In 2026 the Lyric Theatre Belfast celebrated a landmark anniversary, 75 years as the principal producing theatre in Northern Ireland and a leading cultural institution in Belfast.
From its modest beginnings in Mary O’Malley’s home in South Belfast to its landmark building on Ridgeway Street, the Lyric Theatre has stood at the heart of Irish theatre and cultural arts for 75 years. To mark the occasion, they hosted a wide variety of events throughout the year starting in January with the opening of a new exhibition, A House of Play which showcased the Lyric’s rich history, which included an art gallery (1963-69), a dance center, a drama school, Belfast’s first music academy, a literary journal, ‘Threshold’ (1957-1990) – and of course, a theatre.
It was to celebrate the launch of a special anniversary edition of the literary journal, Threshold, that ‘American Friends of the Lyric’ gathered at Mary and Joe Quinlan’s apartment on Fifth Avenue at the start of September.
Executive producer, Jimmy Fay added: We are very grateful to Joe and Mary Lou Quinlan for offering us their home to celebrate the Lyric. Joe and Mary Lou have been supporters of the Lyric over the past decade, and we count them as close friends. They have helped us bring shows to the US and have introduced us to plenty of people. I love that they are passionate about the arts and they come to know the Lyric through been committed theatregoers. I see Joe every time I am in New York and always enjoy our chats, which range from baseball to what’s going down in Irish and American politics. They are brilliant people.”
It was a joyous and triumphant evening, bringing friends together to celebrate the Lyric’s remarkable history and future. Guests included VIP actors and artists Judy Collins, Geraldine Hughes, Bill Irwin and Paul Muldoon, as well as Martin Fraser, Ireland’s ambassador to the UN, and Katie Daughen, the Deputy Consul General of Ireland. Other guests included academics from NYU, reps from key US institutions The Irish Arts Center, The Irish Rep, Tourism Ireland, The Ireland Funds and the Department of Foreign Affairs, and friends who joined to toast the Lyric’s incredible achievements over 75 years. Paul Muldoon read his poem, ‘The Snail’ which was published in the Lyric’s Threshold magazine when he was only 16 years old, having met and shared it with the magazine’s editor at the time Seamus Heaney as a young schoolboy.
First published in 1957, Threshold was Northern Ireland’s premier and longest-running cultural and literary periodical, providing a platform for some of the most important writers, poets, artists and theatre-makers of the 20th century including Heaney, Brian Friel, John McGahern, Meadbh McGuckian, Deborah Brown and John Hewitt.
In honor of their 75th anniversary, the Lyric also recently launched a fundraising campaign, Fund for the Future, to help build and secure a sustainable future for the Lyric, including
support for key aspects of their work beyond the stage: their work with young people, a new capital build at the theatre ‘The Nest’, pathways to the industry and their touring program. On the evening, COO of The Ireland Funds Rory MacIntyre announced a $50,000 award, which was recently given to the Lyric to support one of their theatre-in-education projects. The grant will fund a 3-week tour of ‘Better’, a new play about mental health which will tour to 1,500 young people in schools right across Northern Ireland in February 2027.
The Lyric’s work in this area of education and outreach is extensive, and they recently won a UK Theatre award in recognition of the impact that is made on thousands of young people every year. The Lyric work directly with almost 7,000 young people, and 105 schools right across Northern Ireland, many in disadvantaged areas, and with all communities. This education and outreach work plays a huge role in creating space for dialogues and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, giving voice and shared experience for the next generation of young people aged 6-26. Their ambition to build a new space at the theatre dedicated to young people, ‘The Nest’, is to help meet the demand for this work, which has grown by over 50% in the last three years.
The Lyric has a long and rich history with the United States. From the early editions of Threshold sent to subscribers across America from the 1950s, to the inspiration of J.F. Kennedy’s speech at Amherst College (which inspired the Lyric’s founders so much they chose 26th October 1968 as the date to open the new theatre on Ridgeway Street to mark the fifth anniversary of that famous address), to their Patron Liam Neeson whose career started at the Lyric, the American Friends of the Lyric have been integral to the Lyric’s story. Their commitment have supported the Lyric’s work at home and abroad, helping to rebuild theatre on the banks of the River Lagan 15 years ago. The Lyric’s building remains a source of enormous pride right across Ireland: a home where Northern Irish artists can create, audiences can gather and new generations of theatre-makers can find their voice.
Photo: James Higgins
The Lyric’s Patron, Liam Neeson OBE, says “I have been the proud patron of the Lyric Theatre for many years. Since 1951, the Lyric has been the beating cultural heart of Northern Ireland. And over all these years, so many lives have been transformed and enriched by the magnificent work of this theatre, including mine by the way. The Lyric truly is a theatre of, and for, all the people of Northern Ireland.”
At the opening of the Lyric’s 75th anniversary exhibition in January 2026, First Minister Michelle O’Neill said of the Lyric: “The Lyric’s always really understood that society is always strengthened whenever the arts are really widely accessible and opportunities are opened for everybody.
“The civic spirit of the Lyric matters, I think now more than ever, because this is very much a shared space where people really feel welcome, people feel safe, and most of all feel valued. A place that reflects our capacity to live together, even in the most difficult of times. It was here, just steps away from this stage, that we witnessed one of the most powerful moments of reconciliation in our shared history. The handshake that did happen here between the late Queen Elizabeth, and Martin McGuinness. And that spoke to the moment in our journey, our collective journey that we are all on. A journey we are still absolutely on, but it’s a journey towards a shared and a better future, defined by respect, inclusivity, a willingness to make progress together.
“I want to say to you all tonight, as your First Minister, I believe deeply in the importance of spaces that allow people to come together, that encourage conversation, that encourage empathy and understanding, because making this place tick, making it all work, is something that we all must work on together. So the arts have a vital role to play in that shared future here. The arts support our economy. sustain thousands of jobs, and give expression to voices that might otherwise go unheard. But just as importantly, they help us imagine what we can be together.”
Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly added: “The Lyric has been a place where all communities have come together to explore the many varied aspects of our complex identities in Northern Ireland through art, at a time when so many of us had to resist binary and simplistic labeling of who we are and what we are.
“And that is indeed the joy of the arts. That is the huge value, of course, of the arts and what it brings to the human experience. When we speak about our culture, we should do so proudly and with confidence because we know as we go around the world that very often our culture goes before us; all of those incredible poets and artists and playwrights and actors. And that’s the legacy of the Lyric, but it’s also the hope and the future of this place.”
Leave a Reply