What’s on in the Arts
9th February, 2022
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Young Musicians’ Platform Award: Tickets are now available for a special BBC Radio Ulster Invitation Concert on 23rd February featuring the six current winners of the BBC NI and Arts Council NI Young Musicians’ Platform Award, supported by The National Lottery.
They’ll be performing alongside the Ulster Orchestra and conductor David Brophy. The scheme is a biennial award given to six young exceptionally talented solo musicians – this year spanning classical, folk and contemporary singer-songwriters – aimed at bolstering their careers.
John Toal will introduce pianist Justine Gormley, cellist Angus McCall and tenor Andrew Irwin, multi-instrumentalist and singer Jack Warnock, singer-songwriter and composer Rose Connolly and Derry/Londonderry singer-songwriter Roisin Donald, better-known as Roe. Don't miss out, apply for tickets now at https://www.ulsterhall.co.uk
The Belfast Ensemble: After a sell-out run at Outburst Queer Arts Festival, the award-winning smash-hit production, Abomination: A DUP Opera, by Conor Mitchell, finally makes its Dublin premiere at The Abbey Theatre from 24 March – 2 April 2022. Revolutionary in form, Abomination centres on the scandalous live radio interview given by NI Politician Iris Robinson, when she referred to homosexuality as an ‘abomination’ – an act that has gone down in Irish queer history and instantly re-ignited the Northern Irish equality debate.
With their unique high-impact, multi-disciplinary style, the Belfast Ensemble wrap this story in a fresh web of incendiary historical comments by DUP members on the subject of gay rights, marriage equality, ‘poofs’ and ‘perverts’ to shockingly theatrical effect – challenging the power of words in the hands of the powerful. Contemporary, political, comic, and emotionally complex, this riotous Northern Irish original redefined what a 21st-century opera could say, and why… and with just a touch of drag!
Originally produced by The Belfast Ensemble and Outburst Arts for Outburst Queer Arts Festival 2019, with support from The Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Paul Hamlyn Foundation and British Council. For tickets visit www.abbeytheatre.ie
Glasgowbury: catch the Glasgowbury documentary, Pots, Paints and Plays with Gemma Bradley as part of BBC’s A Season of Arts. The documentary is proudly supported by the Department for Communities and the Arts Council.
Musician and broadcaster Gemma Bradley returns home to her rural roots to spend some quality creative time with three arts practitioners living and working in her native Mid Ulster. She meets butcher turned painter Conor Larkin and observes his practice, both on location and in his studio, where she tries her hand at watercolour work, before learning how to throw a clay pot with ceramic artist Stephen McGuigan.
Gemma then heads to the Bardic theatre in Donaghmore, where actor Brian McMahon takes her through a performance workshop. Inspired by the artists, all of whom are making it work for themselves in the place where Gemma’s own creative journey began, she returns to the site of her first public performance, where she reflects on the importance of supporting talent and making space for creative people in rural Northern Ireland. Tune in at https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0014569
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 https://www.scottsjazzclub.com/
Portico of Ards: presents a new programme of events for 2022 with highlights including,
- 13 Feb, Phil Coulter
- 19 March, The Shamrock Tenors
To find out more about Portico or concerts coming up please visit porticoards.com
Northern Ireland Opera: presents, Into The Woods, at the Lyric Theatre from 9-27 February. Northern Ireland Opera is delighted to be bringing one of Stephen Sondheim’s most loved musicals to Belfast. ‘Into the Woods’ promises to be a real highlight for audiences in 2022: a wonderfully intriguing show that brings together and intertwines some of the beloved Brothers Grimm fairy tales, such as Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel, to ask what might have happened before “Once upon a time” and after “Happily ever after”.
This locally built and created musical will be presented at the Lyric Theatre, featuring some of Northern Ireland’s greatest musical and creative talent. Northern Ireland Opera is thrilled to be able to introduce Belfast to some wonderful new local talent while at the same time to be able to showcase some of the West End’s finest performers, some originally from Northern Ireland and making their debut performances back home.
