talking birds

We’re looking for someone…is it you?

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Are you a brilliant person who can make creative things happen, while supporting artists to experiment with, and develop, their ideas?

Are you interested in work with artists and communities that is at once local and place-based, but also deals with much bigger, universal issues?

Do you agree that artists have a social and civic responsibility to the places and communities where they live and make work?

Are you interested in how artists respond to the problems facing humanity: in exploring what an arts organisation’s role might be in fighting against climate change – and for social justice?

Has the pandemic made you think hard about what happens next and how artists might lead on imagining & building a better future?

We are looking for someone to join our small and friendly staff team as we grow a creative community at The Nest, our new HQ in Coventry. We have imagined this role as Nest Community Connector, but we want to work with the right person, and this means that the role, title and terms of employment are open for discussion. To begin with, we are looking for someone to join us 3 days a week for nine months – but we’re growing and changing at the moment and we hope to be able to make this a much longer term thing.

You can view or download the recruitment pack below (PDF format). A text only version is pasted in lower down this page, or if you’d prefer the information in another format, please let us know.

nest-connector-brief-3Download

NEST COMMUNITY CONNECTOR Recruitment Pack (Text)

Who are we looking for?

First and foremost we are looking for someone who is excited by this brief, by the possibilities it holds and who would like to get stuck in – who is excited by the fact that everything is fluid and not yet pinned down. Someone who can’t wait to come and join us in Coventry, can see the huge possibilities of The Nest and wants to be a key part in making it a success for our city.

We’ve made a list of the qualities we are looking for, but we know that the right person may not have every single one of these – and will likely have more useful qualities that we haven’t even listed – but if you read this and think it sounds like you, then please consider applying.

We are looking for someone who:

  • likes people and is a generous collaborator, a good listener, is quick thinking and good at working with others to make interesting things happen.
  • is able to recognise the best idea in the room and work with that, even (and maybe especially) when it isn’t their idea.
  • is really curious about how and why, and is interested in change.
  • can think practically and strategically, loves to solve problems and wants to help make the world a better place.
    can hold a conversation with anyone, and make them feel confident they are being listened to, that their words matter.
  • knows how to gently question or challenge an idea or viewpoint from a position of care, and can inspire others to work with them to achieve something really special.
  • can bring something, in their skillset and lived experience, to the team that we don’t already have.
  • knows that sometimes something needs doing in a particular way whilst at others it is appropriate to challenge how things are done; and can just get stuck in and finish the job when that’s what is needed.

The kind of person:

  • whose values are important to them, and which chime with our own (Kindness, Brilliance, Transformation, Curiosity, Wellbeing, Collaboration) and with our ‘six big ideas’ (about artist process & support; access & participation; climate conscience; agency, equity & diversity; nurture & resilience) – which weave through our work, guiding our choices and interactions.
  • who is interested in people power, cultural democracy, collective decision making and the positive transformation that groups of people working together can effect, especially through the arts and culture.
  • who believes that artists have a responsibility to their communities and their cities, and that small and agile, but connected, organisations working strategically can affect big and meaningful change.

We think that the person we are looking for might previously have worked (maybe in the arts, events, charity or community sectors) in a job called something like ‘Producer’ or ‘Creative Agent’ or ‘Changemaker’ or ‘Project Coordinator’ or ‘Project Manager’ or ‘Community Activator’ or ‘Community Engagement Instigator’ (or maybe something else!). In the kind of job that is as much about envisioning the future as seeing something through – we are looking for someone who is as good on fine detail as on the big picture, and is comfortable with – and excited by – change.

Other skills that might be useful include:

  • is comfortable managing/tracking project budgets.
  • is able to reflect on how a project has gone, gather everyone’s viewpoints and fold that learning into working out what happens next.

What will we be working on?

