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Opportunities
Are you a creative company with strong relationships in Medway, and a passion for engaging with people across cultures?
Meet My Ancestors is looking for an Associate Artist who is part of a pre-existing creative organisation to work alongside Lead Artist John Pfumojena, and an ensemble of global majority performers, as part of a national project produced by Lyrici Arts and the Collaborative Touring Network in 2022.
Do you have skills in performing and leading artistic workshops in any of the following disciplines:
Singing // Music // Acting // Dance and movement // Devising // Creative writing, script, poetry
Do you have an interest in non-conventional storytelling, multidisciplinary artforms and improvisation?
Do you have a strong relationship with the Medway communities around you and experience in devising work with the people in your place?
If so, we’d love to hear from you.
Lyrici Arts are looking for an Associate Artist to work with Meet My Ancestors; to collaborate with the lead artist and ensemble, to shape and lead workshops with members of your community organisation, and to integrate the work you develop into live performances of this new touring production in Medway in July 2022.
Through this work, the touring company wish to engage with a range of ideas and voices, representing the diversity of the communities in each place and celebrating the multitude of ways in which song, music and storytelling can resonate with and amplify the voices of communities. They are shaping a work that aims to disrupt convention and focus on the importance of places and communities embracing difference.
‘Meet My Ancestors draws on Bantu/African multidisciplinary art forms. We are creating a show that is scored by Zimbabwean marimba and mbira music, as well as the use of various languages. We want the communities we are touring to, to engage with our culture and to share theirs; contributing their own artistic ideas that will form part of the final performance.’
This locally developed work, led by the selected Associate Artist in each location, will be integrated into the live performance over a short series of rehearsals in the week the show is performed. It is essential therefore, that the Associate Artist be interested and open to a way of working that embraces improvisation and intuition. We ask that there is one main lead in the company (Associate Artist) who will be available to work a bit more closely with John in January 2022 to pass on learning and shape the collaboration workshops with the Associate Company community members in the lead up to the live show.
You can hear more about the project and the role, directly from the lead artist John Pfumojena, here:
The dates and detail of the role is as follows:
- Fee of £2,250, based on 15 days of work @ £150 p/day between January – September 2022, broken down according to the following schedule of work:
| Activity | No. Days | Dates |
| Preparation & Evaluation | 2 |
Jan – Sept 2022 Equivalent hours spread over days in these months; participating in meetings, evaluation and workshop prep. |
| Workshops with Lead Artist & Ensemble | 3 |
Jan 2022 3 consecutive days of workshops in Medway, dates to be agreed, start of collaboration between John Pfumojena, ensemble and Associate Artist. |
| Leading workshops and devising with your community members | 5 |
Feb – June 2022 Flexible schedule to be devised by Associate Artist in partnership with Lyrici Arts. Could be an intensive week, multiple weekends, or a series of weekly sessions. |
| Production week; integrating, rehearsing, and performing Meet My Ancestors | 5 |
July 2022 5 consecutive days including rehearsals and up to 3 performances
|
In addition you will receive:
- – Connection to a national network of up to 9 Associate Artists, each working in their own local areas on this project (areas include Wigan, Peterborough, Medway, Thanet, Torbay).
- – Regular check-in meetings as a network, and expenses covered to travel to partner locations to meet other Associates in person and see the work on tour.
If you are interested in being considered for the position please send us a video of yourself and your organisation performing (this can be filmed on your phone) and send us a short piece of writing (max 1 A4 page) or film (max 3 minutes) about who you are, what artform you’d like to showcase, your organisation’s experience in community participation and performance and why you’d like to be considered for this show.
Please send your applications to info@lyriciarts.com by 11.59pm on the 12th December 2021. Please also email us for any further information or if we can support any access needs.
Interviews will be held over Zoom on the 16th December 2021.
ACCESS:
Lyrici Arts are continually working to improve access to all aspects of our work, for everyone with specific individual requirements.
If you need further information or have specific access needs, please contact us and we will be happy to help.
You can also let us know of any requirements when you apply.
This project is part of the Collaborative Touring Network you can find out more about the Network here.
