Lyric Players' Theatre
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lyric Players' Theatre, more commonly known as The Lyric Theatre, or simply The Lyric, is an acting theatre in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The theatre was first established as the Lyric Players in 1951 at the home of its founders Mary and Pearse O’Malley on the Lisburn Road, and moved to its current home on Ridgeway Street in 1968. Austin Clarke had laid the foundation stone of the property in 1965.
In 1974 the theatre staged Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar, leading to protests. In 1976 Liam Neeson appeared in Brian Friel's Philadelphia Here I Come!. Neeson's association with the Lyric has continued since, and is currently the theatre's patron. Several of Friel's plays have been staged at the theatre, including Dancing at Lughnasa in 1996.[1]
In 2004 the theatre announced a fundraising campaign to redevelop the theatre on its existing site. In June 2007 a £1m donation by Northern Irish businessman Dr Martin Naughton kickstarted the development. Naughton's donation was the largest in Northern Ireland arts history. He had previously made donations to Queen's University, where the Naughton Gallery is named in his honour. Due to be completed in 2010, the new facility will feature two theatres.[2] The Lyric's chairman is BBC Northern Ireland journalist Mark Carruthers.[3]