‘Into The Woods’ follows three highly successful productions each February by Northern Ireland Opera at the Lyric: ‘The Threepenny Opera’ in 2018, ‘Sweeney Todd’ in 2019 and ‘Kiss Me, Kate’ in 2020. We look forward to welcoming audiences old and new to this latest production, opening on 9th February 2022. For more information visit www.niopera.com
Ulster Orchestra: presents Salon Sessions. With the aim to expand their support of and collaboration with local music artists, the Ulster Orchestra is launched an exciting new digital series, Salon Sessions, which is available to watch on their YouTube channel. Salon Sessions is free to view. For further information on Salon Sessions, please visit www.ulsterorchestra.org.uk
The Ulster Orchestra also presents a series of concerts. To view the full programme and to purchase tickets visit www.ulsterorchestra.org
Oh Yeah: The award winning NI Music Exhibition at Oh Yeah is now open for visitors. 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. There is a ‘Legends’ series of wall displays that hail the great achievers including Ruby Murray, Van Morrison, Terri Hooley, Bap Kennedy, David McWilliams and Henry McCullough to name a few. Exhibition cases display some unique rock and roll memorabilia including the Fender Guitar that Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol used to write ‘Run’ and ‘Chasing Cars’, a vintage street sign of Cyprus Avenue, made famous in a Van Morrison song, and a specially arranged exhibit of Gary Moore memorabilia.
Exhibition Opening Times
Mon – Fri: 10am-4pm
Sat: 12-5pm
More info will follow on when the Music Bus Tour will restart soon. To enquire about a visit, or for further info and group bookings please contact info@ohyeahbelfast.com or call 02890310845
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
Phil Taggart: ChillDaBeats is the brand new show from NI DJ, Phil Taggart. Every week he brings you a soft focus selection of the best alternative chill sounds along with the biggest guests picking some brain soothers in the Soul Food Selection. ChillDaBeats goes live every Sunday. Listen on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/show/0M2IpL7ldc1Rui2aa9meX3 This podcast series is supported by emergency funding through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Department for Communities.
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)
Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich: presents Music Corner, the best of traditional music with great traditional musicians every Saturday. Visit https://www.facebook.com/AnChulturlann/
FILM, LITERATURE, DANCE & DRAMA
BBC Dance Passion: Don’t miss Flight, a short dance film about that universal desire to fly, led by Northern Ireland choreographer/Co-Director, Jennifer Rooney and Co-Director, Ciarán Haggerty, commissioned by BBC Dance Passion. Flight is part of the BBC series A Season of Arts and available to view now on BBC iPlayer.
With music by Northern Irish composer, Garth McConaghie and featuring Bangor dancer, Jemima Brown, Flight is a celebration of dance from Northern Ireland. This short dance film steps back in time to the playful world of childhood, where a young hero in the making, through the power of imagination, attempts to defy gravity. Spring-boarding from the early memories of the film’s creators, Rooney and Haggerty, the film explores that most universal theme - a child’s desire to fly.
Combining choreography and a 1990s aesthetic, Flight transports us to a place flooded by the sights and sounds we once knew from childhood, set in a period when actions were uninhibited, possibilities seemed endless, and everything was both fresh and fascinating. This beautiful film was the result of a submission from Jennifer Rooney and Ciarán Haggerty to Dance Passion, a collaboration between BBC Arts and One Dance UK, supported by Arts Council England, but this week, it’s now being aired as part of BBC’s A Season of Arts series. To watch Flight visit https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0014fqd
Crescent Arts Centre: has launched a new season of the Crescent’s Creative Learning Programme where you can explore a hobby, brush up on your creative talents, or have a go at something new. Visit https://crescentarts.org/courses
They also continue their monthly Book Festival events until March 2022. Details of all events can be found at https://belfastbookfestival.com/whats-on
Echo Echo: has a new programme of dance and yoga classes, courses and workshops for adults or children available to register now.
Also at Echo Echo, Gemma Walker presents her one woman show 'Ghosts' on this Friday 11th and Saturday 12th at Echo Echo, Derry-Londonderry. It's a unique and atmospheric theatre/storytelling experience that has been five years in the making and is the first live theatre show at Echo Echo studios since pre-covid. It has been supported by Arts Council Creative Individuals Resilience Fund. For more details visit www.echoechodance.com
Maiden Voyage Dance: Maiden Voyage Dance is inviting 3–6-year-olds and their grown-ups to join them on a ‘suit safari’ in their new show ‘MORF’, which will premiere at The MAC as part of Belfast Children’s Festival on 5 - 6 March. Exploring the magical in the everyday, ‘MORF’ sees two dancers use ordinary suit jackets to create familiar animals - including a jellyfish, an elephant, a bird, and a worm - as young audiences travel with them to a ‘fabric fantasy’ world of clouds, mountains, volcanos and castles. Nothing stays the same for long as what is there in one second is gone and transformed into something new the next.
