The hidden voices of migrants and refugees are to be heard in a ground-breaking new radio play developed by one of Scotland’s largest universities. Launched today on World Refugee Day, the play takes audiences on an unpredictable creative journey into the lives of people fleeing persecution or seeking a better life, and delves into the inequalities they face. ‘Afamba apota’ - which means the journey is unpredictable in the Zimbabwean language Shona –has been created by the innovative minds of University of Glasgow researchers to bring to life key findings from the UK's Migration for Development and Equality (MIDEQ) Hub, and the research of the University’s UNESCO Chair on Refugee Integration through Education, Language and Arts team.
But rather than dry research, listeners hear from a colourful cast of characters populating the ‘migration corridor’ under the direction of documentary maker Paul Lamont. The corridor isn’t a place, but an imaginative construct to describe the statelessness, displacement and disassociation inhabited by migrants across the world as they make their way from one refuge to another. Migrants arrive on British shores (Image: PA) Written by the University’s artist in resident and UNESCO RILA researcher Tawona Sitholé, the play uses soundscapes and overlapping voices and narratives, which struggle to escape the format devised by the documentary maker.
Evocative soundscapes immerse audiences in thought-provoking stories that illuminate.