So since I finished with NTW a few months back I have been busy quietly thinking about how I takeover the world..................... 

Only playing, I have been busy working on various projects and thinking of how my career unfolds over the coming few years.  There is much to ponder and many opportunities that have arisen and many that have sailed by.  However I am keen to understand and investigate my role and place within Arts and Cultural sector.  I see myself as a future cultural leader and I have been asking myself many questions as to whether I have the ability and presence to be able to achieve that.  

So what have I been up to?

Well I want to tell you about 'Project Fio' being delivered by my company YOCA. ‘Fio’ is latin to belong and is a pilot project that is looking to engage young people from various communities but specifically targeting young people from Black Minority Ethnic backgrounds and also disadvantaged young people in Cardiff.  The idea is to demystify what Theatre is and show young people the plethora of opportunities available within the sector.  At a time when cuts are being made left, right and centre, the hope is ‘Project Fio’ will engage and enable young people facing ever-increasing barriers in accessing the arts.

Why should these opportunities be more readily available to young people?  

As a young person from an underprevliged background I was lucky enough to engage with Theatre through Theatre Royal Stratford East.  Coming from a Muslim background didn't make it any easier with family members questioning my decision and not quite understanding what Theatre was providing me.  It has taken some time to get my family and friends to understand that through my involvement in Theatre and the Arts, I have gained invaluable transferable skills and confidence.  Only recently they have started to appreciate and value my work and the work that theatres do within society.  Slowly but surely they have started to come around to the notion and have become more supportive.

Recently a good friend Matthew Xia won the Genesis Foundation theatre award.  He said that had he not been involved in theatre he may well have been in prison.  Personally a similar statement would be appropriate and although feels a little cliché, theatre certainly provided me with the way out and an alternative option. 

Now I find myself in a position where I have great networks and access to some of the leading practitioners and organisations.  It feels only right to try and enable others who can relate to my story to get involved and see if theatre can provide them with the opportunities and escape that they need. 

A safe place to come and be expressive, a platform where they can find their voice and a stage where they can share their story.  ‘Project Fio’ is trying to engage with young people from all walks of life but placing an emphasis on young people from backgrounds not well versed in the world of theatre and those who haven’t the means to access it. 

We have identified as many barriers as possible and tried to find solutions in order to be make the project more accessible.  Identifying Ramadan starting mid-July has meant that the ‘Project Fio’s’ summer school has moved to the final 3 weeks of the holidays.  We are providing travel bursaries and food for the summer school as well as the workshops.  Finally we are also keen to speak to parents and guardians to explain the project and enable them to understand what is being provided other then just an opportunity to be a performer.  Apparently Islam says that drama is haram, can telling a story be haram?  

Funded by Arts Council Wales and with support being provided by Wales Millenium Centre, National Theatre Wales, Cardiff Council and BBC Wales.

So come and join us:

Website: www.youthofcreativearts.co.uk

Twitter: @info_yoca  #projectfio

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YOCArts

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