Newly awarded Theatre Company of Sanctuary, Maison Foo are bringing their ground-breaking new show, A Thing Mislaid, and an extensive outreach scheme supporting refugees and asylum seekers, to venues across the midlands.
Inspired by migration, journeys and friendship, A Thing Mislaid celebrates and questions the idea of what it means to leave your birthplace in search of a place to call home once more. Using Foo’s trademark style of humour, clowning and physical theatre mixed with exciting new experiments in miniature puppetry and live camera to create epic cinematic moments live on stage.
Beth Sheldon, Co- Director of A Thing Mislaid, said: “Whether you are interested in the migration stories that have inspired the work or you are just someone that has travelled, journeyed or dreamt of doing so, then this show is for you.”
“Haunting…Mesmerising…Thought provoking” The Stage (4 Stars)
“Magical and moving…..imaginative… inspired…indeed brilliant” Reviews Hub (4.5 stars)
Informed by A Thing Mislaid’s narrative, Maison Foo have partnered with Derby Theatre, Derby Refugee Advice Centre and Journeys Festival international to identify ways in which they could support refugees and those seeking asylum. From this, Maison Foo created
The Refugee Friends Scheme in order to promote community cohesion, combat loneliness and isolation and to make their work more welcoming and accessible to those who may face barriers to accessing the Arts.
Ben Margolis, Regional Coordinator for City of Sanctuary says:
“Theatre has the power to transform. Maison Foo are transforming lives and perceptions through their impressive commitment in ensuring that people seeking sanctuary are not just talked about in their plays but are at the very heart of everything they do. Hopefully this award can inspire others in the arts sector to also become places of sanctuary and opportunity for some of the most marginalised people in our society.”
Please see this newsletter for more information about the Refugee Friends Scheme and A Thing Mislaid,
A Thing Mislaid tours…
OCT 10th | MAC Birmingham: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/maison-foo-a-thing-mislaid
OCT 11th | Lincoln Drill Hall: https://www.lincolndrillhall.com/shows/a-thing-mislaid/
OCT 17th | Arena Theatre Wolverhampton; https://wlv.ticketsolve.com/shows/873593674
OCT 18th | The Brewhouse, Burton upon Trent: https://www.brewhouse.co.uk/events/maison-foo-thing-mislaid
OCT 20th | Lakeside Arts, Nottingham: https://www.lakesidearts.org.uk/theatre/event/3894/a-thing-mislaid.html
OCT 21st | Attenborough Arts Centre, Leicester https://www2.le.ac.uk/hosted/attenborougharts/whatson/Theatre%20and%20Comedy
Maison Foo are piloting Talking Birds’ Difference Engine to deliver captions in English and Arabic; making the show more accessible for refugee communities as well as d/Deaf and hard of hearing audiences. For more info: maisonfoo.co.uk/refugeefriends
You can follow what Maison Foo are up to on Twitter @maisonfoo, on Facebook www.facebook.com/maisonfoo and their website www.maisonfoo.co.uk