Duration: 30-35 mins
Live performances
The MAC, Belfast: 5-6 March, 2.30pm and 4.30pm
School performances
The MAC, Belfast : 4,8,9 March
Streamed performances
Online QFT Player: 12-13 March
For further information and to book tickets (£10 each) for ‘MORF’, visit https://www.youngatartevents.co.uk/whats-on/morf
Big Telly Theatre Company: Big Telly Theatre Company, pioneers of immersive, site-specific theatre production and experts in creative shops, will be returning to Mid and East Antrim as three new Creative Shop Projects will be delivered in the towns of Carrickfergus, Larne and Ballymena.
Living Map will be taking place at 20 Main Street, Larne from Tuesday 8 February to Saturday 12 February at the following times: Tues: 2.30pm – 4.30pm | Wed – Sat: 11am – 1pm and 2.30pm – 4.30pm. It will take you into a giant walk through map of the world where you will discover new territories and tales from other travellers, whilst adding your own pieces to places you have already been too. Over the course of the week, the map will fill up with tales of travel - where people met, what places mean and how ports become portals to other places.
This experience is designed for adults and older children over the age of 11. If your family group includes younger children, you’re also very welcome.
Lastly, for the children, bring your bear along to Bear Hospital at Unit 72, Tower Centre, Wellington Street, Ballymena. Have it whisked away by hospital porters in the AmBEARlance, get it assessed by the BEARiatrics team of doctors and try not to end up in Intensive BEAR! This experience will run from Wednesday 16 February to Saturday 19 February. It is a 20 minute experience and will run at the following times: Wed – Sat: 11am, 11.30am, 12pm, 12.30pm, 2.30pm, 3pm, 3.30pm, 4pm. Booking is advisable due to limited capacity. Tickets are free of charge and can be booked at https://buytickets.at/bigtellytheatrecompany. For ages 6+.
Kabosh Theatre Company: presents Belfast and 18 – 26 February, regional tour. This poignant new political play follows the lives of Bridget, Helen, Martin, Jason, and Tommy - five gay/lesbian people who sought sanctuary and community through Cara-Friend - a phoneline and befriending service set up in 1974 to support our hidden LGBTQ+ communities'.
Created by local playwright Dominic Montague, and directed by Paula McFetridge this compelling piece of queer theatre is grounded in research and conversations with Cara-Friend’s early service users. From rallying against the Save Ulster from Sodomy campaign to celebrating the right to exist won through the Dudgeon vs UK trial, Callings looks at the historical challenges faced by local LGBTQ+ communities, and tells a series of powerful personal stories that will make you laugh, cry, and consider just how far we’ve come. Featuring a talented local cast of Vicky Allen, Paula Carson-Lewis, Christopher Grant, Chris Robinson, and Simon Sweeney, Callings explores how these bright and resilient individuals found themselves and each other during oppressive times.
Callings will run at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, from the 15 – 17 February, followed by a regional tour:
18 Feb
Cultúrlann Uí Chanáin, Derry~Londonderry
(part of the Sole Purpose Festival of Theatre for Social change)
19 Feb
Market Place Theatre, Armagh
22 Feb
The Ardhowen, Enniskillen
23 Feb
Strule Arts Centre, Omagh
25 Feb
An Táin Arts Centre, Dundalk
26 Feb
The Riverside Theatre, Coleraine
For further information on Kabosh and its work, visit www.kabosh.net
Seamus Heaney HomePlace: has released details of their new winter-spring 2022 seasonal programme of events. Visit www.seamusheaneyhome.com for tickets and information.
Grand Opera House: presents a new season of programming with highlights including,
- Scottish Ballet presents The Nutcracker, 9-12 Feb 2022
- Phil Coulter, 16 Feb 2022
For tickets and to see the full programme of performances visit www.goh.co.uk
Millennium Forum: presents a new programme for 2022 with highlights including,
- Phil Coulter, 18 Feb 2022
- Swan Lake, 2 March 2022
Visit www.millenniumforum.co.uk for tickets and to view the full performance programme.
