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The MAC and Brink! awarded Cultural Bridge funding for UK-Germany arts projects
22nd February, 2024
What's on in the Arts
22nd February, 2024
From festivals, to concerts, exhibitions and more. Here's your guide to What's On in the Arts....
Belfast Tradfest Winter Weekend: Belfast will come alive to the sounds of traditional music once again with concerts, workshops, sessions, and talks during the Belfast TradFest 3rd annual Winter Weekend, throughout Belfast UNESCO City of Music. Taking place 23rd - 25th February and supported by Belfast City Council, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Ulster University and Dunville’s Irish Whiskey, the festival programme is filled with internationally renowned talent in traditional Irish and Scottish music, song and dance. Highlights include:
An opening concert with Donegal songstress Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh who brings her fantastic band Altan back to Belfast to play the stunning Empire Music Hall on Friday 23rd February. Also on the bill that evening, Monaghan Harp maestro Michael Rooney plays a rare solo set in the city famed for its Harp Festival of 1792.
Longtime Tyrone resident, fiddler Bríd Harper is celebrated with a family friendly concert on Saturday 24th February in the Mandela Hall, featuring the cream of traditional musicians and singers such as Australian guitarist Steve Cooney, Donegal accordion wizard Dermot Byrne, Breton flute player Sylvain Barou, singer Rita Gallagher and many more.
Other highlights feature concerts with Ciarán & Caitlín, Mick O’Brien and Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh and a full programme of Festival Club events with acts such as Sligo’s Niamh Farrell, Jos Kelly and Cillian Doheny.
Don’t miss the annual Highland Piping Solo Competition at The Deer’s Head, Sunday 25th February.
For the full programme of events, classes and sessions visit www.belfasttraditionalmusic.com
RENDR Festival: Produced by the team behind the city’s annual photography festival, RENDR, will take place from 29 February – 1 March 2024, returning to the same location as last year’s festival at Portview Trade Centre in East Belfast as part of the NI Science Festival. This year’s festival will include Live Virtual Access, accessible from anywhere in the world.
New to the festival this year, RENDR will kick off at Ulster University for a one-day workshop open to everyone, led by industry experts and aimed to give people hands-on experience and an insight into the worlds of gaming, film and animation.
RENDR will once again present an epic line-up of speakers with over 30 speakers across two evenings alongside live and interactive demonstrations of new technology, digital art, gaming experiences and a food village offering the very best of Northern Ireland’s local food and drink producers, all set in a Blade Runner inspired environment.
For the full list of speakers revealed to date and to book tickets, visit RENDRfestival.com and stay up to date with the latest developments and speakers announcements on the festival’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Belfast Children’s Festival: Roll up, roll up, Belfast Children’s Festival 2024 is coming to town. This year’s festival features a circus theme and will welcome crowds to ‘big top’ venues including the Lyric, The MAC, Belfast Cathedral and Crescent Arts Centre from 8-16 March 2024. Over 100 events and performances will take place during the festival, including productions from the Netherlands, Scotland, England and Ireland, local artists plus firm festival favourites such as Baby Rave and several UK and Ireland premieres. More information to follow the January 2024 launch. Visit www.youngatart.co.uk
Belfast Music Society (BMS) presents: the Belfast International Festival of Chamber Music from 23-25 February 2024 at the Great Hall in Queen’s University Belfast. Highlights include:
- 23 Feb, The Pavel Haas Quartet
- 24 Feb, Simon Höfele & Elisabeth Brauss
- 25 Feb, Ailish Tynan & James Baillieu
Visit www.belfastmusicsociety.org for tickets and more information.
Moving on Music presents: Brilliant Corners Jazz Festival, 1-9 March 2024. Audiences this year can expect an incredible mix of veterans and young’uns of extraordinary talent – every night different, every night special. There’s a brand-new suite of music written by local legend Stephen Davis, free-playing that’ll blow your socks off with Alan Niblock, John Butcher and Mark Sanders, an improvising supergroup of Christy Doran, Ronan Guilfoyle and Gerry Hemingway, and life-affirming moments from Seb Rochford and Zoe Rahman. The Festival also welcomes four acts to the island for the very first time – Jasmine Myra and her seven piece band, Luke Bacchus Quartet, Scottish trio AKU!, and French trailblazers NOUT.
The Ulster Youth Jazz Orchestra, John Donegan’s ‘The Irish Sextet’, and Tom Ollendorff Trio with Aaron Parks make sure our afternoons are well and truly covered. As always, you can pay per ticket or take advantage of the Full Festival Ticket, giving access to all 11 gigs for £45 (limited number available). For tickets visit www.brilliantcornersbelfast.com
Imagine! Belfast Festival of Ideas & Politics 2024: This year’s festival takes place from 18-24 March in 30 venues across Belfast and will explore the theme ‘Top EnterBRAINment - Bring your thinking caps’’. The week-long programme is an eclectic mix of talks, workshops, theatre, comedy, music, exhibitions, film, poetry and tours with over 130 in-person and online events. Most of the festival events are free and can be booked at imaginebelfast.com
This year the festival will feature keynote artists and speakers exploring political themes such as Paul Muldoon, Don Letts, Manchán Magan, Sarah Corbett, Eamonn Mallie, Noel Doran, Nuala McKeever, Louise Walsh and special performances from the Ulster Orchestra, Yard Act, Henry Normal & Nigel Planer, Enola Gay, Paddy Cullivan, Ursula Burns and two productions by the Colorado based theatre company TINTS.
Other highlights include a series of events examining the relationship between music and politics, particularly punk; a special focus on the transformation of rooftops in the city as venues; and performances from a family of traditional singers from the Ojibwe reservation in Wisconsin, USA. The festival also includes a number of tours, exhibitions, quizzes, live podcasts and talks from a range of experts exploring the big issues of our time. Visit imaginebelfast.com for more.
Walled City Music Festival: The Walled City Music Festival returns to Derry from 14 – 17 March for another packed programme of classical concerts and workshops with internationally renowned guest musicians.
