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As the mother of a brown boy...
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Chickenshed are bring their production of "as the mother of a brown boy..." to the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff on Saturday 20th June at 8.00 pm. This performance is the culmination of a nationwide tour that has seen the Chickenshed cast play to packed audiences across the UK.
"as the mother of a brown boy..." tells the true story of Mischa Niering - a nineteen year old former student of Chickenshed. Mischa died during a bungled burglary attempt, he was knocked of his scooter and killed during a police chase. Christine Niering the director of the show was Mischa's aunt, David Rubin, playing the father, was Mischa's godfather and many of the cast were his friends so, as you can imagine, this production is very close to Chickenshed's heart. Directors and cast are willing to be interviewed.
This is a story of the life and absolutely tragic death of a mixed race boy and his struggle for identity in this multi-racial society. It tells of the decisions Mischa made and the paths he took, which were obviously not always the right choices. We have tried to show other youths how a spiralling journey into crime can have devastating effects - no less on the remaining family. We hope that Mischa's story will encourage others to question the undercurrent of discrimination and subtlety of racism in society and give a voice to those involved in the pursuit of justice. As our Artistic Director says, this is the true story about someone we know, but it is also about many other people that we don't know. We are passionate that Mischa's life shouldn't have been in vain.
Told through the voice of his mother and using dance, physical theatre, music and multimedia "as the mother of a brown boy..." is a stark journey to find the truth behind Mischa's life: relationships lost and found; self-fulfilling prophecies; injustice; but most importantly, love.
From the words of his mother: "as the mother of a brown boy I ask myself what have I created for him? What have I put upon him, that he doesn't see his own reflection positively - where he is constantly shifting his gaze to focus and fit other people's perceptions of him? What have I brought this son into, that I have to work that much harder to make his footprint seen?"
This production had a very successful run in London, followed by tremendous acclaim at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe last year and due to the massive success we have been asked to tour around the country.
Press Quotes:
"Vivid and compelling" Time Out Critics Choice ****
"A powerfully emotive piece" The Times ***
"Universally relevant" The Observer
"An urgent and heartfelt evening" The Independent
"A cultural phenomenon" The Stage
"An important piece of theatre that young people everyone should see" Fringe Review ****
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Wednesday, May 21, 2008 |
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