The Lyric Theatre: presents a new programme for 2022 with highlights including,
- Into The Woods, presented by Northern Ireland Opera, 3-27 Feb 2022
- Callings, written by Dominic Montague and directed by Paula McFetridge
- Patrick Kielty, 15-20 March 2022
- Breadboy, 28-31 July 2022
For further details on all events and to buy tickets visit www.lyrictheatre.co.uk
The MAC presents a new programme for 2022 with highlights including,
- X’ntigone (After Sophocles’ Antigone), 2-13 Feb 2022, c0-production between The Mac and Primecut Productions
- Belfast International Arts Festival and Riham Isaac present Another Lover’s Discourse, March 2022
For further details on all events and to buy tickets visit www.themaclive.com
The Playhouse: For further information visit www.derryplayhouse.co.uk
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
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
Duncairn: has released details of their new programme of theatre, music and digital classes. Highlights include:
- Spanner In The Works presents Deception, 1 Feb 2022, 7:30pm Watch as an ordinary family falls victim to scams and see how they learn and move on from the experience. Written and directed by Patricia Downey.
- Sam Amidon, 5 March 2022, 7:30pm. Sam Amidon is an American folk artist, originally from Vermont, US. His parents are Peter Amidon and Mary Alice Amidon, both well established folk musicians who raised him on a diet of old Irish and Appalachian folk. Amidon is a member of the Icelandic music collective/record label Bedroom Community, and is a multi-instrumentalist. As well as singing, Amidon plays fiddle, guitar and banjo.
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 www.edenplaceartscentre.com
Wheelworks: unique to WheelWorks Arts is their state of the art ArtCart — a mobile arts studio that travels to your venue and opens up to provide an additional studio space for workshops and is packed full to the brim with digital equipment such as ipads, music and film making technology.
Virtual ArtCart activities take place at your own venue. Where outdoor space is limited, Wheelworks bring the ArtCart creativity inside your centre. They also come with a full outdoor suite — marquees, stage sound, lighting and outdoor heaters.
This unique space allows your young people the opportunity to experience professional equipment in a custom-made studio. It allows your centre to offer a range of socially distance spaces and utilises outdoor space. To book your perfect digital and arts activities just email www.wheelworksarts.com
Streetwise: 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
VOID: is delighted to present Sampler, the first solo exhibition by artist Aleana Egan in Northern Ireland. The exhibition will bring together existing works and two newly commissioned pieces, which expand on Egan’s nuanced approach to working with materials that are familiar and that often have residual memories associated with them. The word sampler derives from the Latin exemplum, meaning an ‘example’. In the context of sewing and textiles it was originally like a personal notebook for keeping stitches and motifs of interest together. Bringing works together under this title Egan intends to put emphasis on the ephemeral and fragmentary. It will continue her investigation into creating an ambient space through which to convey emotions by using sparing sculptural gestures. In short, expressing the immaterial through material means.
Visit www.derryvoid.com
Craft NI: Craft NI Gallery, 115-119 Royal Avenue, Belfast.
Dates: 5pm Thursday 3 February – 27 March 2022
Craft NI is delighted to welcome you to ‘Curved with intent’, an exhibition of contemporary design in wood. ‘Curved with intent’ is Craft NI’s first event of a varied 2022 exhibition programme and promises to raise interest in the beautiful medium of wood and admiration for the talented Northern Irish designer-makers who work with it.
Wood as a construction material and man have had a very long relationship - not surprising since it is so extraordinarily versatile. The ability to create curved forms in wood is an example of its extreme adaptability to different needs and types of objects and construction, and it perfectly illustrates the theme of the exhibition – gentle and purposeful mastery that transforms a simple organic material into beautiful and/or functional craft objects.
Wood can be shaped in many ways, and the work displayed in the exhibition will demonstrate both a variety of objects and methods, including carving, turning, laminating, steam bending and cutting from solid.
The participating designer-makers are David Cousley, Mark Hanvey, Ronan Lowery, Brian McKee and John Piekaar.
All David Cousley’s work is carved from solid wood - the smaller pieces using knives, and the larger, a progression of tools from chainsaw, axe, and draw knife to spokeshaves, gouges and chisels as the work becomes ever more refined and close to the intended form.