Opening the festival on Thursday 14 March, the Piatti Quartet are bringing their programme of ‘Hidden Gems’ with a stunning concert planned for Derry’s Christ Church.
Friday 15 March sees the return of the Ulster Orchestra to the Festival for a family-friendly Gala Variety Concert the whole family will love.
Saturday 16 March sees an afternoon performance from the Sherman-Petcu Duo, comprising Nathan Sherman (viola) and Alex Petcu (percussion), performing newly commissioned compositions in partnership with the Contemporary Music Centre Ireland and PRS Foundation’s Beyond Borders scheme. Featured composers include Derry-born Kevin O’Connell, award-winning Armagh composer Áine Mallon, internationally-acclaimed Ed Bennett, and the Swedish maestro Karen Rehnqvist, alongside an exciting recent work from Nick Roth and a world premiere from established Irish composer Benjamin Dwyer. This concert will also feature a pre-concert chat with some of the composers and the Director of CMC, Evonne Ferguson, meeting those who have created the music and exploring the inspiration for their works.
The music continues on Saturday 16 March with another concert, The Art of Song with Ailish Tynan and pianist Cathal Breslin, in the beautiful setting of the Great Hall, Ulster University Campus Magee.
Sunday 17 March sees a very special late afternoon St. Patrick’s Day concert celebrating Derry-born musical talent in Sons and Daughters of Derry, in Christ Church. The fifteenth Walled City Music Festival will come to a rousing finish as soprano Margaret Keys, tenor George Hutton, cellist Kim Vaughan, saxophonist Gerard McChrystal and Co-Artistic Director of the Festival, Cathal Breslin (piano) perform an eclectic and wide-ranging programme of Irish melodies, hits from musicals and popular classical works. Continue the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the gorgeous setting of Christ Church at 4.30pm. For tickets and information visit walledcitymusic.com
Féile an Earraigh: returns from Friday 1st – Sunday 17th March 2024. Féile an Earraigh (Traditional Spring Festival) aims to promote the Irish language, traditional music and culture through the arts, with over 100 trad music sessions in venues across the city and Belfast city centre, and musicians coming from all over Ireland to participate. For more info visit www.feilebelfast.com
North Belfast Festival: takes place from 23-25 Feb 2024. A wonderful weekend of literature, heritage, entertainment, discussion and collective celebration. Visit www.northbelfastfestival.com for more info.
Tinderbox Incubate Festival: Tinderbox Theatre Company will present the Incubate Festival from 20th – 22nd March 2024 in association with The Mac, Belfast. The festival features nine pieces of new theatre from the cutting edge of local theatre-making talent. Audiences will experience these new pieces of theatre in motion, created and produced by Tinderbox Incubate Artists. These artists are the cutting edge of new theatre-making in Belfast and are presenting ideas which respond to our modern world; exploring contemporary and unique social issues with curiosity, comedy and creativity.
The artists presenting work include Colm McCready and Fergus Wachala-Kelly (Scardey Fat, winner of CQAF Bursary Awards and Infantes Terrible Award 2023), Aoibh Johnson (Daughters of Roisin), Ashton, Jane McKeever, Richard McFerran, Carley Magee (longlist for Women’s Playwrighting Prize 2023), Mary O’Loan, Matthew Sharpe, and Louise Parker. Visit www.themacbelfast.com for more information.
Seachtain na Gaeilge at Cultúrlann Uí Chanáin: is a special program of events celebrating the Irish language in Derry and the Northwest. Located in Cultúrlann Uí Chanáin from March 1st to March 17th, the program includes various events for fluent Irish speakers and those wanting to learn a few words during the festival itself, and everyone in between.
To kick off the festival this year, Raidió na Gaeltachta will present a special edition of the "Bladhaire" program, an entertainment show produced by Áine Ní Bhreisleáin, focusing on the stories and highlights of “saol na Gaeilge”, Irish language life in Derry. The festival will continue with a weekend full of films, family-friendly activities on Saturday and Sunday mornings (March 2nd and 3rd), and special Irish-language films in the evenings for both learners and fluent speakers.
In Your Space Circus will offer a circus skills workshop with the help of a Irish speaking circus artist, and yoga lovers will be able to try their hand at bilingual yoga with teacher Sara. For those with fast feet, Park Run Abú! (the Irish version of parkrun) will take place again this year.
On International Women's Day (March 8th), Diane Cannon will lead a special concert with a group of musicians from Scotland and Ireland, describing the stories of women in traditional Irish and Scottish music, stories that are sometimes lost in today's world. And on World Book Day, Máire Zepf, an Irish-language writer for young people, will host school workshops, welcoming local children from primary schools in the city.
For those who want to use the week to improve their Irish, a weekend immersion course will be available on March 9th and 10th, with high-quality teachers teaching Irish in the Cultúrlann classrooms. People can showcase their own talent in music or poetry at a fireside session with local poet Dubhán Ó Longáin on Saturday night, March 9th.
For more information about tickets and the full list of events, visit www.culturlann.org or view the entire programme on at https://issuu.com/culturlannuichanain/docs/snag2024
Keep updated on the festival through social media @culturlanndoire on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. If you have any questions, please contact us via email at eolas@culturlann.org or call +44 028 7126 4132.
Belfast XR Festival: Belfast XR, now in its third year, specialises in curating worldclass immersive technology content that takes the art of storytelling to a new level. It is an annual gathering for the XR arts - storytelling, visual arts, music, drama, dance, literature and theatre. Running from Wednesday February 28 to Thursday 29 at the Black Box, this year’s festival theme is Legacy which will offer attendees the chance to experience world history in captivating ways allowing audiences to step into the past, interact with historical figures, and explore significant events firsthand.
Extended Reality or ‘XR’ is the collective name for virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). VR is a computer-generated artificial environment with scenes that appear to be real, while AR is a digital overlay onto the real world, which is viewed through a phone or an iPad. Belfast XR Festival is both for XR enthusiasts and those who haven’t experienced any form of XR in the past.
