Family fun: There is an amazing children’s festival happening in Belfast in March

Trine Jensen-Burke

It sounds like the perfect family weekend away.

We already think Belfast is pretty much the perfect destination for a family getaway (the Ulser Museum and their dinosaur exhibition, the Titanic visitor centre, the amazing W5…), but this event will no doubt make it even more fun-filled and exciting – for the whole family.

From Friday 8th to Wednesday 13th of March, the Belfast Children’s Festival take place, and celebrating its 21st birthday this year, the event promises to be the best one yet, with an absolute packed programme of theatre, dance, visual art, music, literature, comedy, workshops and talks, all guaranteed to inspire joy, creativity and curiosity.

During the six day festival, international artists along with home-grown talent will be presenting over 90 shows and interactive experiences in venues and locations across Belfast, creating many unforgettable shared experiences for all the family, whether you arrive with toddlers or teens in tow.

A roller-skating soldier, a magic bear, and dancing aliens are just a small snapshot of some of the delights that will appear at this year’s festival, where the theme is ‘Our Place in the World’.

This is what Eibhlín de Barra, Director Young at Art, had to say when she unveiled this year’s festival’s packed programme:

‘The 2019 Belfast Children’s Festival is a wonderful mix of theatre, dance, comedy, music, visual arts and literature for families. From the powerful Oorlog (War), to the madcap exploits of Expedition Peter Pan, and from Cahoots NI’s charming adaptation of Jon Agee’s Milo’s Hat Trick, to the hilarious The Alien’s Guide To Dance Gone Wrong, there really is something for everyone. On top of it all we’re creating an inSPIREd family programme of events and activities in the heart of the Cathedral Quarter.”

From Friday 8th to Wednesday the 13th of March, over 90 events will take place in 12 locations across the city. Belfast Children’s Festival has become one of the largest children’s arts festivals on the island of Ireland and the UK, attracting over 31,000 people last year.

Opening the festival at the festival hub, The MAC, on Friday 8 March, Oorlog (War) (ages 7+), by award-winning Theater Artemis (The Netherlands), explores the challenging subject of the effects of conflict and the chaos that this has on people and their surroundings, and ultimately, how the human spirit endures.

On Saturday 9 March the inSPIREd family fun day will be bursting with exciting activities across the Cathedral Quarter including a one-off special Baby Rave ‘Rave in the Nave’ in Belfast Cathedral, free children’s art workshops exploring home and the urban landscape around us, DJ workshops with Bounce Culture, Acoustic Picnic in Oh Yeah Music Centre, digital animation with Can Do Academy, augmented reality workshops with Art Cart, theatre workshops with Northern Ireland Opera, and more, all supported by new sponsor Destination CQ BID.

Another incredibly powerful performance is We Come From Far, Far Away (ages 10+), presented by NIE (Norway/UK/Czech Republic), which tells the story of 2 boys who have travelled alone from Syria to Norway and is based on true stories. Thanks to support from Belfast City Council’s Good Relations Unit and Community Relations Council, Young at Art have designed an accompanying education programme and will be working with 360 school children in areas where Syrian families are settling.

Closing the festival on Wednesday 13 March is the high energy and playful Expedition Peter Pan (ages 7+) by Het Laagland (The Netherlands). This production promises a wild adventure of imagination, hilarious surprises, and rediscovery of the child in all of us.

The festival will present several relaxed performances, for children and families with additional sensory and communication needs including learning difficulties and autistic spectrum conditions, audio-described performances for those with sight loss and, on Sunday 10 March, the Black Box will host a Mini Moon Disco, which has been specially created for children aged 0-7 with any kind of disability.

Belfast Children’s Festival is brought to you by Young at Art, Northern Ireland’s leading arts provider for children and young people. For more details, please visit www.youngatart.co.uk

Ticket prices vary £3- £10, with many events free. The maximum ticket price is £10, and adults pay the same price as children.