The Half Moon by Alice Malseed Puts a Spotlight on North Belfast

The play is part of a two-year residency in the Tigers Bay and Mountcollyer areas of Belfast by theatre company Green Shoot Productions, designed to give the areas a platform. The Half Moon written by up-and-coming Alice Malseed (Haven; Jade City) is based on interviews with women currently living in Tiger's Bay as well as on women's experience in the area from the 1940s onwards.

As part of their residency in the Tiger's Bay area, Green Shoot Productions will deliver an intensive programme of free theatre skills workshops, one-to-one mentoring on subjects such as set design and directing, a series of theatre visits for local residents and the publication of a book of social history, written by members of the community.

Green Shoot's Artistic Director and local playwright Martin Lynch (In the Name of the Son; Chronicles of Long Kesh) said he believed working-class communities often lost out when it came to the arts, and he wanted to give people in lower north Belfast a voice.

He told the Belfast Telegraph, "My life has been spent trying to give the working class a voice through theatre and arts, a voice they wouldn’t normally have, and to get people into theatres."

He continued, "Every community has its hidden talent, and I’m very excited about what we might find."

Another play, written by Rathcoole man Gary Mitchell featuring contributions from the north Belfast community, is scheduled for 2023.

The Half Moon runs in the MAC's Upstairs Theatre from 6-10 April. Tickets are on sale now and available here.