Belfast XR Festival 2024 has three key experiences - the heart-wrenching VR voyage of survival Stay Alive My Son, the profound audio exploration of eternal life Eternal and a magical VR journey through the work of Catalan architect and designer Antoni Gaudí in Gaudí, The Atelier of the Divine. The festival also includes three free to access experiences available for anyone who books a ticket to one of the three main events.
For more information follow Belfast XR Festival on social media or go to belfastxrfestival.com
Big Telly Theatre Company: Northern Ireland’s critically acclaimed Big Telly Theatre Company are delighted to premier their new show ‘GRANNY JACKSON’S DEAD’ at NI SCIENCE FESTIVAL 2024. In partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University, The National Centre of Social Research and the Centre for Cultural Value, the event will take place at 47 Malone Road, Belfast, BT9 6RY on 21-25 February at various times. Taking place in a domestic house in the style of an Irish wake, Granny Jackson's Dead promises to be the session to end all sessions - after all, that’s what Granny would have wanted.
Pioneers of immersive, site-specific theatre production, Big Telly Theatre Company tackle tech and tradition in this beautifully bonkers ode to an Irish Wake. Skillfully created and directed by Big Telly’s artistic director Zoe Seaton, a recipient of The Stage 100 and the Theatre Innovation award at the Origin First Irish Festival in New York. The company will also collaborate with a talented writing team, Owen Booth, Bernie McGill and R.B. Kelly. What makes this approach truly unique is the team's approach, as each writer explores the storyline from a distinct character perspective to seamlessly blend theatre, virtual reality, and gaming, to explore the psychological and social impacts of digital memorialisation.
This is a cross-artform journey filled with home truths, twists, turns, and of course, tea. Tradition collides with technology as the family grapples with the decision to let Granny's spirit go free while preserving her digital legacy. To book visit https://nisciencefestival.com/events/granny-jacksons-dead
Lyric Theatre: presents an exciting programme of events with highlights including:
3 Feb – 2 Mar 2024: Little Women. Step into the world of sisterhood, courage, and ambition with our latest theatre production of Little Women, originally penned by Louisa May Alcott and masterfully adapted by Anne-Marie Casey.
- 9-10 March, Grand Soft Day
- 12 March, Megaphone: Young Playwrights Showcase
- 16 March, Bully Bully
- 20 March, Agreement Gala Night
- 3-6 April, The Ferryman
- 10-21 April, Sunny Side Up
- 17-21 April, Boy out the City
- 24 April – 5 May, Project Children by Fionnuala Kennedy
- 16 May – 15 June, The Pillowman
For further details on these and to view all events visit www.lyrictheatre.co.uk
Grand Opera House: presents an exciting series of shows including,
21-24 Feb 2024: The Juniper Tree by Northern Ireland Opera
27 Feb – 2 Mar 2024: The Mouse Trap
6-9 Mar 2024 – Madagascar
12-16 Mar 2024: An Officer and a Gentleman
22-30 Mar 2024: This Sh*t Happens All the Time by NI playwright Amanda Verlaque
For tickets and to view the full programme please visit www.goh.co.uk
Strand Arts Centre: presents films and events, visit www.strandartscentre.com
The Playhouse in Derry-Londonderry: Experience a set of staged concerts in the round until May 2024. From short opera, song cycles, cabaret to musical theatre from the golden age, each event will take you into a world of beautiful music, drama and emotion in the special, intimate surroundings of The Playhouse.
All productions fully staged with singers in costume, accompanied by a pianist. Shows include:
- 25 Feb, Teechers
- 2 March, Sea Wrack with NI Opera
- 9-10 March, Jo Nawaz 5 Days
- 22 March, Cara Dillion at The Guildhall
- 6 April, Gepetto
- 20 April 2024 – The Lost Boy
- 28 April, The Bluetones
Visit www.derryplayhouse.co.uk
Linen Hall Library: the Linen Hall Library is a truly unique institution. Founded in 1788, it is the oldest library in Belfast. The library is free for all to enter and enjoy. The Linen Hall Library offers a year-round programme of arts and cultural events featuring authors, academics, historians, performers, and much more. To view the full events programme visit www.linenhall.com
Millennium Forum Derry-Londonderry: presents music, comedy, theatre and more with highlights including:
- Moves and Melodies. oves and Melodies is an age friendly project in the Millennium Forum that includes song and danceworkshops for 60 people. This project will be provided complimentary and will be held once a month in the Studio Theatre. The music facilitator is Fiona Logue and the dance facilitators are Claire Harkin and Emma Lindsay from Emma Lindsay Dance. There will be an opportunity to learn new dance skills and sing a range of song styles every month. 2pm – 3.30pm.For further information contact Lisa Heaney on 028 7127 2779 oremail lisah@millenniumforum.co.uk
- 26 Feb– 2 March, Sister Act
- 29 Feb, Dementia-friendly Tea Dance
- 1 Mar,Dementia-friendly Tea Dance on tour at Derg Valley Care Centre
- 9 Mar, Young Farmer’s Gala Evening
- 14-16 Mar, Give My Head Peace
- 20-23nMar, Oliver
- 12 April, Paddy Raff
Visit www.millenniumforum.co.uk
THE MAC: presents a fantastic programme of theatre, comedy music and talks with highlights including:
- Queer Set DancingCome along to a Queer Set Dancing class with Alexa Moore. Part of the MACtivate programme, in association with The Rainbow Project, the MAC’s fortnightly Queer Set Dancing class with Alexa Moore is specifically beginner-friendly. Join Alexa and the group for a fun class with no expectation of any prior dancing experience. The class is run by a queer woman and we aim to create a welcoming and friendly environment for LGBTQ+ people and allies to learn a new dance, have some fun, and meet new people. Come along when you can - you don't need to have joined from the first date to attend. All welcome.
