5th August, 2025
From theatre performances, to concerts, exhibitions and more, here's your guide to what's on in the Arts....
Arts Ekta presents the Belfast Mela: a vibrant, week-long celebration, the Belfast Mela returns from 16–24 August 2025, transforming the city into a global stage of colour, rhythm, and flavour. View the programme at https://belfastmela.org.uk/
Féile an Phobail: continues until 10th August and is Ireland’s biggest community arts festival and summer school. Visit https://feilebelfast.com/
Nerve Centre Derry-Londonderry: presents Youth Music and Digital Programme, a FREE week-long creative programme for aspiring musicians and digital creators, 11th -15th August 2025. Designed for young people aged 14-18, this intensive programme will take place over five days in August. To apply visit https://nervecentre.org/whats-...
August Craft Month: Celebrating craft in all its forms, from traditional to contemporary, August Craft Month is open to everyone. This summer, immerse yourself in making with hands-on workshops, inspiring exhibitions, and creative experiences found right across the island of Ireland – many of which are free. View the full programme at https://augustcraftmonth.org/
Clandeboye Festival: The 24th Clandeboye Festival will take place from 16th-23rd August 2025. This year the Festival will have a special focus on France and Spain - with music by Debussy, Albeniz, Berlioz, Ravel and more. To book visit www.camerata-ireland.com/cland...
Open House Festival: returns to the city of Bangor for the month of August. Tickets now on sale visit https://openhousefestival.com/
Luail: presents, Dance Corner with Dylan Quinn – To This I Belong
June - August 2025, Various Locations Across Ulster, Choose your dance move!
Fermanagh based dance-artist Dylan Quinn invites you to spin, twist, and boogie along with him as he brings his unique, travelling Dance Corner to the nine counties of Ulster. People of all ages, abilities and backgrounds are welcome to meet him in this purpose-built, unconventional space, to dance, move or just be together. Find all the Dance Corner Locations on the Luail Calendar here https://luail.ie/calendar/
Lyric Theatre: presents:
• 31 July – 16 Aug, The Tunnel
• 22 Aug, Arts Ekta presents, Tāla, a NI-India Creative Showcase: An Evening of Movement, Rhythm & Cultural Connection
• 19-31 Aug, In The Name of the Son
• 4-13 Sep, Come From Away
• 17-20 Sep, The Snapper by Roddy Doyle
• 24 Sep – 12 Oct, Dear Arabella by Marie Jones
View all events at www.lyrictheatre.co.uk
Tinderbox Theatre Company: presents The Upside Down House, 22 Oct-2 Nov at The MAC. Heartfelt, hilarious, and wildly imaginative, The Upside-Down House is a time-bending story of love, memory, and learning to letting go. Visit https://themaclive.com/event/t...
Kabosh Theatre Company: presents,
• Julie at the Seamus Heaney HomePlace. Written and performed by Charlotte McCurry. Directed by Paula McFetridge, 10th August. For tickets visit https://seamusheaneyhome.ticke...
• 29-31 August, ARTS OVER BORDERS: FrielDays – A Homecoming 2025-2029 Kabosh Theatre Company. Co-produced by The Playhouse presents 50th Anniversary Presentation of Volunteers by Brian Friel.
Visit www.kabosh.net
Grand Opera House: presents an exciting series with highlights including,
• Grand Family Festival, 11-15 Aug
• The Girl on the Train, 12-16 Aug
• Mother of all the Behans, starring Imelda May, 18-23 Aug
• The Simon and Garfunkle Story, 26-28 Aug
• Cirque Reimagined, 29-30 Aug
• Follies presented by Northern Ireland Opera, 13-20 Sep
For tickets and to view the full programme please visit www.goh.co.uk
The Playhouse in Derry-Londonderry: presents
• JULIE, 15th August 2025 ~ 16th August 2025
• 29-31 August, ARTS OVER BORDERS: FrielDays – A Homecoming 2025-2029 Kabosh Theatre Company. Co-produced by The Playhouse presents 50th Anniversary Presentation of Volunteers by Brian Friel.
