Spring and summer creative opportunities at Roe Valley and Flowerfield Arts Centres

Causeway Coast and Glens Arts Services have launched their May – August 2025 Arts Guide with a packed programme of live events, creative workshops and community activities.

Taking place at Roe Valley Arts and Cultural Centre in Limavady and Flowerfield Arts Centre in Portstewart, there are a wide variety of events to suit all ages.

ROE VALLEY ARTS CENTRE

Celebrated Austin-based singer-songwriter Kimmie Rhodes will take to the stage in the Danny Boy auditorium at Roe Valley Arts Centre on Friday 2nd May, or comedy fans can enjoy Paddy McDonnell’s Brand new show Dagger on Saturday 21st June, with stories so outrageous they’ve already gone viral!

There will also be a special summer concert from The Darkling Air and Arco String Quartet on Saturday 26th July, as they perform songs from their new album alongside some beloved favourites.

Roe Valley Arts Centre kicks off its annual August Children’s Month on Saturday 2nd August with the launch of a very special exhibition, The Pooka Party & Other Stories, led by illustrator and Writer Shona Shirley McDonald. On the day there will be lots of free fun in Drumceatt Square from live music to pop-up workshops, face painting to children’s theatre.

If your kids are fans of Harry Potter, Wicked, Jellycat or Lego, then there will be tonnes to keep them entertained throughout August Children’s Month - family film screenings, children’s theatre, and creative workshops in fused glass, Lego animation, ceramics, collage and crafting.

The Roe Valley Arts Team are also delighted to be back at Stendhal on Saturday 5th July with a packed creative programme in the Arts Tent. The fun at Stendhal is all free so families are encouraged to call in to make vibrant flag pennants, personalised friendship bracelets, festival crowns and more.

Roe Valley Arts Centre also has a fantastic programme of workshops for adults this season offering the chance to learn something new or develop your skills inspired by our gorgeous landscape. Explore the art of fermenting and infusing gin with Erin from The Edible Flower, create a silver jewellery piece, embrace wellness and community at our beach yoga and cacao ritual, and fall in love with fused glass, painting and linoprinting.

FLOWERIFLED ARTS CENTRE

Flowerfield Arts Centre marks International Refugee Week with an exhibition from 21st – 30th June. Featuring stunning embroidered arpilleras from around the world, on the theme Community as Superpower, this exhibition shares moving stories of resilience, joy, and beauty in the face of conflict. Donated by Conflict Textiles curator Roberta Bacic, these intricate textile pieces are on display for the first time. Join us for the launch on 21st June with live music, dance, and a free children's workshops.

In July, Flowerfield will be welcoming, Una, Baba, Mosey and the gang to their galleries for Puffin Rock Habitats (5th July – 6th Sept), a brilliant new exhibition, with a fantastic programme of events and creative workshops inspired by this magical show, for both kids and adults.

The galleries will also celebrate women in the visual arts with the USWA 2025 Spring Show (3rd May – 14th June) and the Upper Gallery will show a fresh look at Portstewart with Shifting Tides (21st July – 23rd Aug), a community exhibition as part of the Red Sails Festival.

Flowerfield Arts Centre is set to welcome an exciting programme of live events over the coming months, bringing internationally acclaimed musicians, thought-provoking film screenings, and vibrant festival celebrations to Portstewart.

Kicking off the season, The Bridge takes to the stage on 3rd May. This mesmerising Cuban guitar duo, featuring the legendary Eduardo Martín and virtuoso Ahmed Dickinson

On Thursday 22nd May, Flowerfield hosts a special screening of Out of the Silence, a documentary exploring how women’s writing in Ulster has shifted from the margins to the mainstream through an Ulster-Scots lens. Writer Anne McMaster and Dr Dayna Jost will lead a post-screening Q&A, offering fascinating insights into Northern Ireland’s literary landscape.

This summer, Flowerfield Arts Centre is once again delighted to be a Red Sails Festival partner. Alongside hosting the Shifting Tides Exhibition, two highlights of the Flowerfield festival programme include a Sketch and Walk session with artist Heather Byrne on 23rd July and later that evening, book lovers can gather for an inspiring discussion with Ruby Free, author of Rathlin: A Wild Life, as part of the North Coast Book Club In Conversation event.

Saturday Lunchtimes Live in the Park are back, with incredible range of live music from the likes of North Coast Trad, Northern Ireland Opera, Polar Bolero, the Cool Hands String Band and more. Why not pack a picnic, some camp chairs or a blanket and join the team every Saturday from 5th July – 23rd August from 12noon – 1pm (Please note there will be no performance on Saturday 12th July).

As we head into May there are some brilliant opportunities to explore new creative skills in painting, pottery, fused glass, floristry and textiles and there are two fantastic opportunities in July to learn from award winning willow artist Louise McLean of Atlantic Craft NI, and create a beautiful asymmetrical basket.

Alongside this there will workshops in pottery with Fiona Shannon for kids and teens, fused glass with Natasha Duddy, Week Wonders and Art in the Park, Lego animation, little stitchers sewing course, and a comic book workshop with Kev F Sutherland who has written and drawn for Beano, Doctor Who and Marvel comics.

Flowerfield’s summer film programme will include indoor family screenings of Dr. Seuss – The Lorax in Partnership with Cinemagic Young Audiences Supporting the Food bank (6th August) as well as an alfresco flick, an evening screening of the much-loved feel-good classic Mamma Mia (25th July) in Flowerfield Park.

There will also be live theatre in the park this summer, as Jak in the Box Pop-Up Theatre presents Benches, a charming, and funny promenade around Flowerfield Park, where you’ll meet some wonderfully quirky characters (9th August).

To start planning your summer of fun and creativity, download the digital Summer Arts Guide from flowerfield.org and roevalleyarts.com, or call into the Arts Centres to pick up a copy.

The guide provides information about all the events, workshops, and exhibitions but you can browse the whole programme online.