- 1-2 Mar, The Mysterious Case of Kitsy Rainey (theatre)
- 17 Mar - St Patrick's Céilí
- 20-22 Mar, Tinderbox Incubate Festival
- 23 Mar, MAC Baby Time
- 23 Mar, Songs and Dances of Death & Kindertotenlieder with NI Opera Salon Series
- 29 Mar, Ottilie: A Rehearsed Reading performed by Rachel Tucker
- 1-2 April, Easter Petting Zoo
- 13 April, Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered with NI Opera’s Salon Series. Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered will be performed by soprano Wendy Ferguson and pianist Ruth McGinley, with songs from the golden age of music theatre.
For all this and more visit www.themaclive.com to view a full programme of events and exhibitions.
DU Dance (NI): presents Belfast Boys, physical dance theatre for boys aged 7-11 years at the Crescent Arts Centre. Classes at 2-3pm every Saturday. No experience is necessary. Book at info@dudanceni.com
Crescent Arts Centre: presents a series of language, visual arts, craft, music, dance classes, and more plus workshops and events. Visit www.crescentarts.org for details.
Seamus Heaney HomePlace: has releases details of their Autumn/Winter programme. Taking place from Sep-Dec 2023 at Seamus Heaney HomePlace, the programme is overflowing with brilliant musicians, poets, authors, and artists. Highlights include:
- 9 Mar, The Book Who Wanted to be Loved, a reading and workshop for World Book Day
- 4 Apr, Dara McNulty in conversation with Marie-Louise Muir
- 12 Apr, An evening with Irvine Welsh
- 14 Apr, Jan Carson in conversation
- 27 Apr, Lemn Sissay
- 29 Apr, Ulster Orchestra on Your Doorstep – Villa Italia!
To view the full programme visit www.seamusheaneyhome.com for tickets and information.
Declan McConaghy Show: Newry based former BBC broadcaster, Declan McConaghy has created a new series of short films where he talks in-depth to creatives from Newry and the surrounding area who have made a contribution to theatre, music, dance and the performing arts in general. The view the films visit https://www.facebook.com/DMCSHOW ) or https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaH9LxmhE8O1Af3Csk-k6vA
Dumbworld: presents, Whales, Bats & Anarchy, A Journey of Co-Creation, this a collection of works created by groups and communities across Ireland and overseas. They are musical, digital, improvisatory, colourful, and poignant.
- Premiering A NEW SONGBOOK - A collection of new music and video works at Artcetera Studio, 7-15 March.
Community engagement in the making of ambitious collaborative art has always been the driving force behind Dumbworld’s work. Co-artistic Directors Brian Irvine and John McIlduff believe in the unique beauty and creative potential of the individual. The idea that extreme art exists in us all whether we are conscious of it or not.
This exhibition delves into the nexus of music and politics, exploring how music shapes cultural identities and beliefs. Collaborating with five community groups, a series of new songs, music, and films were co-created to amplify and illuminate particular messages of hope, solidarity, and change. Facilitated by Dumbworld’s Co-Artistic Directors, the workshops involved conceptual development, lyric writing, and musical composition using improvised, inclusive techniques.
- Northern Ireland premiere of A CHILDREN’S GUIDE TO ANARCHY - A series of musical animations at Ulster University, 7-16 March.
Inspired by the 1931 publication ‘La Anarquia Explicada a Los Niños’, an instructional manual for children published during the Spanish Civil War that explained the ideas and practises of anarchy – composer Brian Irvine and director John McIlduff in collaboration with the children of Oakwood Primary School in Glasgow and the Red Note Ensemble have created a collection of 7 musical animated video posters that explore key elements of “anarchical” thinking such as autonomy, kindness and human connectivity from a child’s perspective.
The work was developed over a year-long process of co-creation involving pupils, teachers, artists, and musicians.
A Children’s Guide to Anarchy (An Easterhouse Children’s Manifesto) was completed and premiered at Platform, Easterhouse on the 14th of June 2023.
- A NEW TOPOGRAPHY OF LOVE - A retro arcade game opera at The MAC, 8-16 March.
Written and directed by John McIlduff and composed by Brian Irvine, Dumbworld collaborates with artist Stephen Maurice Graham (The Washington Post, VICE, MTV) to create a bold new video-game opera experience.
Both humorous and thought-provoking, A New Topography of Love introduces audiences to unforgettable new characters and some familiar faces. An original accompanying operatic soundtrack reflects this satirical, dark humor as audiences are taken on a journey through destruction, re-birth, love, and most importantly – hope. In a debut collaboration with Whitepot Studios, we pay homage to the beloved, yet nearly forgotten, 1970s video game culture (think Space Race and Pacman).
Visit www.dumbworld.co.uk for more details.
Hard Rain Soloist Ensemble: celebrate International Women’s Day this year with a stunning programme of music including electronics on 8 March at SARC. The one-hour event features the legendary Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, one of the greats of contemporary music who sadly passed away earlier this year. Her masterpiece for flute NoaNoa refers to woodcuts made by Paul Gauguin after his return to Paris from Tahiti.
As always, younger composers are included and HRSE give the Irish premiere of Polish composer Oktawia Pączkowska’s not an ideology. This is a protest piece which, in using quoted statements from the far right government, seeks to highlight and question the inequality and underlying homophobia present in modern day society.
Also featured are three of our finest Irish composers: Linda Buckley who depicts the snowy silences of Alaska, Deirdre Gribbin’s piano piece, a personal comment on the many difficult challenges London has faced in recent times, and Elaine Agnew’s work for the Aftermath project with an accompanying voice track of victims, survivors and displaced families affected by conflict.