This is a big and busy nine months for Talking Birds, and for Coventry as it becomes UK City of Culture. As we’ve mentioned, our biggest project is The Nest, a brand new home for the company – somewhere to build our climate-conscious creative community and make a hub for the wider independent artists’ community in Coventry. Within The Nest there will be co-working and meeting spaces in addition to studio spaces for artists undertaking Nest Residencies, which prioritise d/Deaf, disabled and locally-based artists, providing space and support to experiment with those ‘what if…?’ ideas.

We know there will be lots to do in inhabiting our building for the first time and in creating the right spaces and atmosphere – and much of that is about the care and attention of our team. Alongside this, we will be opening up the Nest Residency Programme again and working towards the delivery, in November, of our major creative project for City of Culture.

Specific jobs might include:

  • Artist development and support at The Nest: you might lead on the co-ordination of co-working sessions, and the team’s support for artists undertaking Nest Residencies.
  • Festival of Transition: you might be the main point of contact in the team for artists and the co-ordinator of a series of talks/events.
  • Art for the People: you might be a key creative collaborator in the shaping and coordination of this major arts and social democracy project.
  • Inclusion and Relevance: you might take the lead on connecting and extending our key strands of work around access and diversity.
  • Nestival: you might be a key creative collaborator involved in developing and producing projects in preparation for a year-long programme of creative work marking Talking Birds’ 30th anniversary in 2022.
  • Shape and influence the company’s projects, systems and future direction as a new team member with a fresh perspective.

Our working hours are pretty variable and flexible. They are often shaped around the needs of a project, but also around the other responsibilities that our team have elsewhere, like caring responsibilities or other part time work – we plan as a team to find a balance that works. We will be happy to explore different working patterns that work for the company and our new team member.

This is a part-time role and the salary will be pro rata of £26,000 per year (£15,600 per year for a 0.6 FTE role) – which for the 9 month period of this contract is £11,700. For more details, see ‘Terms and Conditions’ below.

How to apply:

If you think you might be the person we are looking for, then please send an email (up to 500 words) or a video (up to 3 minutes long) along with a CV or list of recent work to talkingbirdscoventry@gmail.com

In your email or video, please let us know:

  • What is exciting for you about this proposition?
  • And why do you think this is the role for you?
  • What will you particularly bring to Talking Birds (and Coventry)?

Closing date for applications: Friday 4th June

Interviews: Thursday 10th June on Zoom. Although many Covid restrictions will have relaxed by this point, we have taken the decision not to schedule in-person interviews at this time. Other arrangements can be made if this is not a suitable medium for you. If you’d be unable to attend during the week but would need an evening or weekend interview, please mention this in your application. We will share the questions with all interviewees before the interview date.

The interview panel will be Janet Vaughan (Co-Artistic Director), Sujana Uphadyay-Crawford and Jess Pinson (Board Members).

Questions about this role
We’ve tried to take care with the language in this job call out, and to write it in an open, accessible and equitable way – but if anything isn’t clear, or you’d like to chat with someone before applying, we’re really happy to talk to you. Please email talkingbirdscoventry@gmail.com and leave your name, details with the best way/time to contact you – and one of us will be in touch.

Positive Action Statement
Like many artist-led organisations, we are working to better represent the UK’s wide wealth of lived experience. Whilst we feel we have made progress with the diversity of the artists we work with and with the make up of our Board, our core staff team is less ethnically diverse than it might be. Therefore we are particularly keen to attract applicants who identify as something other than white British.

Travel
We advocate for greener/active travel wherever possible, and this role will be based at The Nest in Coventry, which is a 20 minute walk from Coventry city centre – or a 10 minute cycle (a docking station for the West Midlands Cycle Hire (Beryl app) network is 100m away on Sandy Lane). We have pedestrian access from the canal towpath or from Sandy Lane, which is also well connected to the local bus network. There is ample bike parking on site and two car parking spaces, which are reserved for those for whom travelling without their car would be a barrier to accessing the building.

Terms and conditions
This is initially a temporary contract for nine months. We hope – subject to successful fundraising – to extend this.