• NORTH by Seamus Heaney, 30th August
• Inter Alia, 4th September
• Paddy - The Life and Times of Paddy Armstrong, 20th September
• The Spanking Goddess and Other Discarded Tales, 27th September
• Trawled, 16th October
For all this and more 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 at this wonderful library visit www.linenhall.com
Millennium Forum Derry-Londonderry: presents music, comedy, theatre and more with highlights including:
• 15 August, Ulster Youth Orchestra Summer Concert
• 18-23 August, The Rocky Horror Show
The Millennium Form also has a number of regular accessible events including:
• Act Your Age, Age Friendly Drama Group – 2 sessions a month
• Moves & Melodies, age friendly song and dance workshop – monthly event
• Dementia Friendly Tea Dance – monthly event
• Energy of Light 15+ Disco – monthly disco
• Sensory Musical Theatre – weekly event
View all events at www.millenniumforum.co.uk
THE MAC: presents a fantastic programme of theatre, comedy music and talks with highlights including:
• 20 March to 4 September, Queer Set Dancing. Come 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.
• Pippin, 22 Aug - 23 Aug
• Hedda, 26 Aug - 29 Aug
• Shed Man, 28-29 Aug
• Art on the Floor – a Northern Soul Fundraiser, 13 Sep
• The Upside Down House by Tinderbox Theatre Company, 22 Oct – 2 Nov
For all this and more visit www.themaclive.com
Crescent Arts Centre: presents a series of language, visual arts, craft, music, dance classes, and more plus workshops and events. Highlights include:
• 21-24 August, Belfast Guitar Festival 2025
Visit www.crescentarts.org for details.
Seamus Heaney HomePlace: has launched their Sep-Dec programme for 2025. Highlights include:
• Friday 5th September at 7.30pm, Friel, Field Day and the Fifth Province With Stephen Rea & Dr Mark Phelan featuring readings by Seamus O'Hara
• Friday 19th September at 7.30pm, Vona Groarke In Conversation With Susannah Dickey
• Friday 26th September at 7.30pm, Powerstone Entertainment and Alchemy Theatre, Paris present: Both Sides, An original play by Jane Coyle, inspired by the writing of Samuel Beckett.
• Saturday 4th October at 7.30pm
• Nature Boy: A Journey of Birdsong and Belonging With Seán Ronayne
• Saturday 11th October at 7.30pm, The Poems of Seamus Heaney With Rosie Lavan, Bernard O'Donoghue and Matthew Hollis
• Sunday 16th November at 2pm, David Trimble: Peacemaker, Stephen Walker In Conversation with Freya McClements
• Saturday 13th December at 7.30pm, Christmas at the HomePlace Hearth With Glenn Patterson, Neil Martin, Anthony Toner and Rod McVey
View the full programme at www.seamusheaneyhome.com
Strand Arts Centre:
• Silver Screenings at Belmont Bowling Club, every Thursday at 2pm. Silver Screenings is a great opportunity not just to see a movie classic, but also for people to meet and interact, and enjoy a trip down memory lane. Films are chosen with seniors in mind but open to anyone who loves a classic movie! Tickets are £4 and include free tea, coffee and biscuits.
To view the films that are showing visit www.strandartscentre.com
Clandeboye Festival: The 24th Clandeboye Festival will take place from 16th-23rd August 2025, presenting "Aspects of Summer" - a celebration of the diverse sounds and moods of the season through a series of captivating concerts and performances. This year the Festival will have a special focus on France and Spain - with music by Debussy, Albeniz, Berlioz, Ravel and more - alongside performances by all-island orchestra Camerata Ireland and Celtic Orbit to entertain audiences over the week. To book visit www.camerata-ireland.com/cland... or tickets can also be purchased at Visit Belfast Welcome Centre.
Northern Ireland Opera: presents,
• Summer events, Northern Ireland Opera will be performing concerts, pop-up performances and special events throughout the summer including,
o 23 August – From Old To New: Ulster Scots Song
• 22-24 August: The Glenarm Festival of Voice
• 13-20 Sep 2025, Follies, Stephen Sondheim and James Goldman. Northern Ireland Opera’s next major production at the Grand Opera House is ‘Follies’, winner of 7 Tony Awards on its debut on Broadway in 1971. With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by James Goldman, this legendary work features unforgettable songs including ‘Broadway Baby’, ‘I’m Still Here’, ‘Could I Leave You’, and ‘Losing My Mind’. ‘Follies’ will be directed by Cameron Menzies, Artistic Director of Northern Ireland Opera.
Visit www.niopera.com for more information on all events.
Moving on Music: presents,
• 16 August, Alasdair Roberts, Crescent Arts Centre
• 12 September, Poor Creature, The Duncairn
• 25 September, Daoirí Farrell, The Empire
Visit www.movingonmusic.com
Portico of Ards: presents
• 19 September, blues and jazz with Martin Harley
• 20 September, comedy with Jarlath Regan
Ulster Orchestra:
• 8 Aug, BBC Proms: 100 Years of the Shipping Forecast. The Proms celebrates the centenary of the Shipping Forecast with presenters from Radio 4’s Continuity team, music inspired by the oceans and the elements, and a new work by Poet Laureate Simon Armitage and his group LYR.
