News

The Arab British Centre, in partnership with the British Council, is pleased to announce that applications are now open for the Winter edition of their Connect ME digital residency programme.

Connect ME pairs creatives based in the GCC (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates) and the United Kingdom to create collaborative digital work over a 4-week programme of online mentoring.

The Connect ME programme was devised earlier in 2020 as a response to the Covid 19 pandemic, and as a digital continuation of the Arab British Centre’s creative exchange programme Making Marks, which promotes creative exchange and international collaboration between the UK and Gulf countries. Connect ME thus focuses on connecting creatives aged 18-30 based in the GCC countries and the United Kingdom to create new collaborative work that considers how digital tools can encourage connectivity across borders.

The outcomes are completely up to the pairs, and we welcome applications from all creative backgrounds – writers, musicians, visual artists, performers, and everything in between! – the only stipulations are the work must be delivered to the public through digital channels and it must be in collaboration. The four selected participants will benefit from a residency fee of £1000, guidance and support from The Arab British Centre and a dedicated mentor from a cultural organisation. The works created will be featured on the Making Marks website, the digital home of all artworks created under the programme, and participants will benefit from a social media campaign promoting their work globally across both the Arab British Centre and British Council channels.

You can explore the work created by Rawan AlMahrouqi and Alexis Maxwell, and Alaa Tarabzouni and Ellie Niblock as part of the Summer Residency which ran from July-August 2020.

Eligible Participants

• Are creative practitioners/artists of any discipline aged 18-30 and based in the United Kingdom or in the GCC (countries include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates).
• Have an interest in collaborative working and in digital creative production. This project will rely on the participants being comfortable and excited about creating new digital work and incorporating technology into their practices – a good base level understanding of social platforms and digital technologies is therefore desirable.
• Must be available to participate in the project during the dates specified in the Open Call.
• Participants will also be encouraged to document their experiences of the collaboration through their and the Centre’s social media channels.
• Creative possibilities of digital technologies and collaboration across borders are at the core of this project, so a good sense of teamwork, curiosity for exploring new ideas, and strong and open communication skills are essential qualities.
• The programme will be run in English. A conversational level of English is desirable. Written work can be submitted in Arabic for translation by the Arab British Centre. Please do get in touch if you wish to discuss this and think that there may be ways we can support you.
• A pair cannot be changed once the project has commenced, and it is each pair’s responsibility to ensure that they work well together to produce the project outcomes.
• Participants must have internet access to take part in this residency

Committed by the Participant

We are looking for responses that will explore the connectivity and capacity of current digital tools and social platforms. Participants commit to:

• Take part in weekly mentoring sessions and delivery of artist response throughout the month of the programme (from mid-January to mid-February)
• Artists must be able to commit to a minimum of 2 hours of contact time with the Arab British Centre and/or lead mentor per week of the programme, and dedicate sufficient time to deliver their project over the month. Please note: time management will be the responsibility of the collaborating pairs.
• Submit final work by the agreed date.
• Share their progress and participation through social media channels
• Deliver participatory activities in line with project and agreed with the Arab British Centre (talk, workshop, Insta-live, etc).

Offered by The Arab British Centre

• £1000 artist fee (per participant). This includes development and delivery
• £500 material budget available per paired group (upon budget submission and approval by the Arab British Centre)
• Note: Material budgets will be paid upfront upon submission and approval of proposal and budget. 40% of participation fee will be paid up-front, 60% of participation fee will be paid on completion of the project.
• Weekly mentoring/crit sessions with Arab British Centre, lead mentor and visiting artists and curators (Delivered via Zoom)
• The Arab British Centre will actively support participants to build professional networks and connections.
• Communications support and dissemination of work online

How to Apply

Fill out the online application form on the Making Marks website in English or Arabic and remember to include/send:

• A 90 second video of you telling us about yourself and your work in English. Production value is not important – a selfie video is fine! – we just want to hear you talk about your work in your own words.
• An artist CV, portfolio or link to your current website and social media channels

Note: Applicants who applied for the previous ConnectME residency are welcome to apply again.

CALLING ALL BIRMINGHAM-BASED PERFORMERS, THEATRE-MAKERS & CREATIVES

Have you created something before or during lockdown that you’ve not had a chance to perform yet? Theatre Mix is a performance night featuring a whole range of what Birmingham has to offer – scripted, devised, music, spoken word, cabaret, physical theatre and more. We’re open minded!

We’re taking our next event online, live-streaming all performers from their own homes. We have open slots available for short pieces up to 3mins. These slots will be first come, first served for each art form.

Open slots are unpaid. At live, in-person events we pay travel expenses to open slots. For Theatre Mix @ Home, we will send you a drink instead!

Where: Your place
When: 17th December 2020 (evening)

Interested?
Please fill out this form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdORoJTOIAlSVM06AR8voon9awvMbyPq5CCPwXSWcmFm0iyFA/viewform?usp=sf_link
Or send a video submission answering the questions in the form.

If you have any questions, would like help applying or want application in another format please email theatremixbirmingham@gmail.com
Submissions will close at 5pm on Wednesday 9th December, but may close sooner if all slots are filled before this date.

Note: You will need a stable internet connection and a device to record from (smartphone, laptop etc).