Mark Hanvey specializes in turning unseasoned wood. His pieces are turned to a fine wall thickness and then left to dry where the natural tensions in the timber pull and contort to realise the final form. His pith vessel piece retains and celebrates a part of the tree that is usually discarded but was vital to the growth of the tree.
Ronan Lowery’s work involves two kinds of laminating: the curved rail of the bench uses the lamination of thin strips of timber bent over a mould, and the curve of the hanging hall stand consists of a built up and shaped sub structure which is then finished with veneer applied to the curved undersides.
The primary constructional method which dominates Brian McKee’s work is the steam bending of timber. This is achieved by heating unseasoned or seasoned but re-wetted timber to 100 degrees Celsius and bending it over a specially designed mould. This is possible because the adhesive material (lignin) which holds the fibers together softens temporarily at this temperature, enough to allow some movement of the fibers relative to one another, enabling the wood to bend.
John Piekaar uses two techniques in order to achieve wood curvature in his main piece - cutting from solid wood and progressively refining the shape as required, and laminated bending, that is gluing together thin strips of timber and clamping them while bent over a mould.
Each participating designer-maker speaks through their work to the audience of their own particular relationship with the material: the shapes they produce are more or less practically and/or aesthetically purposed. They are very deliberately envisaged - they are curved with intent. Visit www.craftni.org
University of Atypical: presents The C word, Paradox and Optimism of the Will
Sinéad O'Neill-Nicholl
3rd February - 18th March 2022
University of Atypical is delighted to welcome you to join them for a new solo exhibition by the 2020, Graduate Award recipient Sinéad O'Neill-Nicholl opening as part of Belfast’s Late Night Art on the 3rd of February 2022.
Informed by field recordings made during periods of significant life events, the sound composition serves as both a personal antithetic response to late-stage capitalism and patriarchal structures - an exploration of paradoxical experience.
Living in a seemingly perpetual state of existential crisis, exacerbated by her father’s death from Cholangiocarcinoma (a rare and aggressive cancer) the artist began to collect sounds that captured the essence of the experience.
Following the outbreak of Covid-19 in March 2020, this practice continued as a way of reflecting time and the daily experiences that accompanied our collective containment. This sound installation can be further considered as an examination of the limitations of human knowledge and phenomenological experience. Visit www.universityofatypical.org
Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich: presents,
Eimear Nic Roibeaird
Eimear Nic Roibeaird is delighted to debut her solo exhibition An Chéad Bhean/The First Woman in the Gerard Dillion Gallery. An Chéad Bhean tells the story of Irish womanhood through paintings and written work based on the Cailleach figure. The Cailleach figure appears in Irish lore and heritage. The Cailleach is a character is based upon the villainous image giving to Irish woman who possessed unattainable power that neither Nationalism nor Christianity could possess. In this exhibition she will be depicted as the “wicked” Aoife, the venturous Cessair, the frightful Morrigan and the heroic Sadbh. Weaving together myth and realism, this narrative exhibition is a compelling body of work that has been developed by Nic Roibeaird the past 18 months. She is inspired by her Gael heritage and culture and the stories of Mythology she was raised with and her own experiences as an Irish woman. For further details visit www.culturlann.ie
Kevin Hamilton
Traditional Cultures in this part of Ireland can often be abused and misused as a negative commentary, ‘a stick to beat the other side with.’ We are more than just flags and kerbstones. All cultures have an intrinsic beauty within, which is often overlooked. My new series of work I have focused on aspects of the built landscape which have traditionally been associated with one or the other side. Buildings and locations such as Stormont Castle, Clonard Monastery, Milltown cemetery and Windsor Park, created intriguing symmetrical compositions divorced from its previous traditional associations. Through this selection of work, I want to encourage all to see beyond the history of a place and appreciate the beauty within. My work is kaleidoscopic pieces drawn from locations and landmarks previously identified to be one or the other culture, from divided cultures here. Highlighting the beauty which is visible everywhere if you know how to look, a true beauty found in each culture which can be appreciated without prejudice. For further details visit https://www.culturlann.ie/en/visual-arts
ArtisAnn: presents SCIENCE fiction from Wed 2nd February to Sat 26th February, 2022
Part of the NI Science Festival
Tue – Fri: 11am to 6pm ; Sat: Noon to 5pm
This exhibition, which is part of NI Science Festival, celebrates the creativity in art and science and how artists respond to the great science fiction books and films that have inspired them.