• 6 Sep, On Your Doorstep: Cushendun, Musicians from the Ulster Orchestra return to the Old Church Centre, Cushendun
• 7 Sep, On Your Doorstep: Dungannon. The Ulster Orchestra return to the Hill of the O’Neill for an afternoon of classical favourites.
• 13 Sep, On Your Doorstep: Storm and Drama, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Haydn and Purcell at The Guildhall in Derry-Londonderry
• 15 Sep, BBC Radio 3 Summer Invitation Concert: Departures, Returns and Colour, Liszt, Vaughan Williams and Franck with James Atkinson and Jac van Steen
• 20 Sep, BBC Radio 3 Summer Invitation Concert: Majestic Evocation, Schumann, Hamilton Harty and Dvořák, with Killian Farrell
• 27 Sep, BBC Radio 3 Summer Invitation Concert: Gems in the Shadows, Mendelssohn and Beethoven with Sinead Hayes.
The Ulster Orchestra has also revealed their new 2025/26 season programme with highlights including:
• 26 Sep, Ulster Orchestra: Myths & Magic
• 11 Oct, Ulster Orchestra: Spectacular Soundtracks
• 7 Nov, Ulster Orchestra: Always Clara
• 6 Dec, Ulster Orchestra: The Snowman
Visit https://www.ulsterorchestra.or... to view the full programme.
Oh Yeah Centre Belfast: presents a programme of music and tours with highlights including,
• 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 [email protected] or call 02890310845
Visit www.ohyeahbelfast.com
The Black Box: presents a varied programme of music, comedy, street art tours and other arts events with highlights including:
For further information 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. For upcoming performances visit Scott's Jazz Club (scottsjazzclub.com)
Arts Ekta and the Lyric Theatre presents: Tāla, a NI-India Creative Showcase: An Evening of Movement, Rhythm & Cultural Connection.
Step into a world of rhythm, grace, and artistic fusion at this exclusive creative showcase featuring renowned Indian Kathak dancer Shinjini Kumar and dynamic percussionist Rishiraj Kulkarni, live at The Lyric Theatre.
Presented as part of their international residency with the Belfast Mela festival, this powerful evening brings together classical Indian dance, contemporary percussion, and cross-cultural collaboration. In a special performance created during their time in Northern Ireland, Shinjini will also be joined on stage by the talented performers of the South Asian Dance Academy and local Irish dancers led world renowned choreographer and creative director Ciaran Connolly, adding depth and local resonance to this spellbinding work. Book now to witness an unforgettable evening of creativity and connection at the heart of Belfast.
Tāla is part of the NI-India Creative Showcase, produced by ArtsEkta and supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Prabha Khaitan Foundation in Calcutta, India. Visit https://lyrictheatre.co.uk/wha...
Arts Ekta also presents the Belfast Mela: a vibrant, week-long celebration, the Belfast Mela returns from 16–24 August 2025, transforming the city into a global stage of colour, rhythm, and flavour. View the programme at https://belfastmela.org.uk/
Circusful:
• Circusful currently have some class spaces available for 2-3 year olds (attending with a parent/guardian) and 12 -15 year olds. To find out more or book a spot for your young person, get in touch with them at [email protected]
Visit www.circusful.org
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.org
Duncairn: presents live music from the following,
• 12 September, Poor Creature
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 [email protected] 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.
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. For further information and to hear about their special Art Cart offers over Christmas, visit https://www.wheelworksarts.com or email [email protected]
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. They are now offering a range of training opportunities to the corporate and commercial sectors. For further information, visit https://www.wheelworksarts.com
Streetwise Community Circus: Fancy learning how to juggle and other circus skills?! To take advantage of this opportunity all you have to do is email Streetwise on [email protected] suitable for participants who range in age from 8 to 80 plus.
