The Women Inside: generously funded by Arts Council England, this project built on The Writer Inside (delivered in 2021). Over eight online sessions this past summer (2022), Suhalya, Laura, and Bethany worked with the women of Hibiscus Women’s Centre to develop a verbatim piece which reflects their experiences as asylum seekers and migrants to the UK. The project, as always, was process-driven, with no preconceived ideas of the final output. However, with this iteration, we teamed up with the Independent Film Trust to also have a focus on product - meaning the culmination of the work needed to aim for excellence. We believe we achieved this with the short, participatory, verbatim film: The Women Inside, which was launched at the Migrant Women’s Conference, ‘My Voice, My Story!,’ hosted by Hibiscus Initiatives as they celebrated their 35yr anniversary supporting migrant women trapped in the immigration and criminal justice system to rebuild their lives. (Link available following film festival run.)

The Writer Inside:  over seven sessions, a small group of women affected by criminal justice/detention worked with playwright Suhayla El-Bushra to write and develop scenes, which were then performed by professional actors.  These scenes were presented as an online scratch performance for peers, and are now undergoing further development. Blank Cheque partnered with Hibiscus Initiatives to deliver this project, with grant support from Arts Council England.

The Mythology Project:  a week-long workshop with formerly incarcerated people.  The group devised a scratch performance based on the structure and style of ancient Greek mythology, creating their own modern myths from newspaper clippings, improvisations, and stories from their personal experiences.  Participants received their OCR Level 2 Cambridge Technical Certificate in Performing Arts after completing this workshop.  The project was funded by Arts Council England, was produced in partnership with Synergy Theatre Project, and was supported by Clean Break.

Women in Mythology: a two-day workshop for criminalised and vulnerable women.  The group devised a short collaborative performance art piece based on research into ancient mythological women from Africa, India, Scandinavia, and Native America.  The project was funded by Arts Council England and was supported by Clean Break.

The NOLA Project: a one-week, cross-cultural project where a British playwright and two British actors worked with emotionally disturbed (ED) young people from low-income households in New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA).  The group used theatre-based, story-telling activities to raise self-esteem, promote learning, and encourage healthy social behavior.  The week culminated in a scratch performance piece for peers, teachers, and staff.