Inua Ellams / Writer / Curator / Part-time Hero
Welcome to October / My Birthday Month x
We are already halfway through it so the greeting is very, but I hope you accept it with grace. After all, it’s my birthday on the 23rd.
Anyway, remember the formula? 4 news items & something to watch…
1 / Search Party / Oct 21 & 22
I lived in Brixton for 4 incredible years; years in which I learnt so much about myself, my community, Black Britain, Britishness, and belonging. I did a lot of work for Oval House before it migrated up the road and evolved into Brixton House (the newest theatre in South London), so I’m ecstatic this is happening; Two days before my birthday, I'mma be on stage letting YOU GUYS direct me on what to read TO YOUY. This audience-led controlled-explosion-of-a show plays in London’s Brixton House for two nights (before my birthday). Bring a friend, loved one, enemy, frenemy, family, work wife or husband, department, team, entire office, UK branch or just you.
Tix / here
21st & 22 / October
£8 / 7:30pm
Brixton House
385 Coldharbour Lane
Brixton, London
SW9 8GL
Search Party is part of an entire festival of work called Uprising marking the 40th anniversary of the Brixton Uprising. I really suggest you check out some of the other events.
x
2 / Stained Metal / poems / plaque
As part of the MBE / Stained Metal project / I travelled to Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria, to research, write and complete a sequence of 10 poems that will form a major section in my next book of poems.
It was an utterly humbling and incredible experience. I can’t wait to show you the photos and the poems when I am good and able to do so. And honestly, it is odd that both of us are ‘working’ in this picture. The brother behind is literally bending metal, back-breaking work, and I’m… sitting writing rhymes. So, I got up and actually did some of their work… sorting through bits of scrap metal, tipping them into an iron pot, dropping it down into the furnace and evenly chipping away the moulds to reveal the sculpture beneath…
Stay tuned… all will be revealed.
But, if you come to Search Party and shout out the word ‘Bronze’ I’ll have to read you one of the new poems…
x
3 / Together For Palestine / 17 September
The Together For Palestine concert at Wembley Arena last month was incredible. The huge auditorium was filled with love, solidarity, understanding and compassion, and when we agreed to take part in the event months earlier, we could not have imagined that: 1/ A day before, the United Nations would finally acknowledged that there was indeed a genocide happening in Gaza. 2/ In less than a month, there would be a ceasefire 3/ Hostages would have been released from Israel and Gaza, and 4/ The United Kingdom would finally recognise Palestine.
Together for Palestine received praise around the world; from UK outlets such as The Times, the Guardian, BBC, the Evening Standard, British Vogue, Novara Media, NME, GQ and The Independent, through to global outlets such as MSNBC, Al Jazeera, The New Arab, Billboard, Middle East Eye, Dazed Middle East, Vogue Arabia, Time of India, The National and much more. The London Standard called the event “provided a vital beacon of hope” and more than £1.6 million has been raised so far and social media clips from the night have already been viewed by tens of millions around the globe.
This was my small contribution to the night. I performed a very small play, with Riz Ahmed, Guy Pearce, Amer Hlehel, El Far3i and Motaz Malhess. We played men from Palestine talking about their last days and hours on earth before they become martyrs.
I hope the ceasefire holds, so that good faith and honest conversations about how to achieve a free Palestine can begin.
x
4 / Barber Shop / 15 October
Barber Shop Chronicles in Belgium was an absolute triumph. All the shows were sold out and ended with standing ovations for the cast and crew. I am currently sat in a hotel in Paris, hours from the Paris premiere of the play. So, remember, the play transitioned from:
London, England - Brussels, Belgium
Leeds, England - Liege, Belgium
Lagos, Nigeria - Senegal, Dakar
Accra, Ghana - Ivory Coast, Abidjan
Kampala, Uganda - Cameroon, Doula
Harare, Zimbabwe - Burkina Faso, Wagadougou
Joburg, South Africa - Congo, Kinshasa
Kingston, Jamaica - Port-a-Prince, Haiti
Well, we consider modifying it to centre Paris instead of Brussels, then at the last minute, decided not to, just to piss off the snobbish Parisians a bit. If you are here, I hope you can grab a ticket:
15-19 Oct
La MC93 Maison de la Culture
de Seine-Saint-Denis à Bobigny
est subventionnée par
Tix / €9-€30
Book / here.
x
5 / And I’m still reeling from the news of D’Angelo’s passing. And I’m still trying to find the words to articulate what he means to me. And I’m still afraid to listen to any of his music. And I still have them downloaded to my phone - like I have done for the last 11 years of my life. And I am morning a titan and genius and an angel of man.
For this month, I’d like you to listen to one of my favourite songs of his / here.
x
Thanks for reading. See you soon.
As always, any questions, holleratchaboy.