The event also features two New York based composers here: Anna Clyne, whose tape part “comprises a melody and winding sounds from a music box that my father gave my mother in their early days of courting, and the sounds of the carousel and pebbles at Brighton Beach in the South of England—a place of fond memories” and Missy Mazzoli, whose piece is a short but intense response to the following text by Stephen Crane. For tickets visit www.hardrainensemble.com
Sestina: presents
- In Praise of St Cecilia, 4th & 5th April 2024, Belfast | Thomastown, Kilkenny
A celebration of the patron saint of music, exploring the year of 1683-1684 through the celebratory works of Marc Antoine Charpentier & Henry Purcell
- Sing with Sestina: Welcome to all the pleasures, 4th & 5th April 2024, Belfast | Thomastown, Kilkenny
Open to anyone and everyone who loves to sing, Sestina Music will be running another Choral Workshop this season! Come along and immerse yourself in a historically informed and authentic approach to this celebratory ode to the patron saint of music.
For more info visit www.sestinamusic.com
1st Old Boys Silver Band present: a rare opportunity to hear what is believed to be a lost piece of music by Enniskillen-born composer Joan Trimble will take place in March. ‘Érin go Brágh’ has not been performed since it was first broadcast by the BBC in 1943 and will be performed as part of a brass band concert hosted by the 1st Old Boys Silver Band from Belfast. who are breaking new ground by embarking on a project entitled, ‘Another World: the best of brass music from this land’.
The project’s title reflects the island of Ireland’s position as part of, yet separate from, the worldwide brass community. The project will see the 1st Old Boys Silver Band collaborate with top internationally-acclaimed soloists Peter Moore (trombone) and Jonathan Gawn (tuba), both with brass band roots, for an evening concert of music that celebrates music from composers and performers with ties to the island of Ireland, North and South. Supported by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, the varied programme gives the opportunity to hear revivals of older pieces long-considered lost, including Ms. Trimble’s Érin go Brágh. Tickets for the concert, which will take place in Stranmillis Drama Theatre on March 4, are available via Eventbrite, and from secretary1ob@gmail.com
Northern Ireland Opera: presents,
The Juniper Tree: A new production of the opera by Philip Glass and Robert Moran, based on a Grimm’s fairytale, coming to the Grand Opera House Studio 21-24 February 2024.
NI Opera Salon Series: are one act productions featuring opera, art song, cabaret and music theatre, which will be touring different locations in Northern Ireland during 2024 including the Playhouse Derry-Londonderry and The MAC in Belfast.
Mussorgsky’s‘Songs and Dances of Death‘ & Mahler’s ‘Kindertotenlieder‘: 23 March, 7.45pm, Downstairs at The MAC, £30/£14 concessions
Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered with soprano Wendy Ferguson and pianist, Ruth McGinley: 13 April 2024, 7.45pm, Downstairs at The MAC, £30/£14 concessions & 25 May 2024, 8pm, The Playhouse, Derry/Londonderry, £20
The Lost Boy with vocalist, Conor Quinn: 20th April 2024, 8pm, The Playhouse, Derry/Londonderry, £20
Visit www.niopera.com for details
Belfast Music Society (BMS): presents,
BMS Chill, 0-13 years and 14 Years plus, at the Crescent Arts Centre, 24 Feb.
Belfast Music Society presents an afternoon of accessible high quality classical music for people with additional needs and their families. Join RiChmusicNI as they create both a stimulating and soothing environment for children and adults alike. People are very welcome to come and familiarise themselves with the space 30 minutes before the concert starts. NB: Tickets are £5 per person with an access companion/PA. Please let BMS know of any accessibility or additional needs so they can make this experience as enjoyable as possible. Email: info@belfastmusicsociety.org
Belfast Music Society (BMS) also presents: the Belfast International Festival of Chamber Music from 23-25 February 2024 at the Great Hall in Queen’s University Belfast. Highlights include:
- 23 Feb, The Pavel Haas Quartet
- 24 Feb, Simon Höfele & Elisabeth Brauss
- 25 Feb, Ailish Tynan & James Baillieu
Visit www.belfastmusicsociety.org for tickets and more information.
Moving on Music presents: Brilliant Corners Jazz Festival, 1-9 March 2024. Audiences this year can expect an incredible mix of veterans and young’uns of extraordinary talent – every night different, every night special. There’s a brand-new suite of music written by local legend Stephen Davis, free-playing that’ll blow your socks off with Alan Niblock, John Butcher and Mark Sanders, an improvising supergroup of Christy Doran, Ronan Guilfoyle and Gerry Hemingway, and life-affirming moments from Seb Rochford and Zoe Rahman. The Festival also welcomes four acts to the island for the very first time – Jasmine Myra and her seven piece band, Luke Bacchus Quartet, Scottish trio AKU!, and French trailblazers NOUT.
The Ulster Youth Jazz Orchestra, John Donegan’s ‘The Irish Sextet’, and Tom Ollendorff Trio with Aaron Parks make sure our afternoons are well and truly covered. As always, you can pay per ticket or take advantage of the Full Festival Ticket, giving access to all 11 gigs for £45 (limited number available). For tickets visit www.brilliantcornersbelfast.com
Moving on Music also presents:
- 28 Mar, Mary Lattimore, St Joseph’s Church, Sailortown, Belfast
- 3 Apr, Jolie Holland and Band, Black Box
- 11-14 Apr, Tour – McGoldrick, McCusker, Doyle
For tickets visit www.movingonmusic.com
Portico of Ards: presents
- 1 Mar, Piano Peace with Ruth McGinley
- 2 Mar, Choral Sanctuary with Christian Forshaw
- 3 Mar, Come On and Sing, Get Happy!
- 9 Mar, Daft Punk Tribute
- 10 Mar, Pew Bathing Sound Spa - second session
- 17 Mar, Réalta
- 23 Mar, Singing Workshop with Peter Corry
- 7 Apr, Chamber Choir Ireland Quartet
- 12 Apr, THE BREEZE
- 19 Apr, Kammer Philharmonie Europa
Visit www.porticoards.com
Ulster Orchestra: presents their new season with highlights including,
29 Feb, BBC Radio 3 Invitation Concert - Stanford 100. This spectacular event will celebrate Sir Charles Villiers Stanford ahead of the centenary of his death – 29 March 1924. Stanford was especially known for his orchestral works, which include seven symphonies and five Irish Rhapsodies.
