Belfast Model School for Girls were invited by The Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Department of Communities to attend a Creative Careers event at the Lyric Theatre in March 2019.

This was a unique opportunity for our GCSE Performing Arts class to hear directly from staff at the Lyric Theatre and look behind the scenes at the variety of creative careers in a producing theatre. Guest presenter Rigsy from BBC Radio Ulster’s Across the Line introduced the audience to key creatives working in the music industry, in theatre, in technology, design and animation. This was a fantastic opportunity for our Performing Arts students to learn how the arts are feeding the creative industries pipeline, and how a creative career can open up choices for young people in education.

In addition, as part of the event, our students were given a preview of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic spy thriller, The 39 Steps, which the Lyric Theatre and Bruiser Theatre Company have brilliantly and hilariously recreated for the stage. The first act was full of witty, fast-paced humour and left our students in stitches. It was a tremendous privilege for our students to watch part of performance of this highly successful show which sold-out in the Lyric Theatre. After the show, the girls were given a comprehensive tour of the Lyric Theatre including being led out onto the very stage where the professionals had just performed. They also visited backstage, set design, costume rooms, dance suites, rehearsals rooms and many more.