The role is part time – pro rata 0.6 of a full time equivalent (FTE) working week of 37.5 hours (i.e. 3 days / 22.5 hours a week). We are open to flexible working patterns (by agreement) and committed to family-friendly working. Some non-usual hours may be required depending on projects, possibly including at weekends or evenings,
by prior arrangement.

Salary will be pro rata of £26,000 per year (£15,600 per year for a 0.6 FTE role) – which for the 9 month period of this contract is £11,700. There will be 11.25 days of paid holiday per year over the 9 month period of this contract (pro rata of 25 day FTE per year). In addition, there is entitlement to the usual public holidays in England and Wales on a pro rata basis, normally to be taken in the week of each bank holiday.

Reasonable time off in lieu (at a time agreed with the Artistic Directors or General Manager), will be granted for excess hours worked. Occasionally, by agreement, additional pay may be offered instead of time off in lieu.

Talking Birds has a company pension which the postholder will be eligible to join. Employer contributions will be 3% and employee contributions 5%. Employees may opt out of this if they wish.

There will be a probationary period of 2 months.

There may be some flexibility around the number of hours and/or salary for the right candidate.

More info
You can find out more about us at www.talkingbirds.co.uk – we are in the middle of making a new website to launch with the opening of The Nest, but hopefully the current one will give you enough of an idea about us and our work. If you have any problems with getting in touch via our email address, please use the contact form on the website.

We have proof-read this pack about 5000 times, but please forgive us if you spot any errors… 😉

The Nest (left) and the Daimler Powerhouse beyond.

*This page was edited on Fri 14th May to change the email address for questions and applications because the previous email address was not working consistently.

Eugene & the Difference Engine

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Daniel Nicholas blogs on making a show with the Difference Engine

I’m not sure what year it was, maybe 2015 or 2016, could even be earlier than that. I was living in Leicester, working part time at Tesco’s, when I went to a talk about this new software made by Talking Birds Theatre Company, that can give captioning in real time to theatre performances, straight to audience members’ phones; the Difference Engine.


Flash forward five or so years later, and I’m gearing up for my first tour (pandemic pending) of my first theatre show ‘Eugene’ which has the Difference Engine at the heart of it.


When I first found out about the Difference Engine, it was the idea of sending messages to audiences’ phones that grabbed me most: could these messages be secrets that the characters on stage don’t know about? Whilst at the same time captioning what the actors on stage are saying.


The creative possibilities were racing through my head. But the big one was the multiple channels, having different audiences receiving different things that could influence how different audience members see the show – and therefore with everything that happens on the stage being the same, individuals will be seeing the show through a different lens, without realising it. This goes hand in hand with making a piece of theatre for the d/Deaf community.


That has been the goal of my show Eugene, to give audiences different ways of seeing the same thing on stage at the same time. Eugene is about a millionaire Steve Jobs-esque figure launching the first super human A.I. It all takes place at a press conference/ product launch. And although Eugene the A.I. appears on a screen at the back of the stage, it also talks to audiences directly throughout. What messages they receive, however, depends on what option they selected on the Difference Engine at the start. The character on stage and the A.I. interact: it’s very much a 2 person show, but with one actor.
It’s been difficult, don’t get me wrong, coming up with a script that works on multiple levels, and then inputting that into the Difference Engine. But I think the results (will be) worth it, when for the first time I have a show that’s accessible to d/Deaf audiences, where different audiences have a different experience at the same time: I’m happy to do the hard work, no question.


I think there’s a danger, sometimes, of tacking on accessibility to shows or products, it being thought of as an afterthought, or squeezed in when all the work is done – sometimes it just isn’t. But if I’ve learnt anything from this process, it is that by harnessing the resources that are there for accessibility, like the Difference Engine, something new and innovative can be created that can be enjoyed by many more people. And why wouldn’t you want to do that?

https://ingeniousfools.co.uk/project/daniel-nicholas/
Eugene was the Edinburgh Fringe National Partnerships Award Winner for Yorkshire 2020/21 

It’s not Wednesday and it’s a bit late for a round up of books of 2020…

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But nevertheless, if you’d like a recommendation of something to read, here’s some of Co-AD Janet’s favourite reads of the last year* (with apologies that there isn’t much fiction!):

*Read in 2020, as opposed to published in 2020.