2 Mar, Peter and the Wolf & Gaspard's Foxtrot. A concert that all the family will love!
8 Mar, Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody. This concert is full of musical tales to enchant the concert hall.
22 Mar, Towards Harmony. Conflict and triumph in musical form appear in this programme. Conflict and triumph in musical form appear in this programme, through Shostakovich’s reflection of the futility of war in his Chamber Symphony in F Major and Mendelssohn’s celebration of the tercentenary of the Protestant Reformation. Weinberg’s First Flute Concerto, by turns cheerful and melancholy, sits neatly between both.
29 Mar, Music for Good Friday. Join Honorary Principal Guest Conductor Jac van Steen, a stellar group of soloists including Northern Irish soprano Giselle Allen and Belfast Philharmonic Choir for a beautiful concert that reflects the mood of Good Friday.
12 Apr, Daniele's Brahms. Brahms’s struggle to overcome his intimidation at tackling symphonic writing may have taken almost fifteen years, but it was worth the wait as he took Beethoven’s compositional legacy and turned it into something spectacularly his own.
26 Apr, Pathétique. Tchaikovsky’s symphonies are no-holds-barred emotional essays, and his sixth symphony is no different.
4 May, May the Fourth Be With You - A Star Wars Spectacular. Calling all Star Wars fans, young and old! Almost half a century has passed since the first Star Wars film changed cinema forever in 1977, with the franchise still going strong decades later. John Williams’s epic scores are some of the most thrilling music ever written, especially when heard with a live orchestra. With music spanning from Episode IV: A New Hope, The Emperor Strikes Back and The Phantom Menace to The Revenge of the Sith and The Mandalorian, The Force is strong with this one.
Visit www.ulsterorchestra.com for the full programme and to book tickets.
Oh Yeah Centre Belfast:
The NI Music exhibition at Oh Yeah is the only permanent exhibit for popular music in Northern Ireland. There is much to see, including a series of storyboards documenting and plotting the history and the stories of Folk, Punk, Rock, Jazz and more. Exhibition Opening Times, Mon – Fri: 10am-4pm, Sat: 12-5pm. To enquire about a visit, or for further info and group bookings please contact info@ohyeahbelfast.com or call 02890310845
The Black Box: presents a varied programme of music, comedy, street art tours and other arts events.For further information n visit www.blackboxbelfast.com
Scott’s Jazz Club: Scott's Jazz Club runs a weekly concert in Ballyhackamore club 1a Sandown Road every Friday Night from 9pm. The club provides a welcoming environment for world class jazz music to be experienced in a concert setting. For upcoming performances visit Scott's Jazz Club (scottsjazzclub.com)
ITMA: 'Drawing from the Well' is an online monthly ITMA series which connects artists with archival materials to inspire new art. To date, nine videos, podcasts and blogs have been created by leading traditional musicians, singers, and dancers, including Louise Mulcahy, Martin Hayes, Edwina Guckian and Cormac Begley. All episodes are free to view online at https://www.itma.ie/drawingfromthewell
Tommy Sands and Artsawonder: In this new online film series, legendary musician, Tommy Sands, films, sings, listens and learns from a singing five times world champion drum major Alan McBride, two young women, Jenna Stevenson and Wendy Graham Hanna, who initiate and drive an Arts hub shop, a rhythmic drum weaver rhythmic drum weaver Damien McKeown and a young woman Bronagh Kelly who lovingly echoes the poetry of her mother. To watch visit Media | Artsawonder (wixsite.com)
Crescent Arts Centre: has a new term of classes to book and enjoy now. Fancy learning to speak some Italian before your holiday to Italy this year? Well now’s your chance! From visual arts, language classes, acting, dance, music making and more, there’s something to tantalise all tastes. Visit www.crescentarts.co.uk
Duncairn: presents live music from the following,
- 8 Mar, Seamus Fogarty
- 9 Mar, Sinéad McKenna : Album Launch
- 22 Mar, Cinder Well
- 28 Mar, Mary Lattimore
- 11 Apr, McGoldrick / McCusker / Doyle
- 11 May, Ryan Young
- 18 May, Nora Brown & Stephanie Coleman
Visit www.theduncairn.com
Duncairn Player: all of the previous video projects can now be viewed from the Duncairn Player including The Duncairn Virtual Cabaret, Take 2, Carlingford and the Ring of Guillion Sessions. Visit Player — The Duncairn
The Duncairn also has a range of workshops and craft classes and courses. For further details visit www.theduncairn.com
Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich: presents,
Irish Language Intensive Course. Intensive courses are a great way to boost your language skills in a short space of time. The course will be both motivating and informative and will take your confidence in the Irish language to another level. The levels we offer are: Bunrang|Beginner , Meanrang | Intermediate , Ardrang | Advanced . Please email sinead@culturlann.ie for more information
Yoga Classes with Dunla, 6:30-7:30pm, £5.No need to register, just pay on arrival.
