Kirsty King

With Freshers in full swing and the new term about to start, we’ve put together a round-up of our favourite culture events both in-person and online happening over the next few weeks.

Festivals

After a two-year wait, Culture Night finally came back on Friday. This year will see Belfast’s first large-scale artist’s commission for the occasion. “The Ogham Grove”, a new immersive sculpture, will be part of a lighting and sound show which visitors can experience between 17-19 September in Writer’s Square, situated in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter. According to the artist behind the sculpture, Gawain Morrison, the installation highlights the “importance that nature played in the societies of our ancestors”, and is a “unique and sensory experience”. Don’t miss it this weekend!

Theatre

Everyone’s favourite on-screen “Ma”, Tara Lynne O’Neill from Derry Girls, has written and stars in the Lyric Theatre’s latest production, which tells the story of the formation of Belfast’s first all-female football team. Rough Girls is inspired by true events and explores a group of women’s fight to challenge the perception of the male-dominated game against the backdrop of the First World War. The show is O’Neill’s playwriting debut and runs until 25 September, so catch it while you still can.

Creative Writing

On 25 September from 11-1.30pm, St Anne’s Cathedral’s first ever writer in residence and award winning writer, Deirdre Cartmill, will be hosting a creative writing workshop in the Belfast Cathedral. The theme of the day is “Forgotten Voices”, and those of all writing abilities are welcome to attend and experiment in poetry, prose or drama. The cost of the workshop is £12-£15, and more information on bookings can be found on the Belfast Cathedral website.

Literature

The Crescent Arts Centre will be hosting an exciting array of online events this Autumn. At the end of September, Jan Carson will be speaking to writer Luke Cassidy about his upcoming debut novel Iron Annie, which is set in his home-town of Dundalk. A theatre adaptation of the novel will also be touring this Autumn in twenty Irish theatres. Tickets for this author event cost £5 and the conversation will be available to watch online on 29 September at 8pm.

Art

A new art exhibition has recently opened at The MAC Belfast. But This Material… by Anne Tallentire consists of a collection of her key works from the last decade. Her art frequently makes use of building materials in order to explore how humans inhabit public and private spaces, and is inspired by current debates surrounding rising house prices and the failure of governments to provide adequate social housing. The exhibition runs until 21 November and is free to visit, but pre-booking a gallery ticket on The MAC website is advised.

Film

Earlier this year, three professional artists based in Northern Ireland were commissioned to create new audio and film works for BBC platforms as part of BBC Arts’ “Culture in Quarantine” initiative, which aims to document life during Covid times. The commissioning programme celebrates the work of deaf, neurodivergent and disabled artists from across the UK, and the creations of Northern Irish artists Alice McCullough (poet and comedian), Shannon Yee (playwright), and Joel Simon (animator), are available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.

Kirsty King is an English student at Queen’s University Belfast

Where to get your Belfast culture fix this semester