Human kind by Rutger Bregman

Radical Help by Hilary Cottam

Natives by Akala

How to be a Liberal by Ian Dunt

From What is to what if by Rob Hopkins

Whipping Girl by Julia Serano

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Difference Engine Stories – Open Call

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We are looking to commission two brand new short art experiences that use our captioning tool, the Difference Engine, to deliver a story to individual audience members in an unexpected, beautiful (and Covid-safe) way.

What is the Difference Engine?

The Difference Engine is Talking Birds’ discrete tool, developed to make performances and events accessible to D/deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind or partially-sighted audience members by delivering captioning and audio description direct to their own mobile devices. 

It has been developed by artists, for artists – we made the Difference Engine because we wanted to give more people the chance to access experimental, outdoor, small scale or immersive performance. But essentially one of the things the Difference Engine does is to allow artists to send text to audience members’ mobiles in real time (for more info see the Difference Engine website). This is why we have come up with this opportunity.

The Difference Engine has successfully allowed companies of various scales, from intimate one-person shows through to larger scale outdoor art, to bring captioning into their audiences’ hands. Difference Engine Stories is an opportunity for artists to experiment with the tech and find a new way to build an experience around the delivery of a story to an audience and their mobile at a (social) distance.

What are we looking for?

We know that artists are inventive and this is our invitation to you – to think of a way you might play with the captioning possibilities of the Difference Engine to create something small, beautiful, and a bit different. 

Because the Difference Engine is good with text, we think you might want to use it to tell a story. 

Because the Difference Engine works at a (short) distance, we think you can make something socially distanced for a small number of people – maybe with your artists outside and your audience inside, receiving the text to their mobile devices. 

Because the Difference Engine was created in order to caption live performance, we think you might want to play with the relationship between the text you are sending and some visuals, perhaps performed on the other side of a window to your audience. 

Maybe you will pair the text you’re sending to your audience in their front room with live (silent) action you perform outside their house; or live caption narrate a story that transforms what is actually happening outside the window; or send a story in small chunks of text without visuals; or provide alternative captions to something they watch on their TV…

But because we are also artists, we don’t really want to tell you what we are looking for, we want you to come up with something interesting.

Who is the audience?

This is really down to you, but we expect there will be the possibility to experiment with the relationship between the artist (as the giver of the story) and the audience (as the socially-distanced recipient/s). We’d like the Difference Engine stories to be made for, and shared with, people in Coventry early next year – at the point where the city wakes from winter and looks towards a year as City of Culture (but we’re not asking for the stories to be about these things). 

Within this project, we are only looking for proof of concept delivery – and so, if you are commissioned, we will expect you to decide (with us) how many ‘performances’ you will do, identify and brief your preview audiences, test your piece and collect some documentation and feedback. Although audiences can access the Difference Engine via their smartphone browser, it works better with the Difference Engine app and so, if commissioned, you will have to consider how best to identify and brief your audience (we can support you with this). 

We expect that people with hearing-related access requirements might naturally form part of the target audience, but anyone should be able to enjoy it and, crucially, have a similar experience. 

Who can apply?

As we may have mentioned (!), we’re based in Coventry – so we would love to hear from artists local to our area, but we’re also open to hearing from people further afield – if they can safely travel to Coventry to present their piece, working within current Government guidance. Although the Difference Engine is usually a performance tool, these commissions are open to individual artists or artists groups in any discipline who can work within this brief to make a piece for the Difference Engine.

What’s the idea?

