Rich Mix

Located in the heart of East London, we are a social enterprise offering live music, film, dance, theatre, comedy, spoken word and a range of creative activities for people of all ages and all cultures. Tweets by @RichMixLondon

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New Creatives: Top Tips

Guest blogger: Rich Mix New Creative, Grace Kirk

For the past (almost) five months I have had the most wonderful opportunity to work with Rich Mix and thirteen other fabulous young people attempting to employ all of our artistic ability and channel it into an event we can be proud of. Sounds easy enough, right? So, so wrong. I had literally NO IDEA the level of work and professionalism that goes into orchestrating an artistic event, especially when they appear to play out so seamlessly from an audience perspective. I can guarantee this; every creative event you have ever gone to was ultimately a product of a lot of stress, a lot of laughs, SO many emails and a hell of a lot of arty people using every inch of their brain power. This is what you can expect from the New Creative programme (emphasis on the laughs and the arty people). So, because of how blindly I went into this experience thinking I was unstoppable, I’m going to share my tips on how to successfully put on an event as a young person who also works, goes to university and still needs to have somewhat of a social life.

1. Accept and Appreciate the work of others.

It is often to easy in the creative industries to fully believe your ideas are the best, and I mean, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of confidence! I often wish I had less doubt in myself. Saying that, do not be afraid to place your trust in others. The team I have been working with over the past 5 months are completely incredible and I have learnt more from listening to them than I ever would have if I had only accepted my ideas and concepts. Get inspired by people the same age as yourself doing totally admirable things as it will only help you in elevating your stance in the creative world.

2. Do not even think about leaving things last minute!

Fundamental. Cannot stress this enough. I guess it is self-explanatory but coming directly from the perspective of someone who continually extended the artist deadline date on a callout sheet because they left the editing of the document to the last minute, I wouldn’t recommend it because the anxiety is real. Also if you, like me, have tons of university deadlines and bills to pay, organisation when it comes to fitting in time for your event is key. There will ALWAYS be time to sort out important aspects of life; it’s just about prioritising and sticking to a schedule (as best you can, we’re all human!).

3. Be comfortable talking to and taking advice from those who have done this before you.

A lot of the aspects of artistic events managing we learnt as a New Creative team were, naturally, from those generous enough to pass forward their wisdom on to us. I cannot thank these individuals enough; speaking to them proved utterly priceless as the advice assisted endlessly with the orchestrating of FIRSTS and indeed I truly believe will stick with me in later life. From Rich Mix’s own CEO Eddie Berg, to Road Gal’s Jasmine Kahlia, to Last Mango in Paris aka Shane Solanki and more, all of our guests provided different outlooks and advice that culminated into a pretty well-rounded idea of how much persistence it takes to be successful in such a competitive and always-moving industry

4. See as many artistic events relating to yours as possible- gather research!

It may seem like a simple one, but honestly just viewing as many varied artistic events as possible that have some sort of link to your event (even if not) and investigate aspects you wouldn’t usually think about as a passive audience member- i.e. lighting design, stage management and general organisation of the evening. Take it all in and on board. As an example of this, earlier this year, two of the New Creative girls and I went to the ‘Dirty Feet’ poetry progress evening at the Roundhouse, after which I felt our event had to be just as informal in order to create a level of comfortability required for the purpose of FIRSTS. Taking inspiration from other events is fundamental; much like with number 3, learning from those who manage creative events as their day job is going to massively make a positive impact on your event

5. Document EVERYTHING!

This is of utmost importance. Whether it is in blog form, journals, voice notes, vlogs, literally any format just so long as you document every step of the journey. Not only does it help to be able to refresh your memory and reflect upon the decisions made toward your event, but also it has been hugely beneficial, personally, to be able to send my blog to people to 1) inform them of the event and all the effort put into it and, more significantly 2) have the opportunity to get critique back on not only on the event itself, but also on writing style and technique. Logging week by week has had an immense difference on how I’ve handled this experience and kept track of all the ideas and discussions that occur each week in our Rich Mix meetings. Honestly, I cannot recommend documenting everything enough. It will help you in numerous ways.

Hope this is useful for any young people wanting to take on the challenge of orchestrating their own event or take part in the Rich Mix New Creative programme which I would seriously recommend, by the way. If you did find this helpful I urge you to come to see our event FIRSTS, the culmination of this amazing experience with Rich Mix. FIRSTS is a multidisciplinary performance based around people’s firsts; from the first time they made a coffee to the first time they put on a hijab. The evening will be a celebration of the human experience and the acceptance that we all make mistakes! Happening on the 15th of February in Rich Mix’s Main Space, come along to hear and see hilarious and moving first times- maybe even share a few of your own!

