Partitions by Joe Nawaz - Lyric Theatre Belfast

What to Expect

Writer and performer Joe Nawaz presents his solo show Partitions in the Lyric Theatre’s Naughton Studio, Belfast, over four nights from Wednesday 16 to Saturday 19 September 2026. The piece examines the idea of partition through both a personal and political lens, tracing Nawaz’s own family’s relationship with colonial-era separations and following the scars they leave across generations. The show spans continents, moving between Hollywood secrets and family stories from Fermanagh, and draws a line from historical partitions to the divisions that still shape communities today. Written and directed by Nawaz himself, it runs a tight 75 minutes with no interval, built as an intimate, character-driven piece suited to the Naughton Studio’s smaller, more immersive space rather than the Lyric’s larger Main Stage.

Good to Know

Partitions plays for four consecutive nights, Wednesday 16 through Saturday 19 September 2026, with every performance starting at 8pm. Tickets cost between £16 and £22. The show carries an 18+ age recommendation and content warnings for references to death and dying, sudden loud noises, and strong language, so it is not suited to family audiences. Book directly through the Lyric Theatre’s website or by phoning the box office on 028 9038 1081; studio capacity is limited so early booking is worthwhile for weekend dates.

Getting There

The Lyric Theatre is on Ridgeway Street, a short walk from Belfast’s Botanic Gardens and Queen’s University, with regular Translink bus routes and metered on-street parking nearby. Enter through the theatre’s main Ridgeway Street foyer and follow signage through to the Naughton Studio, the venue’s smaller, more intimate second stage.

Joe Nawaz is a Belfast-based writer and performer whose earlier work has toured internationally, and Partitions continues his pattern of blending stand-up delivery with pointed political and personal storytelling, making the show a good fit for audiences who enjoyed his previous solo pieces or who are drawn to first-person accounts of migration and colonial history told through comedy.