We want you to use the Difference Engine to place a story into an audience’s hands in a completely new way. Remember, the Difference Engine can be used anywhere, by anyone who has a mobile device (smartphone or tablet) in their hand – but we are interested in the intimate relationship between the artists, the tech and the audience. This is not something that could be broadcast via the internet and experienced by anyone anywhere all at once, it is about choosing your “stage” – whether that is the pavement outside a single house, a street, a school, a towpath, a public square (although if it is a public space where permission is needed, you will need to be confident you can gain that permission, if commissioned, and of course ensure all regulations relating to Covid are followed) – and the physical space between you and your audience as you tell your story. 

What we’re offering?

We are offering 2 commissions, of £2,000 each, to an individual, collective or company, to create and deliver their piece. 

At this stage, we are only looking for proof of concept delivery – i.e. the piece is made and previewed with some test audiences whose feedback is captured. 

We don’t want the application process to be onerous, so please just send us up to 500 words about your idea, about you and your work and about what in particular interests you in the combination of the Difference Engine, Covid-safe art experiences, and sending a gift of words over a short distance. 

Send your application to: TalkingBirdsCoventry@gmail.com by close of play on Sunday 10th January. 

If you have any questions or you think that you might have a great idea, but would like to speak to someone about it first, we can be available for a short chat between 10th and 17th December. Drop us an email via the website including your phone number and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

[Talking Birds 8th December 2020]

WLTM : Open Call for interested (and interesting) illustrators and print-makers…

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[**DEADLINE EXTENDED TO DEC 10TH**]

Talking Birds is looking for illustrators and/or print-makers for a small series of planned commissions related to The Nest, which will be the company’s new home and shared making space from 2021.

At this stage, we are looking to create a small pool of interested illustrators and/or printmakers who we will then invite to apply for these commission opportunities.

Talking Birds is particularly interested to hear from illustrators and/or printmakers:
– who live and/or work in Coventry or nearby;
– who self-identify as belonging to an under-represented or marginalised group;
– whose work lends itself to screen printing in one or two colours only.

A bit about you (How to register your interest)

Please email TalkingBirdsCoventry@gmail.com and tell us a bit about yourself, your interests and your work (in roundabout 500 words) & include links to up to 5 representative pieces of your illustration and/or print-making work. From these submissions, we will select a number of artists to whom we will circulate commission briefs when they become available. Please note that the deadline for expressions of interest is December 10th 2020.

A bit about us (Who *are* Talking Birds anyway?)

Coventry-based Talking Birds is well known for its innovative and gently provocative projects which explore, and seek to illuminate, the profound and complex relationships between people and place.

These projects include its Theatre of Place performances in disused hospitals, cattle markets or underground car parks; its submersive Whale-shaped mini-theatre which swallows audiences in small groups; its pop up social events which bring people together for unexpected conversations in unusual places, often over food; and the invention of its in-pocket captioning system, The Difference Engine, which aims to revolutionise the creative possibilities of accessibility.

The Nest will be Talking Birds’ new home and shared making space which is due to open next year during Coventry’s year as UK City of Culture. Since 2018, Talking Birds has been running the Nest Residency Programme (which offers time, space and conversations that allow artists to think, experiment and take a punt on one of those ‘What if…?’ ideas) peripatetically while the building work continues.

We are a signatory to the More Than A Moment pledge and, as such, wholeheartedly commit to ensuring equity, investment in, and opportunities with and for Black artists and creatives within our organisation’s culture and work, and in doing so becoming the change we all need to see.

talkingbirds.co.uk

[Illustrations by James Bourne for Song for a Phoenix, commissioned for the day when the Olympic Torch visited Coventry in 2012]

A Space To Hatch

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Sinéad Brady reflects on her Nest Residency:

I’m a Coventry born actor and writer. I moved back to Coventry last Autumn after graduating from Institute of the Arts Barcelona with an MA Acting, where I co-founded international theatre collective Rule of Three Collective, made up of Irish, German and British theatre makers. We co-wrote the show FREE EU ROAMING, which premiered at the Dublin Fringe Festival 2018. Between leaving for university and now I’ve lived in Bristol, Barcelona, San Sebastián, Madrid and Dublin. My writing is usually a response to social injustices and societal pressures that impact the people I meet in the different cities I’ve lived in. I’m passionate about the use of language in theatre and deconstructing dominant narratives. I feel compelled to tell the stories of people who suffer due to political, historical and sociological injustices, which are often too difficult for an individual to resolve on their own.