Thanks for reading!

Follow our journey as a New Creative Team through my eyes here!: https://gracekirkblog.wordpress.com/

Grace is a 20 year old English and History student from ‘up north’ wanting to be successful in the arts as a writer, actor and mainly a teacher, to those who (wrongly) believe they can not have an active role in the creative industries due to societal factors or pressures. She will be performing an original piece at FIRSTS.

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Get to Know: Futureversity

This month, I sat down with Jamila from Futureversity for a very inspiring chat as I tried to find out more about the organisation - check out the conversation and keep an eye out for next months get-to-know. 

See you soon,

Fred

For those who don’t know - who are Futureversity and what do you do?

“We’re a youth charity based here in Tower Hamlets. We’ve been going for about 22 years now - formally named as ‘Tower Hamlets Summer Education’ our ethos has always been ‘every young person has a potential to be extraordinary’.

We mainly work with educationally and sociologically disadvantaged young people. So we provide free and accessible courses and extra curricular activities over the summer for young people who may not have had the means to stay leaning and active otherwise.

We run a variety of activities and courses - for example our vocation and education programme. We work with young people attending schools in and around Newham and TH. It’s a 10 day programme which over last summer had over 250 young people join! We also have something called Summer University. This year we delivered to 400 young people where we offered 40 courses over 4 weeks where each young person can choose up to 4 courses. The opportunities vary from activity days like ice skating, and various team building activities, one of which involved eating bugs (which surprisingly went down a riot with the kids) to food courses, first aid, getting into law, getting into medicine where they can get experience a corporate setting and get little bits of training while they’re at it.  

I had a girl run up to me who had met someone in banking that wasn’t good at maths, which shocked her. She was like “he’s a banker, but he’s not good at maths. I’m not good at maths either!” which is something that gave her the confidence to go on and get into banking herself.

It’s not necessarily about giving them aspiration; it’s more about broadening their aspirational horizons.”

What’s your favourite thing about working at Futureversity?

“Things like being able to show and offer them healthier food options - people don’t realise that a lot of young people aren’t going hungry yet are still malnourished. Especially in the summer when their diet may have less balance and structure as it would when they’re in school and get school meals.  Taking care of their travel so that young people aren’t having to fork out extra money to get to the courses and activities they want to be at. Thing like that are what I enjoy most.”

What’s the story behind you ending up at Futureversity?

“I actually studied Architectural Product Design and Special Effects at uni. I got my degree, started working corporate and went to go work abroad in Japan doing modelling design which I loved, it really was worth it but after realising the long hours and lots of travelling wasn’t for me I decided to come back. I then began volunteering at a Youth Club which got me my DBS and got into into education. From there worked up the administrative levels but wanted a change. I then found Futureversity, where I have now been for 8 years and truly love my work, feel respected by my team, and I am working with a group of colleagues all working towards something bigger”

I’d like to thank Jamila for letting me and the rest of us get to know more about them and what they do. I found it very interesting - hope you did too.

If you’d like to find out more about ‘Futureversity’ head over to their website and check out their socials too…

Website: http://www.futureversity.org/

Twitter: @Futureversity

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Get to Know: Blow Up Live

Hey! Continuing on my mission to get to know all things Rich Mix; in November I got a chance to sit down with two very interesting individuals; meet Rick and Joe from Blow Up.  

What do Blow Up do?

Joe: ‘We look after act from all around the world from America, to Norway, Germany and we basically just book tours worldwide, and these range from a one off show to a special event, festival and even a full world tour. We do that for all our artists.’

Rick: ‘Yeah, We’ll speak either directly to the artist or their management about what their live planes are and what they want to achieve in the live arena. We all know that the record marketing is struggling and isn’t as fruitful as it once was, so more and more artists and starting to make most of their money from live shows rather than record sales - its a really important income stream now. So we’re responsible for developing the live performance side of their careers and getting them to where they want to be in the industry. We do this by helping them pick which venues they should be playing, which countries they should focus on playing etc.’

Who is the biggest act that you have worked with and developed?  

Joe: ‘Probably Brian Eno isnt it? I’d imagine so.’

Rick: ‘I think name wise it’d probably be Brian Eno, he has certainly has the longevity with a career of like 40 years, we look after his instillations actually. He doesn’t play live so he does a series of art instillations which booked.

But in terms of live music and concerts then ‘Flying Lotus’ would probably be our biggest act, closing behind is ‘Thundercat’.’

What’s the story behind how you both came to co-found Blow Up?  

