Hello Charlie

Hello Charlie is running at The Lyric Theatre from Wednesday 7 to Sunday 18 October, as part of the Belfast International Arts Festival. It's a dark comedy by Derry playwright Caoimhe Farren, and it follows two sisters, Maeve and Kate, who've fled the trauma of their past in Derry to make a life in London. Maeve drinks herself into oblivion, while the stoic Kate watches history repeat itself: Maeve dodges responsibility for her antics and pins the blame on her beloved, inebriated alter-ego, Charlie.

Farren built the play from her own history with alcohol, and it's a multi-award-nominated piece of writing. It was developed as part of The Lyric's New Playwrights Programme, which has since closed, and it's a co-production with the Front & Centre collective, which champions women and non-binary playwrights in the North of Ireland, and the Letterkenny-based An Grianán Theatre. It was shortlisted for The Women's Prize for Playwriting and made the final of the inaugural Victoria Wood Playwriting Prize for Comedy. Lisa McGee, the creator of Derry Girls, called it 'funny, fearless and thought-provoking'.

On stage, the cast is Caoimhe Farren, Clare Monnelly, Vincent Higgins and Callum Payne, with Gina Donnelly and Seón Simpson directing. It's a four-person ensemble for a story that centres on the friction between two sisters.

Performances run from 15:00 and 20:00, so there are matinees and evening shows throughout the run. Tickets are £16 to £22, with community, artist and student tickets at £16 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and matinees. The Lyric is at 55 Ridgeway Street, Belfast, BT9 5FB.