Preview: Yalla Walk

As part of the 2019 Bristol Refugee Festival, Bristol mental health and performance charity Many Minds present Yalla Walk, an ambitious, participatory outdoor performance that aims to tackle segregation and stigma, and to celebrate equality and neurodiversity.

Yalla Walk will be performed from June 21-24 (matinee and evening performances) by Many Minds’ members, alongside refugees and asylum seekers. The performance is based on their experiences of living in Bristol.

Many Minds have partnered with refugee and asylum charity Borderlands, Bristol-based BME mental health organisation Nilaari and outdoor performance company The Natural Theatre Company, alongside a host of other partners and collaborators. “Yalla Walk puts refugees, asylum seekers and people who have experienced mental ill-health in the driving seat,” producer Oliver Gamblin explains.

Oliver tells us more about how the project came into being. “In 2017 The Sunday Times named Bristol the UK’s most desirable location to live. In the same year, the Runnymede Trust published a report which stated that ‘Bristol’s BME communities have poorer job prospects, worse health and fewer academic qualifications than those in white communities, making Bristol the most segregated core city.’

Members of Many Minds perform ‘Yalla Walk’

“To address this, Bristol Old Vic, Bristol Post and Ujima Radio hosted a series of talks across Bristol called Your City, Your Voice. These conversations were about people in the city facing uncomfortable truths and making pledges for realistic change.

“Two of the people at these talks were Many Minds’ director Olivia Ware and artistic director Viki Browne. Having heard what people said they pledged to take action by bringing some of Bristol’s communities together and celebrating their differences.

“The result is Yalla Walk, an outdoor participatory walking performance, which puts refugees, asylum seekers and people who have experienced mental ill-health in the driving seat, taking an audience to the places where they feel best and to the edges of where they feel safe.”

Viki Browne adds: “We know performance is a powerful way to bring people together and find moments of connection. Our work puts people with experience of mental illness and people who have been marginalised by society in the driving seat as a way to break down stigma and trigger generosity and equality. We have seen the powerful impact this has on individuals and groups.”

To get an insight into Many Minds and Yalla Walk, Oliver spoke to assistant producer and volunteer Mehdi Razi.

How did you get involved with Many Minds and the Yalla Walk project?
I learnt about this project online: then, after meeting the team and learning more about their working methods, I decided to volunteer and to get more deeply involved.

Tell us your experiences of working with Many Minds.
From the first time meeting the team in February 2019, I found the vibe and energy between the participants unique. The process of getting to know the project, the team and all the people involved has been very exciting. Also, I have felt taken care of, and able to support other members. Since starting to work with Many Minds, I feel my mental health has been improving.

Tell us about your own journey to the UK.
I was born and brought up in Iran. Moving to the UK has been a very demanding experience for many reasons.
From the first day arriving in the UK, I started to observe and to recognise similarities and differences between culture, society, aspects of life in the UK, to where I used to live. The more I observed, the more I found myself able to understand my new land and at the same time, the more I felt challenged to adapt. It’s been a process of learning, questioning, finding my way, being challenged and frustrated. Successes, certainties and uncertainties have been mixed together.

‘Yalla Walk’s assistant producer Mehdi Razi

Yalla Walk explores the theme of power. What does it mean to you to have power, and to give power away?
To me, power is being influential to society. Power was taken away from me when I moved to the UK, when I lost friends, when I lost familiar faces, when I lost familiarity of space, when I lost the familiarity of people’s reactions, when I lost the feeling of belonging, when I struggled to fit into the mechanism of society, and when I felt unwelcome.
Finding myself lacking influence and even a platform to express myself was a threatening and frustrating situation. I felt as small and controlled as dust, when I struggled to follow my dreams, and I even struggled to dream about the purpose of my life. When I lost it, I felt I needed it back and I had to claim it back by making myself strong enough to stand up again. It required me to redefine my role and mission.

Tell us a little more about Yalla Walk.
Yalla Walk is an outdoor participatory performance, and it aims to bring together people who have had different challenges in life, such as mental ill-health, to participate, perform and be expressive on stage. It’s a celebration of diversity, and it presents audiences with some rarely-heard refugee stories.
The audience actively participate in the performance, in a way that feels right for them. The piece has been devised by Many Minds’ members, who have explored themes of power and place and come up with a truly unique experience.
Yalla Walk will be performed from June 21-24 (Fri 3pm / Sat & Sun 3pm & 7pm / Mon 7pm, meet Queen Square), as part of Bristol Refugee Festival and with support from Arts Council England, Quartet Community Foundation, the People’s Health Trust and the Big Lottery. To book tickets, visit www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/yalla-walk-an-outdoor-participatory-performance-tickets-61584719554?aff=ebdssbdestsearch

Top pic: Many Minds members. Pic by Owain Astles