Joe: ‘We’ve basically got two directors, a guy called Ray Hearn who runs a company called ‘Beatink’ and Dominic Smith who runs a company called ‘Really Happening’. Rick used to work with Ray and I used to work with Dom. I came from a Tour Management background and Rick came from a booking background. While working there we realised that a lot of our acts were between booking agents so we were like hand on a minute, why don’t we just make our own agency - its something our directors has been talking about for years and they had myself and Rick on tap to do it and we did. We started this in 2015 and because we come from a management background also we’re able to care more about the acts that we look after.’

What is it you enjoy most about the work you do?  

Rick: ‘When you’ve planned something for such a long time and actually seeing it come to fruition. It’s usually a really big lead up; take for example, we’ve got a band called ‘ChkChkChk’. We knew maybe 12/18 months ahead that they we’re going to release their album. So we had to put together a plan almost 2 years ahead of the album release. We get in there quite early a put together a tour for the album, did some stuff over the summer and did another tour in November. It’s being able to see it come together, going to the shows and seeing them sold out. That’s a really pleasurable part of the job.’

Joe: ‘I think it’s also seeing the artist grow. I mean even with Thundercat, we did ‘Heaven’ in London at 1,100 (capacity) and less than a year he does Shepard’s Bush and has 2,000 tickets sold. So yeah for us that some of the most amazing things.

I really enjoyed this chat with Rick and Joe, I learnt a lot about the industry, about what they do and what keeps them going and I’d like to thank them for giving me the chance to chat with them!

If you’d like to find out more about ‘BlowUp’ head over to their website and check out their socials too:

Website: https://blowuplive.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/blowuplive

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Blow-Up-571902299610888/?ref=tn_tnmn

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Get to Know: Phrased Differently

Hey, my name’s Fred and I’m Rich Mix’s new Digital Marketing Intern. While I’m here I’ll be on a mission to get to know all things Rich Mix; this building is home to 24 different creative businesses and over the past couple of months I got a chance to sit down for a chat with a few of our Residents. In my first month I got to sit with Skye from Phrased Differently.

Who are Phrased Differently and what do you do?

“We are a publishing company. But we’re a small team so we all end up doing a lot more; we handle admin, sign, manage and develop writers/ producers and all round A&R.”

How did you end up working at Phrased Differently?

“Just knowing the right people. I was in my second year of uni when I had a conversation with my songwriting tutor Mark Vallance who is signed to PD. He said that my song writing was pretty good but songwriting just didn’t seem like the career I wanted to go down. He kept telling me that I had good ears and I didn’t know what that meant. Now I know its basically A&R. He introduced me to Hiten (PD Founder) who then interviewed me and then offered me a six-month internship which half way through I got offered the full time job”

What do you enjoy most about working at Phrased Differently?

“I know it sounds cliché but literally everything. I can honestly say at 22 I’m working my dream job. Between the people in our office, the writers and producers there’s such a family vibe. Hiten and Dan (the big bosses) are always busy but are always trying to teach me more and take me under their wing. Before Hiten hired me he said he wants me to be the next Dan - Now they call me The Female Dan.”  

It was a pleasure sitting down with Skye and I hope to be able to do the same with many of our other residents over the coming months. Keep an eye out for some more interviews like these coming soon! 

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January comedy picks

January. It’s cold, it’s dreary, and it’s definitely time you took down those Christmas lights. What we could all do with is a laugh. Here’s our comedy highlights for the month ahead:

TY AND KY: GOING UP ON A TUESDAY

Tue 19 January 8pm

You may recognise cousins Ty and Ky from the telly – their sketch-based show debuted on ITV last year. Now you can catch the unstoppable duo live on the Rich Mix stage, bringing a whole load of funny and a host of hilarious characters.

‘They’re clearly onto something’ – Sky

‘Uncontrollably handsome’ – objective commentator

ARABS ARE NOT FUNNY

Fri 22 January 8pm

What are you doing wasting time reading this? You should be booking a ticket for Arabs Are Not Funny RIGHT NOW because it always sells out and then people turn up and get all “no doors sales?!” and we have to explain that this is always super popular on account of the consistently excellent line up (this month it’s Aatif Nawaz and Prince Abdi) and sharp-witted MC Shazia Mirza.

COME TO MIND: A COMEDY/MUSIC FUNDRAISER

Sat 23 January 7.30pm

Laughing is definitely good for your health, but it can be good for other people’s health too. Local mental health charity City and Hackney Mind have enlisted the impressive comedic talents of Saban Kazim and Sarah Sheldon, along with singer-soulstress MIRI for a special evening of entertainment – with all proceeds going to a great cause.