Artists showing include
Tony Bartley
Magdalena Blazejewicz
Leo Boyd
Wilhelmina Peace
Rachel Lawell
Harry McMahon
Neil Shawcross
All artworks are available to buy. You can also buy art from this exhibition through the Arts Council supported Own Art scheme which gives you an interest-free loan over 10 months (and you still get to take the art home immediately the exhibition ends). Visit www.artisann.org
Golden Thread Gallery: presents God is Meditating: Still – a new exhibition by Edy Fung.
15 Jan – 19 Feb 2022.
GTG is delighted to present a new solo exhibition by Edy Fung in the Project Space, curated by Sarah McAvera.
God is Meditating: Still explores our current state of uncertainty through investigating the potential of determinism and the possibilities of predictions. Through installation, sound, text and drawing, Fung uses instances of meteorology as an allegory for the possibility of the pre-determined. Referencing a range of thinkers and theories, such as LaPlace and Land, God is Meditating: Still uses the seemingly innocuous topic of weather to force us to question our own beliefs and disbeliefs around the ability to predict the future. Visit www.goldenthreadgallery.co.uk
The MAC: presents the following exhibitions:
Alfred Wallis: Artist and Mariner, 8 Dec – 27 Mar, presented in the Tall and Sunken Gallery.
Alfred Wallis (1855–1942) was a mariner and scrap merchant born in Devonport, Plymouth, who spent most of his life in Cornwall. He started painting around the age of seventy, with no formal training and little income. Despite these challenges, his artistic output was prolific. After going to sea as a cabin boy at the age of nine, Wallis spent his early life working on lugger and deep-sea fishing boats off the Cornish coast and in the Atlantic. He later set up a marine scrap store in St Ives. Following the death of his wife, he turned to making art as a creative release from the loneliness he felt. All works in the exhibition are by Alfred Wallis and from the collection of Kettle’s Yard, University of Cambridge.
Ronnie Hughes: Isobar, 8th December – 27 March 2022, Upper Gallery, The MAC
Ronnie Hughes is one of Ireland’s most dynamic abstract painters. Hughes’ elegant and poised works are executed with complex technical skill yet retain a lightness of touch. While his finished paintings display a diversity of styles, at heart they share a common concern with the lived experience, and what Hughes has described as “the beauty, the fragility and the violence of being.”
Ronnie Hughes’ works evolve over a long time and are generally process-driven to the extent that there is no plan or, in most cases, any sense of the outcome until the works are close to completion. “My role is to steer and nuance their evolution; to balance the elements and, just as often, to disrupt them resulting in the emergence of waves, nebulae, constellations, lattice structures and fields”.
In recent years Hughes’ work has become more ‘optically’ charged, colour and shape are presented as vibrational energies where the haptic qualities that a painting’s surface contains and its ability to record, hold and represent time are amplified.
Hughes’ work is complex and multi-dimensional. The painted surface is constructed through a layering of stratas revealing a range of associative and representational qualities simultaneously. What appears to be random or chaotic is revealed to have a hidden template, structure or pattern, the regimented order of which is constantly gnawed at and undermined.
For further information visit at www.belfastexposed.org
R-Space: Visit https://www.rspacelisburn.com
CCA: CCA Derry-Londonderry presents
FEROX 14 Jan – 12 March 2022
CCA Derry-Londonderry is proud to present FEROX – its first exhibition of 2022, and artist Ciaran O Dochartaigh’s most extensive solo show to date. Ciaran makes use of a wide range of media – customised tools made of ceramic, marble, granite, sound recordings, technical drawings – in an attempt to deal with themes of generational grief, trauma and healing and how these lived experiences are indivisible from the landscape. Sources for Ciaran’s work are found in his research garnered from historical documentation and archival footage, as well as personal experience and storytelling.
FEROX focuses on Lough Fad East, Donegal – a small body of freshwater that supplies drinking water to the surrounding townlands in the Inishowen peninsula. The ecosystem of the lough has been damaged in recent years, most significantly by the introduction of a new fish species that has irreversibly altered its biodiversity which had previously been unaltered since the last ice age.