When I moved home to Coventry Talking Birds were recommended to me by several local artists as an innovative, exciting theatre company engaged in supporting the work of local artists. When I applied to The Nest Residency, I hoped that Talking Birds would help me think about my project in visually and aurally interesting and accessible ways. I also needed space, time, support and a sounding board to work on an idea that I had been thinking about for a long time, but was unable to focus enough, or even believe in enough, while working on my own at home. A space to ‘hatch’ an idea sounded perfect and I felt reassured that with the support of Talking Birds and the wonderful opportunity of working at the Shop Front Theatre, I would make progress with my project.

On the first day of my residency I arrived at the Shop Front Theatre with notebooks, post-its and a new pencil case – I was very excited to be on my own in a black box. The Shop Front Theatre is such an intriguing space full of plays and books to read and plenty of chairs and sofas to try out, but in attempt to focus, I stuck to one corner. I thought that maybe in such a big space I would jump around too much, in my work and literally (I did bring a yoga mat) but the space was very calming. I was familiar with the Shop Front Theatre through performing at Shoot Festival in 2016, attending a Writing Gym earlier this year, and having seen many performances there, most recently Are We Where We Are. It was really useful to work in a space where I had seen performances – I found that inspiring when it came to imagining my own idea being staged and it also helped me keep the audience in mind.

I knew I wanted to create a piece of theatre exploring pressures around body image, delving deep into the language of ‘self-talk’ and the emphasis on self-care as a way of improving our internal and external worlds. I particularly wanted to focus on the competitive nature of striving to become the best version of ourselves. I had imagined creating a piece of audio that would pull an audience off track, ask them to forget about routine and consistency, to stop trying to improve themselves, to ask the questions: what does it really mean to be the best version of ourselves? How in control are we as individuals of who we are? Personally, I’m tired of being told by the media and social media that I could be working harder physically and mentally. I’m tired of being told anything is possible for everyone because, let’s face it, it’s not. I’m scared that the more we look inwards for the answers, the more we forget about the power of working together.

After three days of creating characters and plotting on post-its, I had a mentoring session with Co-Artistic Director and Composer Derek Nisbet. Derek provided invaluable feedback on my idea. We talked about different ways of recording and staging the performance. I was particularly interested in using the format of audio as a way of disconnecting from familiar, potentially addictive, images to create an intimate conversation with the audience. As I was experimenting with the idea of a character in transit, neither here nor there, it was fascinating to explore ways of using sound to show the presence and absence of people and goals. I also found it a brilliant opportunity to ask questions about how to create accessible performances, which led me to consider incorporating visual elements to the piece.
The Nest Residency was a stimulating creative experience, which I’m very grateful for. It filled me with the confidence to trust my ideas and I made great progress in a short space of time. I will continue working on the project and really look forward to sharing my developments with Talking Birds.

—

If you are an artist interested in applying for one of Talking Birds’ Nest Residencies, you can find out more here.

Visualising Volgograd

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Nest Resident Sylvia Theuri has been visualising Volgograd, Coventry’s Russian twin city.

Last Autumn, as part of Spon Spun Festival, Sylvia sent a postcard of one of her digitally-created urban Coventry landscapes to a cafe in Volgograd.

This led to an online dialogue between Sylvia and the manager of the cafe – and then to this Nest Residency with Talking Birds, where Sylvia is spending time exploring the geography and environment of Volgograd remotely, using online photographs, maps – and making good use of Google Street View!

