STALYBRIDGE’S Civic Hall is to play host to a pioneering production that hopes to educate people about race.
And there is no set fee to watch Alicia’s Amazing Adventure to Find the First Black Britons. It is a pay what you can show.
Friday, August 8 will see two performances at the Trinity Street venue of actor and theatre-maker Alicia McKenzie’s first solo show, which is inspired by personal experiences and a deep desire to tell the stories she wished she had heard growing up.
The time-travelling family show begins with one big question: “Why do people have different coloured skin?”
People are invited to journey across time to uncover powerful, surprising stories of Black British history and the show hopes to open conversations about race, identity and belonging.
“The show itself is extremely interactive,” says Alicia. “I love inviting the audience to shape the story.
“Since I’m the only performer, I can’t do it alone – it’s genuinely a shared experience. Families and children will help solve clues, find objects, question characters, dance, and play.
“They’ll use their problem-solving, sports, dance, literacy, and even maths skills. There’s something for everyone.”
The idea for the show began with a moment from Alicia’s own childhood.
She added: “I remember an unsatisfactory conversation with my childhood teacher about why people have different coloured skin.
“One that stuck with me my whole life. It showed me how poor our collective understanding of race and British identity can be.”
Performing a different piece for Black History Month also led to this show’s creation as Alicia recalled: “I performed it in several diverse schools across London and saw how engaged the Black children were – they really wanted to hear these stories.
“But I kept feeling, ‘These aren’t my words. I was telling Black history as a Black woman, but the script hadn’t been written by a Black person.’
“If I were to tell this story as a Black woman from the North of England, what stories would I choose? How would I want to say it?”
*THE SHOW takes place at Stalybridge’s Civic Hall at 11am and 2.30pm. A suggested donation is £3.50 per child or pay what you can (adults free). Tickets can be booked by clicking https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/tameside-mbc/alicias-amazing-adventure-to-find-the-first-black-britons/e-zebjag.