GUSH Theatre welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, sex, gender identity, ethnicity, socio-economic background, sexual orientation, religion or disability. We are particularly interested in working with people who consider themselves to be from backgrounds that are currently underrepresented in the arts sector.

Supported by Arts Council England, The Society for Theatre Research & The GAP Arts Project.

Info: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1elHOOCoWIN1Aqo0GQ21fJvoO2mLFvkAruq6JogMV18I/edit?usp=sharing

[Image description; A blue background with the text “Theatre Mix @ Home Open Slots. Got a short piece you’d like to perform? We have open slots available for pieces up to 3 mins. These slots are first come, first served for each art form. At live, in-person events, we pay travel expenses for open slots, but for this event we will send you a drink instead! Where: Your place. When: 17th December 2020 (evening). To apply: See description or email theatremixbirmingham@gmail.com for more info.”

CALLING ALL BIRMINGHAM-BASED PERFORMERS, THEATRE-MAKERS & CREATIVES.

Have you created something before or during lockdown that you’ve not had a chance to perform yet, or are looking for further performance opportunities?

Theatre Mix is a performance night featuring a whole range of what Birmingham has to offer – scripted, devised, music, spoken word, cabaret, physical theatre and more. We’re open minded!

We’re taking our next event online, live-streaming all performers from their own homes. We are looking for 3 acts to perform around 15 minutes of work.

Where: Your place
When: 17th December 2020 (evening)
Fee: £100 per act

Interested?
Please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/VjZfxZBbrKustzuT9
Submissions will close at 5pm on Thursday 3rd December. We aim to get back to everyone on Friday 4th.

If you have any questions, need help applying or want the application in another format, please email theatremixbirmingham@gmail.com

Note: You will need a stable internet connection and a device to record from (smartphone, laptop etc).

GUSH Theatre welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, sex, gender identity, ethnicity, socio-economic background, sexual orientation, religion or disability. We are particularly interested in working with people who consider themselves to be from backgrounds that are currently underrepresented in the arts sector.

Info: https://docs.google.com/…/18ux4OqW2H3rpdESYmbfqWdhoDb…/edit…

Supported by Arts Council England, The Society for Theatre Research and The GAP Arts Project.

[Image description; A blue background with text reading “Theatre Mix @ Home Artist Slots. We’re taking our next event online, live-streaming performers from their own homes. We are looking for 3 acts to perform around 15 minutes of work. Where: Your place. When: 17th December 2020 (evening). Fee: £100 per act. To apply: See description or email theatremixbirmingham@gmail.com for more info.”

GUSH Theatre are seeking a freelance technician to live-stream two performance events. The role will involve facilitating one live-stream remotely (all performers will be in their own homes), and working alongside a videographer to facilitate the second live-stream from our host venue in Balsall Heath.

Fee: £400

Event dates: 17/12/20, 14/01/21

Venue: The MIX Community Café, Old Print Works, 500 Moseley Road, Balsall Heath, Birmingham B12 9AH

All info and how to apply can be found on this Google Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DtnAbUfdXfy7R47t9tJYdGE_Q3Foxr_5dY_AEkpvPaE/edit?usp=sharing

If you have any questions or would like the info in a different format, email us at gushtheatre@gmail.com

GUSH Theatre welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, sex, gender identity, ethnicity, socio-economic background, sexual orientation, religion or disability. We are particularly interested in working with people who consider themselves to be from backgrounds that are currently underrepresented in the arts sector.

Supported by Arts Council England , The Society for Theatre Research and The GAP Arts Project.

[Image description: A blue background with the text “Wanted: Technician for live-stream. GUSH Theatre are seeking a technician to facilitate a live-stream for two performance events in Birmingham, taking place in December 2020 and January 2021. Fee: £400. GUSH Theatre are a Birmingham-based theatre company who make original work and host regular Theatre Mix events to platform local artists. We are seeking a freelance technician with their own equipment to live-stream two events. One event will be remote, the other will take place at our host venue in Balsall Heath. Event dates: 17/12/2020, 14/01/2021. To apply: see description or email gushtheatre@gmail.com.”]

ArtWorks Alliance is a national network of organisations and individuals with a passion for participatory arts and an understanding that working together to strengthen support for those working in the field will bring benefits for everyone involved. Rachel Gillies explains why creative professionals in our area should consider joining as members.

So many creative professionals across our area approach working with community participants with compassion and empathy. We know the power of creative projects when we give participants the power to edit and author, to steer the direction of a project and see their decisions reflected in a final piece of work. We undertake this work because we want to give those we work with the best possible experience and realise the potential of creativity.

To do this well, however, can be a huge challenge. Constraints with funding, time, partners, reporting, evaluation and so much more can mean that it’s hard to work with the depth and rigour that participants need and deserve.

Fortunately, ArtWorks Alliance understands all of this and more, creating a space and a voice for people who want to develop their practice and advocate for participatory practice. As a membership organisation there is a real diversity of practitioners, in terms of geography, artistic discipline, size of organisation (freelancers are very welcome!) and experience.

Their online Knowledge Bank is a great place to browse through a wide range of reports, reflections and case studies. You can also sign up for their regular newsletters which include a good mix of sector news, reflections on participatory practice as well as funding and work opportunities. Membership is currently free due to recent emergency funding – it entitles you to join in with discussions.

At present it feels as though the West Midlands is underrepresented at the table – let’s get involved in this fantastic community.