This Wednesday sees the return of Black History Month Live at Curve theatre in Leicester.
Starting at 4pm the event looks to showcase performances from five British acts including: Alison Ray, Cherish Oteka, Emma Uwejoma, Julius Ayodeji, and Michelle Hubbard.
Each performer will use elements of dance, film, poetry, and theatre to look at expressing contemporary issues and touching subject matter in artistic form.
Black History Month Live is an event organised by Serendipity, a diversity-led organisation that works in partnership with mainstream organisations to host culturally diverse work across England. This event is predominantly aimed at industry professionals including producers, programmers and funders, all of who are looking for an act to work with and develop as a piece to support and represent the black community.
The past two years have seen artists from the event being selected for funded projects as they continue to create and develop their work. This is something that Artistic Director of Serendipity Pawlet Brookes believes is a fundamental benefit of the event for the artists that are showcased.
BHM gives emerging artists an opportunity to develop and nurture their work, it also gives them a chance to work with industry professionals.”
Alison Ray is a black British dancer and choreographer who embodies expression of emotion within her performances. Her piece for BHM Live looks at the human body and how issues of identity can be explored through a variety of dances. The performance challenges the perceived aesthetics of dance and merges these boundaries to unify identity in class, race and religion through the body and movement.
Emma Uwejoma is an emerging photographer whose exhibition at the BHM shows a self-analysis on her found multicultural heritage and exploration of its culture within her project ‘Ngwako’. The exhibition will include visual pieces displayed for the professionals in the walkway of The Curve on the evening where Emma will present her art work and welcome questions.
Cherish Oteka is a London based film maker who has created a short creative documentary named ‘Father of Colours’ which explores the relationship between black men and their children. The documentary aims to challenge perceptions of Fatherhood within the black community and express the fears and realities of the father figure.
Julius Ayodeji is a Nottingham playwright who has created the play ‘Cot’ which encapsulates the emotional experiences of a child immigrant. It follows the journey of a young boy who is detained at Heathrow Airport and explores the challenges he faces whilst in the office environment.
Michelle Hubbard is a performance poet from Nottingham who has created an interdisciplinary theatrical piece that challenges women’s social realities. The piece, ‘Cutting Edge’, explores the controversial taboo subject of Female Genital Mutation and cultural conflict through her expressive dance, oral narrative, sound, and symbolism.
Black History Month Live was introduced to supplement Black History Month which takes place in October; it allows us to develop fresh material rather than simply buying from the shelf.”
Black History Month Live is to be held in The Curve, Leicester at 16:30 on Wednesday 22 April.
