of Dracula in a pre-recorded sequence to be projected during the performance.

Virtuoso acting, energetic storytelling and a dramatic score make for a tantalising new take on the Dracula legend.

Patrons are warned this production contains frightening scenes; responsibility for allowing under-12s to attend lies with the accompanying adult.

MAGIC OF THE MUMMY The most famous of all the Egyptian Myths, a story of life, death, love and jealousy; this is the tale of Osiris, the first Pharaoh of Egypt and his evil brother Set, who plots to take over the kingdom of Egypt for himself. This performance, on Wednesday, October 22, at 10.30am, by Clydebuilt Puppet Theatre, ‘fleshes out’ the stories behind the artefacts of Ancient Egypt and is suitable for the primary school age range of five to 12 years.

DECLAN NERNEY IN CONCERT With his unique falsetto singing voice and great musical ability, Declan Nerney has been part of the Irish music scene for many years. Born in the town of Drumlish in County Longford he started at the age of 16 in local band, the ‘The Hi-Lows’. His big break came with his autobiographical song ‘The Marquee in Drumlish’. He has a huge following and appears in the charts on a regular basis not only in Ireland but in Scotland and England. His music has extensive airplay on Irish and Country Music radio shows.

Known as ‘The Mighty Quinn’, Declan’s special guest, Brendan Quinn is a legend in his own right having shared stages with performers such as Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Kenny Rogers and Kris Kristofferson.

Michael Magill Entertainments presents Declan Nerney In Concert on Thursday, October 23, at 8pm.

MARY BYRNE IN CONCERT As part of her Northern Irish tour, Mary Byrne and her 8 piece band perform at Ardhowen on Friday, October 24, at 8pm.

Mary’s story is the stuff of fairytales and movies.

Although she was pipped for a place in the 2010 X Factor final, she won the hearts of millions with her big, warm personality and powerhouse voice.

Mentored by Louis Walsh, Mary’s fellow semi-finalists included One Direction and Matt Cardle.

Since then, she has performed for Queen Elizabeth II on her historic State visit to Ireland and shared the stage with Neil Diamond to perform for over 55,000 fans.

Having achieved multi-platinum status on previous albums, Mary has just released her third album, ‘Magic of the Musicals’ which features classic songs from old musicals updated with a ‘Bublé’ style swing.

She recently hosted her own radio show and she makes regular appearances on TV and radio chat shows both in Ireland and overseas performing from Austria to the Carribean this year alone.

KEVIN MCALEER County Tyrone’s biggest space cadet lands in the Ardhowen Theatre for another evening of non-stop laughs and first class comedy nonsense. McAleer chooses every word with care, and his writing has been compared to Beckett or Flann O’Brien, but the timing and droll delivery are uniquely his own.

He has influenced a whole new generation of comedians in Ireland and the UK, but has lost none of the spark and invention that made him famous. Come and catch an original comedy master at the height of his craft on Saturday, October 25, at 8pm. This show is recommended for 16 years and over.

NEIL COWLEY TRIO In 2006, the Neil Cowley Trio burst onto the scene with a debut that turned the concept of ‘jazz piano trio’ on its head. Fizzing with energy, their rip-roaring riffs and hook laden tunes sat side by side with heart shattering musical whisperings while their dynamic shows marked them as one of the UK’s most exciting live bands.

On Tuesday, October 28, at 8pm, the Neil Cowley Trio present new material from their latest album, ‘Touch and Flee’ (Naim Jazz). On this their fifth album, they reinforce their position as one of Britain’s brightest jazz ensembles. London-based pianist Cowley gained considerable acclaim for his contributions to both of Adele’s multimillion-selling albums, but he’s clearly happiest when performing with long-time compatriots Evan Jenkins on drums and Rex Horan on bass.

Cowley is a prodigiously talented, yet resolutely unflashy pianist; with a gift for memorable hooks and crescendos allied to a driving, restless quality in his playing.