KNOCK2BAG

Sat 23 January 7.30pm

We go way back with Knock2bag (don’t ever leave us!). With a refreshing mix of star headliners and ones-to-watch on the bill each month, it’s no wonder it’s been named one of Time Out’s top five comedy clubs in London. The brilliant Joe Lycett headlines this month, joined by double Edinburgh Award hero John Kearns, Funny Women Award winner 2014 Jayde Adams and Edinburgh best newcomer nominee 2015 Adam Hess. 

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What we loved in 2015.

Working at an arts venue, it sometimes feels like we’ve got gigs, films, theatre, and exhibitions coming out of our ears (now there’s a bizarre mental image). And yet the staff here at Rich Mix apparently can’t get enough. From backstreet pubs to the Royal Festival Hall, we get around. And (proving we’re not totally London-centric) this year’s ‘staff picks’ list even includes a couple from beyond Zone 5. Here’s what we loved, here and elsewhere, in 2015:

‘I really loved 1927’s ‘Golem’. The use of flawless live choreography against a forever moving digital landscape was mesmerising and very different from any theatre I’ve ever seen before. 1927 are definitely a company to watch out for!’ Nikki Smith, Events Coordinator

‘I can’t split the difference between Lapalux and DJ Yoda here at Rich Mix – two immersive musical experiences that kept me dancing for days.’ Ben Skelton, Marketing Officer (Film and Events)

‘Remixed Fest here in Feb. It was great to see the building so full of life, with amazing music in every space (even the lift). Everyone was loving the vibe – punters, artists, staff – even a few tenants snuck in to join the party!’ Rhiannon Wilkins, Arts & Culture Producer

‘HMS Morris at Festival No 6 in North Wales. It was great because: 1. Their music is an absolutely brilliant psychedelic mix of electro, pop and rock with really beautiful harmonies and they are incredible live. 2. Because I got to perform as one of their backing dancers! I really enjoyed the Drama in the Mix showcase here back in March which saw local school pupils performing their self-penned radio plays on the main stage. They were incredibly funny and thought provoking.’ Lucy Knight, Executive Assistant

‘Manu Delago was the best thing I saw this year.’ Eileen Tracey, Digital Marketing

‘Starting my own business doing Henna for weddings was my art highlight.’ Rufshana Begum, Box Office

‘Sufjan Stevens at Royal Festival Hall in September, which was sublime, sad and spectacular. My Rich Mix highlight was probably the Sensory Score in July, which even though I had programmed it took me completely by surprise.’ Oliver Carruthers, Head of Programming

‘Fast and Furious 7 because it’s enjoyably nuts. Dumb Hollywood fun. Best superhero movie of the year.’ Suman Pal, Finance Manager

‘Seeing Suffragette here when it was filmed so close to Rich Mix, and remembering the lengths women went to to get us all the right to vote. Elsewhere – Opera up Close new version of Carmen. Great singers and a really interesting take on the story.’ Jane Earle, Chief Executive

‘Xiu Xiu’s Twin Peaks concert at St John’s church in Hackney.’ Margot Przymierska, Young People’s, Family & Community Producer

‘Seeing Swindle twice this year! First time was at the Southport Weekender back in May and the second time was here in November. He’s like a young Prince, great musically, funky band behind him and also gets you jumping up and down! Jazz meets dubstep!’ Gemma Unwin, Events Manager

‘Mashrou’ Leila at the Barbican – Hamid Sino’s voice is beautiful, the performance transported me to another world… Fantastic. Hassan Moyo and Flux at Rich Mix created an electric atmosphere for a Monday night! And Garden State by Corinne Silva (Mosaic Rooms) showed how public gardens are used for political means in Israel… who thought a flower bed could be political?’ Natasha Clarke, Arts Assistant

‘For once I agree with the critics, who’ve all put Hangmen (formerly at the Royal Court, and now at the Wyndham’s) at the top of their lists this year. Dark, hilarious, and very, very wrong. I’ve never spent such a tense interval! Also, the Hamilton cast recording, which makes me really wish Broadway wasn’t such a schlep!’ Maxine Smiles, Marketing Officer (Arts and Culture)

‘The Frantz Fanon exhibition at the ABP gallery because it gave a new, more personal way of looking at his ideas.’ Maisie Linford, Finance Administrator

‘Ibeyi at Islington Town Hall in May was my stand-out gig. And Neverwhere Beckett (part of CASA festival) was so inventive and different to anything I've seen.’ Anna Woods, Marketing Assistant

‘I know this is cheating and will seem terribly big headed but my favourite gig was one which I played with my band Cup. (Yup, just read that back and it does sound big headed but I’m going with it). We played at Wysing Arts Festival in Cambridgeshire in September this year and not only was it a really fun gig to play (our stage was in a makeshift shack in a field), but the festival was just excellent. Loads of people gathered to listen to electronic music and full bands, much of it broadly classed as ‘experimental music’. And all the acts I saw were really exciting. It’s not often you get that at a festival.’  Lucy Jamieson, Head of Marketing (and drummer!)

