On Wednesday 13th and Thursday 14th April, the Brian Friel Theatre at the QFT played host to ‘Rough Cuts’, a series of theatrical offerings from Queens University’s First Year Drama students who drew upon texts from well known writers such as Oscar Wilde and Peter Shaffer.
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As part of the 2011 Belfast Film Festival, the Queen’s Film Theatre chose Saturday 9 April to devote an entire afternoon to running a series of short film competitions. These competitions were split into three divisions in order to highlight the Irish film industry’s growing commitment to nurturing home-grown talent, and among the dozens on offer, what follows are four which can be considered to be the stand-outs of the competition. They offer a fantastic array of genres, themes and styles, and demonstrate the diverse creativity among contemporary Irish filmmakers.
BY STEPHEN CONLON
On the surface, A Night with George is a brash, low-brow, pointless experiment in seeing how much swearing can be squeezed into a 95 minute performance. In execution, however, the crass humour and thin premise provide an effective, emotional and often hilarious account of life in Northern Ireland from the 1970s until present day. From sectarianism and homosexuality to liberal feminism and teenage pregnancy, few social issues are left unturned by writers Brenda Murphy and Donna O’Connor in this unique one-woman show.
BY STEPHEN CONLON
Now in its second year, the Belsonic Music Festival proves that Belfast can continue to attract a high calibre of musical talent to rival those featuring in other major music festivals across the UK and Ireland this summer. With a diverse line-up including Stereophonics, Paul Weller, David Guetta, Paolo Nutini and local act General Fiasco, the third night of Belsonic 2010 saw headlining act Florence and the Machine take to the stage in Custom House Square.
BY STEPHEN CONLON