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theatre · Sunday 16 August 2026 · 2:00pm and 4:00pm 
America is on the Water - Donaghadee
At Donaghadee Harbour and Lighthouse · The Harbour, Donaghadee, Co. Down, BT21 0HE
At Donaghadee Harbour and Lighthouse · The Harbour, Donaghadee, Co. Down, BT21 0HE
“America is on the Water” is a free outdoor living-history performance staged at Donaghadee Harbour and Lighthouse on Sunday 16 August 2026, with two showings, at 2pm and 4pm. It is billed as blending humour and history, drawing on real events that took place in Donaghadee around 250 years ago, and it is performed against the working backdrop of the harbour itself rather than in a conventional theatre space. The event is supported by the Department of Communities, part of a wider push to bring funded outdoor arts programming to smaller coastal towns in Ards and North Down.
This is theatre in the broadest, most public sense: a costumed, script-led performance designed to be watched by passers-by and families as much as by anyone who has come specifically for a show. Donaghadee’s harbour is one of the most photogenic settings on this stretch of the Down coast, with the lighthouse and working fishing boats providing a genuine sense of place rather than a stage set standing in for one. Expect a family-friendly crowd, an informal standing or sitting audience along the harbour wall, and a short run time suited to two performances in an afternoon.
Donaghadee is on the Ards Peninsula coast road, about 6 miles south of Bangor and 20 miles east of Belfast. The harbour is at the centre of the town, within easy walking distance of the main car parks and bus stop.
Heading to Donaghadee Harbour and Lighthouse in Donaghadee? Down has plenty more to see. Read the Donaghadee area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.