‘The sound art exhibition, Sonica, at the CCA in Glasgow was really good. And watching the film The Lobster here.’ Asher Levitas, Box Office

‘I saw Lest We Forget at Sadlers Wells by English National Ballet.  It was a powerful and exciting mixed bill of three pieces created in response to World War 1. Seeing Tamara Rojo choreographed by Akram Khan in Dust was an experience which remains imprinted on my mind. I came away feeling grief and joy simultaneously.’ Monique Deletant Bell, Interim Chief Operating Officer

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Twas the night before Christmas, when all through Rich Mix

A whole host of our friends, came out to perform tricks...

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Gentrification a major theme in art and theatre in 2015:

Rehearsal shot from #Haters (Odd Eyes Theatre)

Gentrification. Property developers celebrate it, politicians get taken to task over it, and many people in London and other parts of the UK have experienced its effects first-hand: the displacement of existing communities, house prices being driven up into astronomical sums, and small businesses being pushed out to make way for larger chains. It’s undoubtedly a subject which arouses strong opinions and emotions - and poses a number of important questions. 

How can communities resist and respond to aggressive property development in their area? Can people moving to these areas do so in a way that builds on (rather than builds over) what already exists? Is gentrification an inevitable part of capitalism? What are the alternatives? Many people – from community groups, to housing activists, to artists  – have responded in creative ways.

Earlier this week, the UK’s biggest art award, the Turner Prize, went to a direct action collective, with judges praising the non-artists’ “ground-up approach to regeneration, city planning and development in opposition to corporate gentrification.” Gentrification has also featured in a lot of new theatre, including Where Will we Live by Brixton-based collective Changing Face and Alecky Blythe’s Little Revolution. We noticed it as a strong thread in our Small Stories / Big Cities series which showcased new work from emerging theatre-makers, with the theme of ‘city life’ at its core.

This weekend, our 2015 theatre programme comes to a close. Tonight, Odd Eyes Theatre look at an event that happened in Hackney last year in #Haters, while a collective of artists and performers interrogate ideas around gentrification, neoliberalism, post-colonialism and capitalism in L’Intru (Invaders) on Saturday.

Photo credit:  Zbigniew Kotkiewitcz.

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The Creative Case for Diversity

This morning Arts Council England have been discussing progress on the first year of their Diversity and the Creative Case strand of work. As part of this, they have published statistics showing the composition of workforce in a number of their most significant organisations. Full details of the statistics can be found here.

For Rich Mix, as an organisation which has had a long-standing commitment to diversity as a core part of our mission it was a great joy to see that in terms of the diversity of our workforce, we are making good progress when compared to our peers.  The ACE figures show that the total number of BAME staff averages out at 13.7% for NPOS whereas Rich Mix figures show almost 42%.

We are also delighted to see the increase in successful Grants for the Arts bids from artists from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. Over half of our programming is by BAME artists and we know how much the support of ACE has meant in giving them access to tools and resources to develop their practice further.

We are still very conscious of the need to do even more to attract people from diverse backgrounds to come to work in our organisation. And we are grateful that we have an extremely diverse Board. Their contribution has been invaluable in supporting our thinking about programming, employment and community outreach.

And as an aside it's also good to see that our partners in the Future Arts Centres network are also leading the way in the diversity discussions and practice.

Jane Earl, Chief Executive

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#GivingTuesday and why giving support to artists is key.

London is full of artist success stories. But for every artist who does get to the point of performance or exhibition, there are many who are sadly forced to abandon their big idea.

As an arts charity, it’s an honour to be able to support emerging artists by giving them something that can be scarce in London – space. We hope that by giving artists a space where they can grow their work and a stage on which to perform it, we also give them the confidence to keep going with their creative projects. 

Working with funding bodies such as Arts Council England and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation to support artists’ development, we have been able to help a huge number of artists realise their aspirations. We are also supported by the generous donations of individuals, and the income from ticket sales which goes directly back into the arts programme. In the last year we gave away 4,521 hours of free rehearsal space, supporting over 140 emerging artists. 

We have also been able to make our arts programme accessible to more people. More than 35,000 people enjoyed free arts and culture events at Rich Mix in 2014/15. Our Youth Takeover in August saw young people taking over the building for free workshops, gigs, theatre shows, and masterclasses. It was fantastic to work with young artists and help them to turn ideas into reality. There’s no shortage of talent – so it’s the responsibility of organisations such as ours to ensure that upcoming artists are given the opportunities to grow. 

