Sheba Festival 2023
#ShebaFest23 included 7 exciting events. Read about them below!
Festival Launch at Leigh Central Library (The Turnpike Centre), Saturday 17 June
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Some of our attendees said...
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This launch event marked the beginning of #ShebaFest23! It also celebrated our partnership project with the Turnpike Gallery, ‘Creating Place’. The event was curated with the Turnpike Gallery and Everything Human Rights. It featured local artists and performers including:
We had food, fun times, and came together over music. A true Sheba Arts event! |
Sheba Arts Writing Group: Poetry & Music Performance, Friday 23 June
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Our second event marked a sharing and celebration of our collaboration with Commonword. This collaboration was founded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Community Fund. A group of women and non-binary people in our community worked over 16 sessions to develop writing on the theme of identity, displacement, and adaptation. The sessions were facilitated by Maryam Alsaeid, Dipali Das (both Sheba Arts) and Peter Kalu (Commonword).
The event saw outstanding pieces of writing from this project being shared with a wider audience, musical performances from Naomi Kalu and Parisa Pirzadeh, and a discussion with our community members Senna and Ferdos, who took part in a 2 year-long project with Manchester Museum & Manchester Metropolitan University. You can read more about Ancient History, Contemporary Belonging here. Local artist Akinyeme Oludele also attended and made some beautiful sketches. |
Going Organic: A Day With Kindling Trust in Stockport, Saturday 24 June
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Our third event took place in partnership with the Kindling Trust, at Woodbank Community Food Hub - an urban organic market garden in Stockport.
We walked around the garden together, ate a hearty hot meal, planted seeds to take home, and made pickles. We learned all about the projects that take place at the Hub, and people were able to meet new people and experience new things. Some of our attendees said...
"I admired the garden - the plants looked healthy and happy." "The plants looked beautiful and organised." "A very good session - hope to have more of it next season." "There is a lot to learn here, the staff are very nice." "I learned a lot and the organisers are very friendly and helpful" |
Tactile Time: Arts workshop with Nikta Mohammadi at Islington Mill, Thursday 29 June
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Our fourth event was a workshop with Iranian artist, Nikta Mohammadi. The workshop was for adults from any background, though participants with experience of migration or displacement were encouraged to attend.
Nikta is an artist and producer based in West Yorkshire, working across moving image, performance, sound, and text. Her most recent work explores the British rural landscape and how it is perceived by people with lived experience of migration or dislocation. The workshop involved storytelling through image-making and creative writing practices, with a focus on landscape and personal archives. The workshop informed Nikta's most recent project, Memory Stone, an audio-visual installation exploring British rural landscape through the ghostly imprints of the past migrants make on foreign lands. |
Poetry Workshop with Natasha Tingle at the Turnpike Gallery (Leigh), Saturday 1 July
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Leave a comment on the video and let us know what you think!
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"Let me in your space, and let's write!" Our fifth event was a poetry & creative writing workshop. The workshop was for adults of all backgrounds, and was led by British Indian poet, performer and community organiser Natasha Tingle. We made space to share unique experiences, those we bring into our new places.
We wrote poetry based on prompts and examples, with plenty of support provided by Natasha if needed. The workshop ended with us sharing our writing with friends and family. Natasha Tingle is a British Indian woman living in Wigan. Her poetry seeks to inspire and connect with audiences. She performs around the country, and is published. She runs a community writing group. Keep up to date with her work on Instagram. |
Table Talk: Decolonising Cultural Institutions, Friday 14 July
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Our sixth event was a table talk, bringing together four creatives who have worked with museums, galleries, and other cultural institutions to talk about decolonisation of cultural institutions. The conversation was chaired by producer and cultural consultant, Saminah Ali. Panellists included:
We shared space with these wonderful creatives to discuss the challenges of working with cultural institutions in the UK. We also invited audience members to participate in the discussion and were grateful for the thoughtful ideas raised. |
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From left to right: Senna Youssef, Katherine Ka Yi Liu 廖加怡 , and Saminah Ali. |
Performance of La Nagualita by Sally Hilton at Instituto Cervantes, Friday 21 July
NEW: Watch the best bits of the performance here! |
"In an isolated village nestled in the volcanic valleys ofOur final event was a performance of La Nagualita by Sally Hilton of Ixcanul Arts. We have been working with Sally, a transgender activist and artist from Guatemala, to produce her show - which is inspired by her life story and blends her experiences with old Guatemalan folktales. La Nagualita is a story of self-discovery, self-acceptance, and perseverance.
The first commissioned piece of La Nagualita was performed at Sheba Festival 2021, so we are very proud of Sally and the whole project team in the way this has come to life. The 2023 performance was developed in co-creation and collaboration with all performers. 2023's project team included:
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