Here are a few photos of her studio and work in progress snapped earlier this week:

We’ve enjoyed having conversations with Sylvia about her practice and, in particular, her exploration of Volgograd – which has given us plenty of excuses to wallow in a bit of affectionate nostalgia around our visit there and our collaborations with artists in the city.

[Talking Birds has a long association with Volgograd, which began with Twin60 (marking the 60th anniversary of the Coventry-Volgograd twinning); has involved visiting artists in Volgograd and bringing musician Slava Mishin and artist Fedor Ermalov over to Coventry in 2006 to play at The Tin and take part in an exhibition at the Herbert which twinned works by artists in the two cities; artists’ talks which played simultaneously in both cities with artists communicating via Skype; an exhibition (still in situ outside Coventry library) of work by children in both cities; and the world premiere of Twin Song composed for the Volgograd Children’s Symphony Orchestra and Coventry Youth Wind Orchestra, conducted by Yuri Ilynov, which premiered at Coventry Cathedral in 2014.]

 

 

Reading List

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This is a round up of books included on our Wednesday Recommendations posts so far, let us know of anything else you think we should be reading!

No More Plastic by Martin Dorey – a short and very readable collection of achievable quick-win actions every single one of us can take to reduce the plastic in our lives (and therefore in the world), this book is also full of gently provocative prompts to consider lots of bigger ethical, social justice and sustainability issues. One of the great new-to-me examples of positive actions to join in with is Morsbags (a kind of craftivism billed as ‘Sociable Guerilla Bagging’) which involves keeping fabric out of landfill by making it into shopping bags which you gift to strangers, thus helping cut down the number of plastic bags needed. Genius.

Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a pithily practical companion to her earlier book ‘We Should All Be Feminists’, based on her (highly entertaining) TED Talk of the same name. It’s a short, insightful and thought-provoking book, originally written as a letter to a friend who’d asked for advice on raising her baby girl a feminist. It also contains this lovely paragraph: “Teach her about difference. Make difference ordinary. Make difference normal. Teach her not to attach value to difference. And the reason for this is not to be fair or to be nice but merely to be human and practical. Because difference is the reality of our world. And by teaching her about difference, you are equipping her to survive in a diverse world. She must know and understand that people walk different paths in the world and that as long as these paths do no harm to others, they are valid paths that she must respect.”

‘Doughnut Economics’ by Kate Raworth. I got hold of this after listening to the author on the ‘Reasons to be Cheerful‘ podcast, and I’m so glad I did! This is one of those books that totally changes the way you see the world – causing you to totally re-examine everything you think you know about the way things are done, or have been done – and why. It challenges our modern understanding of ‘growth’ and how we measure value – and is therefore much wider ranging than just economics. Laying out a compelling vision of how things could be (and need to be) done differently – the book is full of hope and practical steps for how humanity can re-organise to truly prosper, whilst re-generating our ravaged planet.

‘Wilding’ by Isabella Tree tells the story of her family’s decision to end the loss-making intensive agriculture farming business they inherited at Knepp on the South Weald. The book charts their incredible 20 year journey of discovery as they stopped ‘conventional’ farming, and gradually allowed (and prompted) nature to re-colonise and essentially heal the land. In common with ‘Doughnut Economics’, this book turns accepted views, and ways of doing things, upside down. I’m particularly struck by the way that this has been written as a summation of 20 years of quiet observation, and how that observation leads to a far deeper understanding, which in turn leads to (eg) the radical suggestions that the early British ‘wildwood’ must have been closer to wood pasture than forest; and that our understanding about the preferred habitats of many wild species are based on where they were able to survive when their really preferred habitats had been denied them by human activity.

