The search for a new home for the Abbey Theatre has returned to Dublin's docklands, four years after the area was ruled out following an intervention by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.
The Department of Arts has confirmed that, as part of a continuing search for an alternative site, officials have held exploratory talks with the Dublin Docklands Development Authority.
It has been stressed, however, that the talks are at a very early stage.
The re-examination of the docklands as a potential venue follows the collapse last year of a plan to relocate the theatre to Coláiste Mhuire, Parnell Square, after an adjacent site needed for the redevelopment became too expensive.
The former Carlton Cinema on O'Connell Street, seen by the city council and other interested parties as the ideal location, has also been ruled out for the time being because of long-running litigation involving a proposed compulsory purchase order on the site.
Both venues were on a shortlist of a number of sites identified by a working group, involving representatives from the theatre, the Office of Public Works, and the Department of Arts.
A new home for the Abbey is considered necessary because the existing building is too small, outmoded and outdated for continued use. Redevelopment of the existing site is seen as too expensive, if not impossible.
Following the collapse of negotiations on the Parnell Square site, the group will now look at the docklands to see if they can identify a viable site.
Officials were anxious yesterday to play down speculation that a definitive proposal would emerge out of the discussions.
"It's at very early stages yet," said one.
"There's very little to go on. Exploratory talks have taken place, but not on the basis that any site is up for consideration."
Four years ago the Abbey board said it favoured moving to a site at Grand Canal docks across the Liffey, after Dublin Docklands offered it a free site, along with an annual subsidy of over €600,000.
Mr Ahern, in whose constituency the Abbey is located, reacted with "surprise" and "disappointment" to the announcement and described it as a U-turn and a serious mistake.
The plan was dropped following his statement and an internal report from the then minister for arts, Síle de Valera, which recommended that the theatre remain in the city centre. That site is now earmarked for a centre for the performing arts.
There is speculation that if the current group was to recommend a docklands site, it would have to be on the north side of the Liffey, closer to the current site and close to the proposed Luas line and Spencer Dock train station, which is in Mr Ahern's constituency.