Having faced a period of uncertainty where the future of Rich Mix was being debated, we have certainly had cause to think on what kind of gap would be left in our absence. That’s a lot of works of theatre, dance, spoken word, or visual art that London audiences might otherwise not have been able to see. That’s a lot of opportunities to expand our minds, see the world from different perspectives, and connect with other people that we might have otherwise missed. That’s a lot of success stories which might never have been told. 

#GivingTuesday gives us a good reason to talk about why arts funding and artist development programmes remain essential – and to consider all that artists give us in return.

[Image: writer and performer Alice Malseed in Jellyfish, which was part of our 2015 season of new works.]

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Spending review - what will it mean for the arts?

With the comprehensive spending review under way, we're keeping a close eye on news sites (and twitter) to see how the arts have fared.

At Rich Mix, we've been very well supported by Rushanara Ali, our local MP, who came in to meet us and a number of the other arts organisations who live in our building. She sent a powerful letter of advocacy to the Treasury last month in anticipation of the spending review  - have a read of it here. In it, she outlines the need for continued funding to protect “one of the richest and most vibrant arts scenes in the world.”  

We’ll be reading the small print of the Chancellor’s statement to see if he truly intends to heed the voices of those speaking on behalf of the arts. Look forward to seeing your responses once we see the statement in more detail.

Jane Earl, Chief Executive

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‘In with the new!’: reasons to love new theatre

New voices: Three works which had their premiere at Rich Mix in 2015 as part of Small Story / Big City, Eastern Europeans for Dummies (There There), Globe Town (Tobias Wright) and The Edge of Me (Yolanda Mercy).

I love the moment before a play begins: the lights go down, and the rustling and talk fades to a hush silence as you prepare to watch a story unfold. The anticipation is heightened, for me, when the story is a new one – when the play has only just been written or devised, and I am lucky enough to be a part of one of the first audiences.

While part of the excitement of watching Shakespeare is seeing the new cast and director’s take on a classic, in the case of new works the thrill comes from seeing the direction theatre-makers take when creating something afresh. Given a pen and a stage, what do today’s emerging writers, directors and actors want to say?

Throughout 2015, we’ve heard from a range of new voices as part of our ongoing Small Stories / Big City series. Themes and concerns have ranged from gentrification to mental health, from immigration to intergalactic travel. Some themes have recurred across many of the works: the acute loneliness we can feel living in large cities, for example, has echoed throughout.

New theatre is exciting because it can put a finger to the pulse of the society we live in, and represent it in ways which both reference tradition and, frequently, turn that tradition completely on its head. Support for emerging theatre-makers is vital in ensuring that theatre remains a relevant and genuinely exciting part of the arts landscape.

This week Small Stories / Big City continues with works from emerging theatre-makers Alice Malseed, Sarah Baxter, Giulio Blason and Yaron Shyldkrot. Then, on Saturday, Descent Shorts present a showcase of five theatre shorts, selected from a round of open submissions. And, on 30 October, pioneering theatre company Tamasha will celebrate 25 years with a party and retrospective of their ‘greatest hits’ here at Rich Mix. Over their 25 years, Tamasha have commissioned and supported a huge number of artists to create new works - and that’s certainly something we’ll raise a glass to.

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Dagestan – a play: guest blog by Steven J. Fowler

Poet and martial artist Steven J Fowler writes about his first piece written for theatre: Dagestan. See it performed here on Friday 16th and Saturday 17th of October. 

“Dagestan is a real place, or so I might read, or be told. At the moment, in Britain, it might as well not be, for our relationship to that place is non-existent. So it has been for many nations, until we have a reason to know they exist. What if we found something in Dagestan we needed, or wanted? What if something happened there that led us to announce our presence, and so define our relationship to this new and exotic place, this idea of the place? How do we do our announcing in a world after Iraq and Afghanistan, after the 21st century has begun, and where private military companies, with their own internal cultures, their own ‘special’ checks and balances, might be the first boots to hit the ground?

This is the context of my first play, a hypothetical question. But just as all professions seem to have their own internal language and logic, so Dagestan is also really about a closed, internal world of physical training, through the martial arts, and playful, innovative language. It is a play in the tradition of Beckett, or Pinter, and as Beckett said, “a play is not a simulation of life outside, any more than football is, or the circus, or a game of chess, but an activity in itself.” So it is with Dagestan, not merely as a snapshot of the world, but a way to represent aggression and vulnerability, strength and weakness, expression and physicality through the material of the theatre, that is, with the audience acknowledged, and with the actors switching from exhausting performance to energetic dialogue.

