As part of the Platforma festival 2023, theatre companies Trigger and Maison Foo share their experiences of working with food and hospitality to engage with asylum seekers and help change narratives around displacement.
A free online event on Zoom : reserve a free place via Eventbrite
There will be the opportunity for a Q&A, to share your own experiences and to network online.
North Somerset arts charity Trigger are creators and producers of bold, unforgettable live events.
For this discussion they will be talking about Humanity Hotel, an ongoing project supporting the wellbeing of asylum seekers housed in hotels across North Somerset.
In May 2022, North Somerset become host to hundreds of asylum seekers forced to leave their homes and families, and now displaced in the UK.
Housed in rurally isolated areas, this community rely solely on agents in Bristol to support their wellbeing needs, from legal advice to English lessons.
On their arrival, Trigger mobilised to offer support. Pulling together a network of local people, they were able to help with donations of phones and other essential items; they’ve facilitated car shares and free public transport, signposted legal advice, arranged volunteer opportunities and brokered relationships with the local football club for regular games.
Over the last six months Trigger have facilitated a regular creative and cultural programme. From art making to cooking, sewing and ceramics, Trigger are working in collaboration with local artists, musicians, arts venues and community organisations to deliver creative, educational and participatory workshops for this community.
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Maison Foo are makers of theatre, art and community, and a proud Theatre Company of Sanctuary. For this event they will be talking about their project A Seat At Our Table.
On October 2022, Maison Foo and their Creative Sanctuary Group took over the grand Georgian dining room at Pickford’s House in Derby, to reimagine what and whose stories are told in buildings such as these.
The project aimed to give people across the UK with Refugee and Asylum Seeker status, a positive platform from which to tell and share their stories with audiences and beyond, in places where their voice has previously been unheard.
Audiences were invited to take a seat at the dining table, to listen to personal and intimate stories about the familial and universal experience of food and mealtimes. Challenging the perception of who should be seated at the table of grand stately homes and paving the way for a new future…one that is open and accepting of all regardless, of their background and journey to the UK.
Co-created with Maison Foo’s Creative Sanctuary Group (a diverse collective of People Seeking Sanctuary in Derby), the project began with weekly gatherings to cook and to share favourite memories of mealtimes. These stories then formed part of ‘A Seat At Our Table’ a live multi-sensory storytelling experience co-hosted by the group.
A Seat At Our Table was originally commissioned by Derby CAN (Arts Council England Producing HUB) in partnership with Derby Museums and Oddfellows UK.
‘Dear Guests, we welcome you to come and sit at our table and listen to our stories. Inspired by our love of cooking, food, and memories of family kitchens all over the world; these are stories we would love to share with you.’ The Creative Sanctuary Group x
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Image: Maison Foo’s A Seat At Our Table, Photo by Jon Legge
Part of the Platforma festival 2023, produced by Counterpoints Arts and partners across the South West of England.