The MAC Belfast: presents, Grenfell, 17 Jul 2025 - 21 Sep 2025. In December 2017, artist and filmmaker Steve McQueen (b. 1969, London, UK) made an artwork in response to the fire that took place earlier that year on 14 June at Grenfell Tower, North Kensington, West London. 72 people died in the tragedy. Filming the tower before it was covered with hoarding, McQueen sought to make a record. Please note screenings of Grenfell will take place at set times. Doors open fifteen minutes before the screening time and the screening will commence promptly. This work is intended to be seen from the start, so unfortunately latecomers cannot be admitted. The film is 24 minutes long. The film contains close-up imagery of the tower six months after the fire. Please let a member of our team know if you need space to pause, rest and reflect afterwards. Visit www.themaclive.com
Craft NI: presents August Craft Month: Ireland’s unique celebration of the craft sector, providing opportunities for all to learn about, make, see, and buy craft. Celebrating craft in all its forms, from traditional to contemporary, August Craft Month is open to everyone. This summer, immerse yourself in making with hands-on workshops, inspiring exhibitions, and creative experiences found right across the island of Ireland – many of which are free. View the full programme at https://augustcraftmonth.org and visit www.craftni.org
Seacourt Print Workshop: Seacourt is a friendly open-access print workshop based in the seaside town of Bangor, Northern Ireland. They offer membership, courses and resources for all, as well as our self-arranged residency programme and exhibitions. Visit https://seacourt-ni.org.uk/#
Golden Thread Gallery: Belfast's leading contemporary art gallery, located at 23-29 Queen Street, BT1 6EA. Free Entry.
• Exhibition: Beyond the Gaze- Shared Perspectives: Sophie Calle, 21 June – 27 August in the Upper and Lower Galleries.
Golden Thread Gallery is delighted to bring an exhibition by Sophie Calle, one of the most celebrated and influential conceptual artists in the world, to audiences in Northern Ireland for the first time. Beyond the Gaze – Shared Perspectives presents video works (Voir la Mer, 2011) and photographic pieces (L’Hôtel, 1981-1983). The work presented in the exhibition has been generously loaned from the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, and supported by Galerie Perrotin.
Golden Thread Gallery also has a range of other events on including:
• Mindful Colouring Drop-In Workshops (ages 18+). No booking required, just drop in!
• NEW: Out of Office Drop-In Sessions Wednesdays 12-2PM. All materials are provided, as well as tea, coffee & biscuits. No booking required, just drop in!
For all of the above, and more https://goldenthreadgallery.co...
Belfast Exposed: presents,
• Gallery I: Frits de Ridder: Staring at the Sun, 7 Aug – 20 Sep 2025. For the first time in over thirty years, the powerful and deeply personal work of Dutch photographer Frits de Ridder (1954–1994) will be showcased in an exhibition, opening on August 7, 2025, at Belfast Exposed. Frits de Ridder: Staring at the Sun presents an unflinching portrait of life, illness, and resistance during the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Belfast Exposed also offers a range of photography and videography training courses. Visit www.belfastexposed.com
VOID Art Centre: presents.
• The Gift Ecology, by Jasmina Cibic. The Gift Ecology runs until Saturday 13th September 2025.
Jasmina Cibic’s The Gift Ecology continues the artist’s exploration of the anthropological concept of the gift and its inherent obligations of circulation and reciprocity, as succinctly described by Marcel Mauss in his seminal essay The Gift. At Void Art Centre, Cibic focuses on the extractivism of both nature and culture within the history of political gifting—particularly on gifts that supported the construction of global transnational spheres of influence through soft power strategies. The Gift Ecology presents a new body of work spanning video installation, photography, and sculpture. Visit www.derryvoid.com
CCA: presents,
• Love is blindly reaching out rhizoids and anchoring them to a rock, an exhibition by McGibbon O'Lynn, 28 Jun – 6 Sep 2025
Love is blindly reaching out rhizoids and anchoring them to a rock is the newest manifestation of the world of Xenophon, a collaborative world-building project by McGibbon O'Lynn.
Rooted in the fictional world of the Xenothorpians - a fluid species mutating across vegetal, human, and ecological entanglement - the exhibition activates a multispecies romance beyond the species and the sexual. The project expands ideas of intimacy and relations through flings, courtships, longings, and liaisons with the garden.
The artistic duo consider how the gamification of dating has shaped how humans relate to one another, from 1960s TV shows like The Dating Game to 1990s board games like Dream Phone, and today's swipe-based apps like Tinder and Bumble. These formats reduce love to strategy, speed, and surface, often reinforcing transactional and disposable dynamics. This exhibition responds to that shift, questioning what we lose when intimacy becomes a game. it proposes a radical reimagining of connection - towards a more expansive, inclusive, and multispecies form of love and relationality.
The audience is invited into this multispecies dating game through ritual, material, and speculative storytelling. The project asks: what new intimacies arise when we love without species' boundaries?
Visit www.ccadld.org for more details.
F.E McWilliam Gallery and Studio in Banbridge: presents Barbara Freeman: A Retrospective from 14 June – 27 September 2025. Free admission. Visit https://visitarmagh.com/whatso...
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