“A play is not a simulation of life outside, any more than football is, or the circus, or a game of chess, but an activity in itself.” - Samuel Beckett

With my own background in martial arts, it’s been an amazing experience developing a work-in-progress version of the play, something both physical and literary, working with brilliant actors Robin Berry, Maya Wasowicz, Steve North and Gareth Tempest, director Russell Bender and producer Tom Chivers, to make something we hope is truly unique. A play where knives and chokes sit comfortably with paradox and poetry.

Dagestan has become a non-place in this play, an idea, with its own internal logic, its own presence, that isn’t really real, but perhaps closer to the truth of something for that, for it is not pretend. It is wonderful to have the chance to take risks in theatre, to build upon ideas not immediately obvious or easy to digest, and that are far richer for that fact.”

Photo credit: Tom Chivers

Watch a behind-the-scenes trailer here.

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The BFI London Film Festival returns...

For film lovers, October is a very exciting month. It marks the start of The 59th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express - a festival which brings together the best of the best in international film, and dares us to try and catch as many as we can. There will of course be the usual big-name draws and Cannes festival winners, but just as worth watching out for are the left-of-field and independent films you’re unlikely to see screened anywhere else. We have everything from toe-curling J-horror to political coverups to bizarre biopics in this year’s eclectic lineup...

Please note, tickets can only be purchased through the BFI website - click any title below to buy tickets:

OCT 14 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: THEY WILL HAVE TO KILL US FIRST: MALIAN MUSIC IN EXILE (15)

OCT 14 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: A PERFECT DAY (18)

OCT 15 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: YAKUZA APOCALYPSE (18)

OCT 15 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: CHRONIC (18)

OCT 16 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: MADONNA (18)

OCT 16 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: THE MUD WOMAN (18)

OCT 17 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: LONDON CALLING SHORTS

OCT 17 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: PUBLIC HOUSE (18)

OCT 17 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: DON’T THINK I’VE FORGOTTEN: CAMBODIA’S LOST ROCK AND ROLL (18)

OCT 17 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: LIGHT YEARS (18)

OCT 18 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: (BE)LONGING (18)

OCT 18 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: MAKE MORE NOISE! SUFFRAGETTES IN FILM (PG)

OCT 18 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: FATHER (BABAI) (18)

OCT 18 /  BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL: DÉGRADÉ (18)

[richmixlondon]

Our new mural (and why we love street art)

We’re lucky enough to be bang in the middle of an area famed for its street art. Take a walk down Great Eastern Street towards Brick Lane and you’ll find sudden bursts of colour on every blank wall. We love that street art is always changing - it’s a motivation to go and have a look, before it disappears. This week we had artist Louis Masai transform the back wall of Rich Mix into a psychedelic coral reef, funded by Synchronicity Earth. What do you think?

We’ve got an exhibition from Iranian street artists on our Mezzanine Gallery until Sep 26. And on Friday 18, artist Lakwena Maciver (who’s transformed walls from London to LA with her brilliant murals) will speak as part of Africa Calling Open Labs. 

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RMYTF Guest Blog: ‘Spoken Identity’ with the Young Ambassadors

The Rich Mix Young Ambassadors are a team of young people with an enthusiasm for the arts. For our annual Youth Takeover Festival, the RMYA worked together to create an event from start to finish. This meant sharing ideas, working out a programme, contacting artists, and ensuring things ran smoothly on the night. Here’s what Young Ambassador Rand Faris wrote about the evening (and what she learnt in the process of putting it together):

[The Young Ambassadors]

‘The night started off with dim coloured lights and scattered chairs around tables decorated with quotes, while good music and good vibes spun on the DJ set by Conrad Kira. Faces both familiar and unfamiliar began to arrive, and supporters made their way through the doors and onto the chairs, waiting patiently for the show to begin. 

Young poets, musicians, and lyricists stood quietly at the back of the room, greeting their audience as they walked in, observing the atmosphere, and warming up. Art pieces and exclusive brand garments covered the stalls, and the artists behind these creations explained their work to interested visitors. The room was filled with talent in every corner, ready to flood the stage. 

When the clock hit 7:30, the DJ put a halt to the music and silence broke the noise. The hosts introduced the night and made way for the first artist. 

If I were to try and comment on every artist that had performed that night, I'd only be fooling myself if I thought I'd be able to fit it all in one blog entry. Each artist was original, each different, and each expressive in their own nature - which truly enhanced the theme of the night, 'Identity'. Every artist brought onto the stage their own unique interpretation of the theme.

From the adjectives and metaphors pouring out the spoken word artists, to the riddles and rhymes buzzing through the audience by the lyricists, to the vibrations of the music that were sent straight to your bones leaving you with goosebumps from the musicians, down to the paintbrush strokes in the artwork and detailed stitching of the clothes, everyone in the room was constantly engaged. 