For this and more visit www.culturlann.ie
Greater Shantallow Community Arts: presents Spill The Tae Youth Led Podcast from the young people at Studio2/GSCA. This amazing group of creative young people have launched their very own podcast and it can be found on Spotify or Apple Podcast. The young people plan, host, interview and edit the Podcast. To date they have interviewed some of their local MLA’s, Councillors, survivors and local Derry’s own Serena Terry, creator of Mammy Banter. As well as this they have a voice and a safe place where they can openly talk about mental health and what it means to them. You can find the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcast but also by clicking this link below.
https://shows.acast.com/spill-the-tae-youth-led-podcast
Eden Place Arts Centre: in Derry-Londonderry has an exciting range of courses and workshops to get your creative juices flowing including wood sculpture, Inner Landscapes, Abstract Art, Ceramics, Painting for Beginners, Contemporary Botanical Watercolours, Landscape Painting Life Painting, Spinning and Weaving plus Portrait Painting, among others. All courses are designed for adults aged 18+. Visit www.edenplaceartscentre.com
WheelWorks Arts: presents,
ArtCart: Unique to WheelWorks Arts (WWA) is their ArtCart community engagement and outreach programme, which brings creative and artistic activities to your community. ArtCart is also the name WWA gives to its bespoke vehicle that can travel across Northern Ireland and transform into a unique workshop space. ArtCart is available for hire at youth, community, education, and festival events, bringing artistic and creative activities to the community. The available inventive activities cover digital and traditional arts and can include animation, DJing/music making, arts & crafts, and digital arts using augmented and virtual reality. For further information and to hear about their special Art Cart offers over Christmas, visit https://www.wheelworksarts.com/artcart or email artcart@wheelworksarts.com.
TS3 Programme: The Tech Studio Skills Share (TS3 programme) is a new initiative by WheelWorks Arts (WWA) that offers training to help people improve their creativity and skills in digital communication by harnessing the specialist artistic expertise of the WWA team. The staff team at WWA consists of professional artists and digital innovators who have a wealth of knowledge, talent, and experience in delivering creative activities. They are now offering a range of training opportunities to the corporate and commercial sectors. For further information, visit https://www.wheelworksarts.com/ts3-training.
TechStudio: This is a 60m2 meeting room and collaboration space available for hire at our office in Weaver's Court, close to Belfast city centre (BT12 5GH). The room is equipped with a range of digital and recording resources, including cameras, green screens, tripods, iPads, and an interactive whiteboard, all available for hire. For pricing and to book the TechStudio, please use our online booking system. For further information, visit https://www.wheelworksarts.com/room-hire or email info@wheelworksarts.com or business@wheelworksarts.com.
ChangeMaker: This is a programme by WWA that connects people from diverse communities with varied identities within organisations, communities, or geographical areas. It encourages open dialogue, exploration, and recognition of differences to foster mutual inclusion, enhance interpersonal understanding, and ultimately boost inter and intra-community cohesion. The programme explores perceptions, stereotypes, and misconceptions that workshop participants may have, with a view to understanding other contributors' values, heritage, biases, and experiences, and why people may have certain views or stereotypes. It also highlights how many of these perspectives may be unintentional, unconscious, and often unchallenged. For more information, contact Lesley@wheelworksarts.com.
Streetwise Community Circus: Fancy learning how to juggle and other circus skills?! In response to Covid 19 Streetwise Community Circus has developed a team of tutors who are now working via Zoom to reach out to those who can no longer participate in workshops. To take advantage of this opportunity all you have to do is email Streetwise on streetwiseathome@gmail.com. Suitable for participants who range in age from 8 to 80 plus.
Arts Care:
has a wonderful range of arts activities available online on their Arts Care 4U Premium +, their online arts delivery channel that everyone can access. Arts Care’s new dedicated online arts and well-being workshop resource, ‘Break-Time’, accessed via their website to support the mental, emotional and physical well-being of children and young people through the Arts. New art, music, dance & exercise, drama, creative writing and clown doctor’s CDTV videos will be uploaded regularly and it’s all FREE. Visit https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ85xLA2BlQQdrnWBhKw1hw
2 Royal Avenue presents: An exciting visual arts exhibition celebrating the work of some of Northern Ireland’s most talented artists is now on display at 2 Royal Avenue, a welcoming community and cultural hub located in the heart of Belfast city centre. Featuring contemporary works from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s Collection, the exhibition entitled, Social Construct, runs from 1-28 February and is free to view. This current exhibition brings together works from artists including Sinead Bhreathnach-Cashell, Shiro Masuyama, Nina Oltarzewska and Sally O’Dowd, whose process of making art is through social interaction, connecting their work to the real world, its communities and everyday lives.
On display, the public can see a range of approaches to ‘socially engaged’ artwork creation demonstrating how art can help uncover truths and expand on our perspectives. The artworks on display, are intended to encourage viewers to step outside of their day to day and ignite their imaginations. By working with unconventional materials such as discarded hair or old smart phones, or fantastical forms such as over-sized sausage sculptures, the artists are visually communicating social stories about the complexities of our world. Visit www.maywe.co.uk
The MAC: presents, Niamh McCann: ‘someone decides, hawk or dove’. 8 Dec 23 – 7 April 24. 'someone decides, hawk or dove' is a commissioned work by artist Niamh McCann as part of the programme for ART:2023, a Decade Of Centenaries supported by The Arts Council of Ireland/An Chomhairle Ealaíon and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.
The title of the exhibition 'someone decides, hawk or dove' is a line from the poem Hairline Crack in Belfast poet Ciaran Carson’s 1989 collection Belfast Confetti. Hairline Crack is also the title of a film central to this exhibition which comprises of three acts with two musical interludes. An eyeless dog guides us through three separate landscapes: one bucolic, one musicological and one socio-political, in an odyssey along the border region of Northern Ireland. Like a mythological seer, this eyeless dog perceives and interprets obscure truths, through philosophical musings on Man’s long hubristic dominion over beasts, places, people. Visit www.themaclive.com
Belfast Print Workshop - buy framed prints by BPW members working across a range of techniques, supported by The National Lottery, www.bpw.org.uk
Queen Street Studios, Belfast: presents QSS artist Clement McAleer 'HOW WE GOT TO…' A touring exhibition from Golden Thread Gallery from 17th February – 15th March 2024 at Threshold Gallery: Flax Art Studios 7 North Street, Belfast, BT1 1NA.
The Golden Thread Gallery is preparing to move to their new home in Belfast city centre with bespoke gallery spaces for exhibitions and a participation and engagement hub. This new space has opened up opportunities for The Golden Thread to expand and grow, and has also reminded them of their past successes and achievements. As they await their new premises, they are taking time to reflect, from the first exhibition at Brookfield Mill, to fifteen years at Great Patrick Street.
