By Tristan O'Donoghue

Keith Barry kicks off his ‘Reconnected’ tour today (Friday) at the Black Box Theatre in Galway, but fear not as it won’t be long until he brings his new show to Killarney this summer.

Keith, who will take to the INEC stage on June 11, has been coming to Killarney for nearly 20 years.

He told the Killarney Advertiser he "can’t wait to get back on stage and have the craic" where he will be full of energy as for the first time, he begins to share some of his secrets with the crowd by teaching one half of the audience how to hack into the other half’s brain.

The show which is designed to "reconnect people emotionally, intellectually and sub-consciously" will also feature Keith performing dangerous demonstrations with a crossbow.

He says the show is to make people "laugh until their faces hurt" but most importantly to make people re-connect and "experience a night of wonder, amazement and a feel-good factor" which will stay with the audience for weeks - after all the whole world has been through a period of isolation.

Keith has always themed his performances which is evident from his last show 'Insanity', which "ended in a full-blown rave". With the theme of this show being reconnection, Keith has said this will be the "most emotionally charged ending to a show that he has ever designed" as he incorporates a spiritual ending to the performance.

When asked if he gets nervous before performing a trick and he said there's always some nerves in case something could go wrong.

"I always have a bit of nerves, things can go wrong. I've got to figure out when they do go wrong how you're going to get out of it. I've learned over the years to turn nerves into positive energy."

Aside from discussing his new show, Keith told the Killarney Advertiser about how much he enjoys performing in Killarney citing the big stage, good lighting, large audience and great energy from the crowd as important factors. He also mentioned the nightlife and great meals that Killarney offers after he finishes his performance including Reidy’s and Treyvaud’s for food and drinks.

"'I usually stay overnight, we always party in Killarney, and have a few drinks afterwards then hit the road the next day."

Keith has worked hard throughout the pandemic, only taking time off for Christmas over the last two and a half years. He is doing really well on television with his show on RTÉ One 'The Keith Barry Experience' every Saturday night where he brings a lot of celebrities along with him. Naturally, Keith is looking forward to well deserved holidays over the summer listing Derrynane, Dingle and Killarney as possible locations.