Throughout the duration of FEROX there will be a series of accompanying events, pending pandemic restrictions. Visit www.ccadld.org
Belfast TradFest: Belfast will be awash with the very best of traditional music, song and dance during the February mid-term break, with Concerts, Workshops & Sessions all taking place in the city as part of Belfast TradFest’s Winter Weekend on the 18th -20th February, supported by The National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. Some of Ireland and Scotland’s finest singers, musicians and dancers re-take to the stage after a very lean couple of years, for what promises to be an extravaganza of jigs, reels, strathspeys, sean nós dancing plus the very best of traditional singing.
Headlining the festival on Sunday 20th Feb in The Empire Music Hall is the world renowned singer Iarla Ó Lionáird of the ‘The Gloaming’, who will be joined by the Australian guitar maestro Steve Cooney. Their interpretations of songs from the sean-nós tradition have set a new standard of artistic integrity and creative innovation. Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich, will host Kerry songstress Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh when she performs on Saturday 19th fresh on the heels of her performances on RTÉ’s Tommy Tiernan & The Late Late Show and her recent collaboration with the Irish Chamber Orchestra. Dundalk fiddle wizard Zoe Conway & guitarist John McIntyre will open the festival on Friday 18th Feb with a show of fiddling fireworks and sumptuous guitar work, sure to whet the appetite for more.
To view the programme and buy tickets visit https://www.belfasttraditionalmusic.com/
Moving on Music‘s Brilliant Corners Jazz Festival: returns from 4-12 March at The Black Box, Belfast. This year they have cast the net across Ireland, the UK and Europe with Witch ‘n’ Monk, Wildflower, David Lyttle Trio, Black Top, Potsa Lotsa, Aoife Doyle, RBG Trio, Jas & Chums, The Long Game, ADJUNCT Ensemble, SlapBang, and Ishmael Ensemble all on the bill. Visit http://www.brilliantcornersbelfast.com/
Féile an Earraigh: is a vibrant and inclusive culture and arts festival, celebrating and showcasing Irish culture, music and diversity. The programme offers a wide variety of arts and cultural activities including traditional music, workshops, concerts, tours, walks, talks, literary events, youth and sporting events and family based activities.
Féile an Phobail’s Spring festival, Féile an Earraigh, celebrates and showcases local Irish culture and diversity through an eclectic mix of vibrant and inclusive Irish cultural and arts activity for local people and visitors to the city in the lead in to and including St Patrick’s Day. The 2022 festival will see over 150 events take place in more than 30 venues throughout the City.
Highlights include:
- Headline shows by Irish Super Bands Aslan and Beoga, the Féile Trad Trail, with live traditional music in various locations throughout Belfast;
- Bodhran, Tin Whistle and Sean Nós singing workshops
- Irish language crash courses for all levels of ability
- Family friendly trad music session
- Talks and discussions
- Events to mark International Women’s Day and World Book Day
- Activities for families in local community centre’s and public libraries
- Mutiple tours and walks
- Number of headline concerts
For full events listings please refer to the Féile an Phobail website www.feilebelfast.com where the programme will be available to view from Thursday 17th February.
Illuminate, Embrace the Walled City: Take a journey through time this February and discover the secrets of the Walled City as you embark on a magical illuminated trail telling the story of a legendary place that will capture both your heart and your imagination. Funded by Tourism Northern Ireland as part of the Embrace A Giant Spirit campaign 'Illuminate' will run over two weekends, 17th - 20th and 24th – 27th February, and shine a light on the events that have shaped the unique story of Derry, a city that has been forged through a millennium of adventure, endurance, imagination and endeavour.
From its origins as an ancient settlement to today's vibrant cultural hub, its story will be brought to life over eight days of stunning installations that will light up some of the City's most iconic sites, using the latest digital technology, projection, sound and animation to weave a compelling tale of tragedy and triumph. View the beautiful Guildhall, the City's historic walls, St Columb's Cathedral, Castle Gate and St Columb's Hall as you've never seen them before, as they provide the canvas for this illuminating tale.
Illuminate offers the chance to meet some of the heroes and villains whose remarkable stories have changed the course of history. Immerse yourself in the landmark events that have made this place so special, from the arrival of the monastic legend Colmcille to the Siege of Derry, the surrender of the Battle of the Atlantic, to the surge of the Civil Rights movement and the pathway to peace. Learn how the Walled City has been reunified, restored and reimagined, told through performance, music and theatre.