To top it all off, the open mic section was filled with acts who had signed up on the night. Watching audience members get up on stage and perform just further emphasized the extensive amount of young talent out there wanting to be heard. When you are among such creativity, you cannot help but feel inspired. I know I speak not only for myself when I say that I left that night feeling both inspired and moved by such talented youth artists. 

For us as organisers, the night went even better than planned. The audience was interactive, patient, and appreciative, and the performers (both on the set list and from the open mic section) all brought a memorable performance.

Events such as this one play a huge role in the artistic world we live in as they give young talent a chance to be heard and recognised - a chance that is not easy to gain nor find. Especially living in such a big, diverse, and competitive city such as London, getting noticed or simply being heard as an emerging young artist is very difficult. Just imagine how many young talents there are out there that are left unheard and end up giving up on their dream. Events such as the one we held make a difference by giving these young talented people confidence and motivation to not give up. 

As Rich Mix Young Ambassadors, we learnt many things whilst working on this project together. Apart from the skills we enhanced (such as organisation, communication, and networking) we learnt how important it is to work in a team and compromise. When you are in charge of a whole event, it is up to you and your team to make sure it all goes as planned. Therefore we had to work together, and stay together, in order to keep our event together. Especially when you work in a team of creatives, you must learn to compromise and accept other ideas being brought forth to the table.’

For other young creatives interested in becoming a Young Ambassador, or getting involved in the Takeover Festival next year, have a look at our website. 

[richmixlondon]

RMYTF: #ChickenTakeover

Assan Ali is one of the founding directors of Mile End Community Project – a community initiative based in the heart of East London. As part of Rich Mix Youth Takeover Festival, MCP staged a ‘Chicken Takeover’, screening their latest film alongside spoken word, a chicken ‘taste off’ and a #ChickenSelfie competition. We asked Assan a few questions about the project:

The ‘Chicken Takeover’ is based around the film MCP made, Chicken, which was screened during the Rich Mix Youth Takeover Festival. Why chicken? How did the idea come about?

HoodForts (the film-making strand of MCP) is a creative platform that allows young people to communicate their thoughts through film and the arts. At the project start up stage, we consult with young people on the subject they wish to explore. For this project, topics were wider ranging with the top three being: PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in young people exiting gangs), young people and mental health awareness and the chicken shop phenomenon in Tower Hamlets.

One of the early ideas was to offer free healthy food outside some of the more popular chicken shops. However, it was felt this would not be effective, and we went back to the drawing board. Following some further consultation with young people and colleagues from the Public Health team (Tower Hamlets), the word ‘healthy’ was viewed as counter-productive and we opted for a slightly different approach. We realised from early conversations that the chicken shops were more than just places to eat, and decided to gain an insight into this phenomenon.

The impact the film Chicken had is described best by a member of the audience at the launch of our film in 2014 who said, “I walk past these chicken shops every day en route to work. They do so much more than just sell chicken. This film is very informative and has given me a true insight into a culture I walk past and was completely oblivious to!”

Were you surprised by some of the broader points people made in the film, and discussions that arose around it?

Although the film is about chicken, our approach to film making allows that platform and space to discuss broader related issues. I wasn’t surprised but do hope the wider points raised might influence policy. For example, the points raised regarding young people using the chicken shops as a safe space to congregate with their friends should be discussed at youth service meetings... and perhaps review youth club opening times!

MCP have been a great match for the youth takeover—both give young people the chance to be in charge. We’ve loved seeing all the cool ideas and events that have come out of this festival. Why do you think these kinds of initiatives are important for young people?

I think Rich Mix is a brilliant space and facility for the community and young people. Having a whole month of free activities for young people is amazing - I don’t think I’ve seen or heard of anything similar across London! This initiative is important as our young people have skills and talents that need to be seen and heard – the youth takeover allows for that.

We are honoured to have been a part of this years’ takeover festival and have enjoyed it thoroughly. We’re already looking forward to the next one.

So are we – we look forward to seeing what MCP come up with for 2016! Can you offer any advice to organisations or individuals wanting to get involved in the next Rich Mix Youth Takeover Festival?

We absolutely loved the Chicken Takeover event and I even created a few bespoke “why did the chicken cross the road?” type jokes which were well received by (some) of the audience!

My advice to young people is to get in touch with any ideas, suggestions or activities you would like to see at the festival. Remember, it’s your festival and it’s for you!

MCP began as a group of friends volunteering in 1995, they now support many young people to make films about a huge range of subjects relevant to their daily lives. Their most recent film looks at the phenomenon of fried chicken in London – you can watch it here. Follow @MCP_95 to find out about future events.