The blue Shake! banners pinned to the walls,
clipboards and notes flurrying about, groups of Shake! participants deep in
concentration rehearsing their lines on stage or tucked away in corners, sound-checks, mic-checks, warm embraces to old
Shake friends being made.. it’s that time again…
On
Tuesday 7th October we hosted our 5th Shake! Showcase at
Rich Mix London. Teaming up with our family at NUMBI, the show was based on the August Shake! Intensive Course, “HeadSpace”, and shakers came from far and wide to perform their art and share their political
insight and ideas with the public.
During the course in August, the
participants used a variety of poetic, musical and filmic tools to dig deep and
critically respond to the central theme of “HeadSpace”. Having created a wealth
of original artistic work, the showcase
offers an extension to the week of radical learning, and gives a platform where
the participants can express their creativity to an audience.
 |
| The hosts Cizz, Tasnima & Edwina |
Performing to a full house, our hosts Cizz,
Tasnima and Edwina took us on a journey through poetic lyricism, thoughtful
rhymes, sweet melodies, and engaging documentary film. Shakers old and new
performed, extending the family and widening our community.
Young people that had never been on stage
before bravely stood in the spotlight and read their poetry to the 160 people
in the audience, followed by a loud chorus of heart-felt applause each
time. Young people that had never made a
film before premiered their documentary, followed by a professional panel
discussion and Q & A with the filmmakers and audience.
 |
| In conversation with the filmmakers |
The dynamic mixture of performances and
contagiously good vibes and spirit meant that the show was funny,
thought-provoking, inspiring, and deeply profound – with all of the work
reaching an incredibly high-standard. Everybody left with a huge smile on their
faces, buzzing with energy and positivity.
The showcase not only gives the
participants a chance to exhibit their creative work, it also serves as an
opportunity to engage the public in the social and environmental issues covered
at the Shake! Course, and uniquely, from a youth voice. The spectators get the
chance to view these topics through the Shake! lens of art,
 |
| Spoken word by Mujtaba Ahmed |
media, race and
power – which opens up new ways of seeing and understanding to more and more
people.
The effectiveness of the show can be summed
up by the way one girl came up to me at the end of the performances and said “you’re definitely gonna see me up there next time...” She, like many others
there, had caught the Shake bug.
Watch out for Shake! Showcase #6…. You
really don’t want to miss it.
Saara J-R