The festival also invites you to share in this former City of Culture's renowned passion for music and the arts with a series of intimate live music gigs reflecting the theme of light, with artists such as Kila, Neil Cowley, ROE and The Henry Girls. Visit www.derrystrabane.com/illuminate
Belfast Children’s Festival: On the back of a 2-year hiatus for live events, Belfast Children’s Festival 2022 is returning from 4-13 March 2022 with a line-up of gigantic proportions.
From contemporary dance ‘MORF’, creating the magical out of the everyday, to theatre performances of ‘A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings’, incorporating magical realism, and ‘Birdboy’, celebrating the power of imagination, offering a vision of hope and connection. A newly commissioned opera ‘Nobody, Somebody’ will focus on real issues of homelessness and mental health and ‘Touch’ a new exhibition created by local children will explore the impact of social distancing during lockdown, reflecting on and creatively responding to the pandemic impact. International performances will return to this year’s festival with ‘Do As I Say’ from Sweden, a dance performance exploring issues of bullying and authority, and ‘No Man is an Island’ from the Netherlands which brings connection, cooperation, communication and creativity together, collectively making sure that the line-up for Belfast Children’s Festival 2022 is combining reality with the magic of escapism.
In addition, the 2022 programme will feature a new production from Replay Theatre Company ‘Harbour’ An enchanting multi-sensory baby opera, where parents and little ones can discover this strange new world together. Festival favourites will return including the ‘Giant Family Day Out’ at Cathedral Quarter, ‘Acoustic Picnic’ and ‘Baby Rave’, for all of the little dancers and big dancers too!
View the full programme at https://readymag.com/u2245057935/bcf-2022/
Look North: North Belfast’s rich culture and built heritage is to be recognised in a new Festival whose aim is to celebrate the story of North Belfast with its vibrant and diverse community.
This debut weekend festival - Look North! The North Belfast Festival - will take place from Friday 25 to Sunday 27 February in a wide range of venues along the new North Belfast Cultural Corridor. In just over one mile you can find 15 historic buildings and sites which stretch back to the 18th Century. It is an area also renowned as the birthplace and alma mater of such international literary talent as Brian Moore, Helen Waddell, John Hewitt, Ciaran Carson, Sinéad Morrisey, Anne Devlin, Gerald Dawe, Bernard MacLaverty, and Anna Burns.
The festival programme is jam-packed with activities to showcase and celebrate North Belfast’s rich heritage and its cultural, creative and literary talents, with appearances from local authors, artists and young people, though it is not all limited to the area. To this end the programme reflects a wide range of activities and interests, including talks, poetry readings, panel discussions, walks, historic tours, the visual arts, music and comedy performances, creative writing classes for adults and the launch of the first Look North! Short Story Literary Awards in association with Intercomm North Belfast. Visit northbelfastfestival.com for full details.
Sole Purpose: a new festival in Derry-Londonderry will highlight the power of theatre as a positive force to create social change. Organised by Sole Purpose to celebrate its 25th anniversary, the Festival of Theatre for Social Change (14th-20th February) will address issues including the impact of Bloody Sunday, LGBTQ+ rights, breaking down barriers for deaf and disabled people and theatre from a range of Arab countries.
Highlights include: Sole Purpose staging Scenes from an Inquiry by Dave Duggan to mark the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday; multi-award-winning Khayaal Theatre Company's A Collection of Muslim Heritage Tales; and London-based Graeae Theatre's residency with Derry's Lilliput Theatre Company. Visit www.solepurpose.org
Waterways Storymaking Festival: Over the past four years, the Waterways Storymaking Festival has offered a chance for people all over Northern Ireland to reflect and connect in a deeper way with the unique beauty of our waterways. With the continuing support of the National Lottery through the Arts Council, the festival this year will run through the first six months of 2022, offering an opportunity to share with each other thoughts, reminiscences or pure flights of fantasy on the theme of 'Waterways'. Story submissions to the 2022 festival competition are invited from all ages and abilities. There are also free online creative writing workshops to spark some inspiration with talented local writers in January and February. Visit https://www.thewaterwayscommunity.org