With this in mind a selection of artists were asked to respond to their past encounters with GTG and provide a small work that can be part of a touring exhibition. This exhibition will highlight Golden Thread Gallery’s rich history of delivering diverse artistic programming. Work exhibited in “How We Got To…” will then enter the GTG permanent collection.
Exhibiting artists: Gail Prentice, Brendan Jamison, Shiro Masuyama, Edy Fung, Elvira Santamaría Torrés, Martin Boyle, Jack Pakenham, Robin Price, Lorraine Burrell, Susan MacWilliam and Clement McAleer.
Visit www.queenstreetstudios.net
Seacourt Print Workshop. Visit www.facebook.com/seacourtprintworksshop
Craft NI Gallery presents: QEST Northern Ireland Showcase Exhibition, 1 Feb – 22 March, Craft NI Gallery, Belfast. Visit www.craftni.org
Golden Thread Gallery: While they temporarily ‘go dark’, GTG is delighted that their programme of free workshops for all ages will also continue in collaboration with The Naughton Gallery at Queens. Starting from October, their workshops for families and kids, and for teens and adults, will take place in the Lanyon Building at QUB. As always, all materials will be provided, plus snacks. Dates and times may vary. Full details will be shared on the GTG website and social media in advance. Workshops are free but please book your place by emailing. And make sure you’re on their mailing list to be the first to know! For further information visit www.goldenthreadgallery.co.uk
Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich.
Exhibition | 'A Bloody Good Thing' with Women From The Inside Collective, 18 Jan– 28 Feb 2024.
A Bloody Good Thing’ is a body of photography and video work created in Limerick by the female collective ‘Women from the Inside’ that explores menstruation and the diverse number of changes that can happen to a woman’s body throughout her lifetime. This exhibition challenges the way menstruation may be perceived, as there are still negative connotations attached to it in society. They wanted menstruation to be seen as a celebration, a chance to release negative energies and the beginning of a new phase of regrowth and rebirth.
Exhibition | 'Ní Bhíonn Imeacht Gan Chaill' with Helouise O'Reilly, 18 Jan – 29 Feb 2024.
In Ní Bhíonn Imeacht gan Chaill, O’Reilly explores the relationship between language and identity within the context of the Irish language. This work centres on Oileán Thoraí - said to be one of the richest Irish language communities in Ireland. The Island's rich history of folklore, mythology and tradition have directly influenced the language and place names there.
Visit www.culturlann.ie
Belfast Exposed: presents,
Archive Gallery: Now and Then – 40 Years of Belfast Exposed, 1 Feb – 23 Mar 2024. Celebrating 40 years since the first photography exhibition bearing its name took place, Belfast Exposed has put together a celebration of photography that will showcase the breadth of talent from across Northern Ireland.
Welcoming works from various artists that all incorporate photography into their practice, ‘Now & Then: 40 Years of Belfast Exposed’ kicks off the gallery’s Spring season and runs throughout February and March.
Just one of the many exciting exhibitions and experiences that Belfast Exposed has on its anniversary calendar, ‘Now & Then’ will provide a snapshot into life in Northern Ireland through the lenses of those who have lived and worked here.
Belfast Exposed also offer a series of photography classes and workshops for all levels of experience. Visit www.belfastexposed.org
VOID Art Centre: presents, Composting for the future: an exhibition and long-term period of research and training that reflects on ways of working within Void, past and present. Launching Saturday 23 March 2024, 6-8pm
Composting for the future is a twofold exhibitionary project taking place across Void’s galleries. Composting for the future marks Void Art Centre’s commitment to a living practice of Social Permaculture, a group of principles that look to models of co-existence and co-creation in permaculture and our more-than-human world. Void’s organisational structure will be re-imagined, becoming based on collaborative methods of working and sustainable use of logical resources such as project production. Composting for the future represents the initial starting point for this transformation.
Void will host a Social Permaculture hub which runs from February 2024 to April 2024. This hub will act as a training ground for Social Permaculture activities. Alongside the training programme, Karla Sánchez, co-founder of Blackbird Cultur-Lab, will share a collection of publications that expand on farming and agriculture from historical, political-economy, and regenerative-agriculture perspectives, held in a temporary library resource created for Composting for the future. Concurrent to the exhibition and hub, Void will host a public programme that will address issues connected to Void’s future adherence to Social Permaculture values, such as the natural world, sustainability, interdisciplinary development and climate crisis. A public programme will accompany the project, bringing Void’s history and future working practices to events, workshops and reading groups.
VOID also has a range of learning opportunities available for all ages, such as talks, workshops and more, visit their website for full details.
Visit www.derryvoid.com
CCA: presents, Susan Hughes: Stones from a Gentle Place, 20 Jan – 16 Mar 2024.
The exhibition follows the artists’ encounter with bioluminescence while swimming in the sea at night, and her subsequent observation of how humans throughout history have made sense of natural phenomena, the stories associated with such occurrences, and the physical and cognitive effects on the body.
Susan’s research has expanded beyond bioluminescence (microscopic plankton ignited by movement) to fluorescent geology and Will ‘o the Wisp (phosphorescence caused by plants decaying in boggy ground). These phenomena are otherworldly, seemingly synthetic in their brilliance, independent combustion and neon colours. Alongside this, Susan has travelled across Ireland, connecting with archivists, storytellers, musicians and mariners, gathering folklore related to this natural phenomena in the landscape.
In the exhibition the artist plays with psychedelic and ambient lights, colours, materials and sounds in otherwise dark rooms. Analog and digital sit aside one another inviting the viewer to submit to a malleability of time, hard fact and fairy tale. Visit www.ccadld.org
ArtisAnn:
ArtisAnn Gallery, 70 Bloomfield Avenue, Belfast, BT5 5AE. All artworks are available to buy. You can also buy art through the Arts Council supported Own Art scheme which gives you an interest-free loan over 10 months. Visit www.artisann.org