Other interesting and inspiring books that we’ve not had chance to write blogposts about include:

Hope in the Dark by Rebecca Solnit

Climate Justice by Mary Robinson

How to be a Craftivist by Sarah Corbett

Respectable by Lynsey Hanley

Poverty Safari by Darren McGarvey

Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

Brit(ish) by Afua Hirsch

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

 

 

 

Holding people to account over the choices they make, and helping them make better choices, works!

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Today, in a Comment is Free piece in The Guardian, to coincide with the release of the ‘Sustaining Great Art & Culture‘ report, Nicholas Serota Chair of Arts Council England lists some of the headline achievements of ACE’s 10 year partnership with Julie’s Bicycle (a charity that supports the creative community to act on climate change and environmental sustainability.).

Continue reading →

News from the Nest

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Hello! We’re writing to you from our cosy 4th floor vantage point overlooking Coventry, the UK’s City of Culture 2021, with some titbits about forthcoming Birds activity:

Spon Spun Festival 2018 (Coventry)

Spon-Tryptich-1Sat Sept 8th – Walk With Me…

Come and tune in to some of the secrets of Spon End in the company of our guide, radio enthusiast and inventor, Herbert Cleaver. Expect a trail of the unexpected – and help us develop this work-in-progress walking tour by giving your feedback afterwards over tea & cake.

At Spon Spun 2018 we’re piloting this, the first of our city trails commissioned as part of Coventry City of Culture’s Great Place project, supported by Heritage Lottery Fund and Arts Council England.

Tours at 1pm & 2.30pm from outside the Oasis Community Cafe, Spon End CV1 3BL. Free and suitable for all ages, and route is ramp accessible, but pre-booking essential by e-mailing access@talkingbirds.co.uk (please state how many places you would like to reserve and any access requirements you’d like to let us know about). Please note that the route lasts about an hour and we will be walking pretty continuously, so please wear comfortable shoes and dress appropriately for the weather!

Screenshot 2018-09-06 09.38.58.pngSat Sept 15th – The Female Warrior

As part of the Spon Spun Art Trail https://www.sponspun.co.uk/artists/, and honouring the 2018 Heritage Open Day theme of Extraordinary Women, we will be giving the Coventry Premiere of our outdoor performance telling the extraordinary true story of Hannah Snell who, in 1746, joined the army in Coventry in the guise of a man and whose life as soldier, marine, mother, stage performer & publican defied the conventions of the time. “Captivating” (Audience Member)

Performance times: 1pm & 4pm In the garden behind Langar Aid House on Doe Bank Lane (next to historic Spon Bridge) CV1 3AR

The performance is FREE and lasts 40 minutes and is suitable for all ages. CAPTIONS [subtitles] will be broadcast to Mobile Devices via THE DIFFERENCE ENGINE app. More details: https://www.talkingbirds.co.uk/DE

Also coming up:

Screenshot 2018-09-06 09.34.13The Whale…
at Llawn Festival, Llandudno Promenade 15th-16th Sept 10am – 1pm and 2pm – 5pm both days https://www.llawn.org/

at Kenilworth Arts Festival 29th Sept 11am – 4pm https://www.kenilworthartsfestival.co.uk/whats-on/

We’re recruiting Board Members!
Would you be interested in joining our dynamic board to help steer the company’s exciting flight towards 2021 and beyond? Please contact us by e-mail so we can arrange an informal chat!

And finally…

A chance to win a Talking Birds’ exclusive Artist-Designed Prize bundle!
Have you been to one of our shows this year? If so we’d love to hear how you found it (and help us report to our funders!) – you’ll get the chance to enter the prize draw once you’ve completed this 5 minute survey:
https://goo.gl/forms/RzALv31vQHea24pr2

That’s all the news from the TBs Nest for now – if you’d like to join our mailing list and get all the news from the nest direct to your inbox, you can sign up here: http://www.talkingbirds.co.uk/pages/mailing_list.asp

Open Cast – Call for Performers

| vornster

o-c-imageApplications are invited for an open workshop for performers with Talking Birds Theatre Company in Coventry. This is an opportunity to meet and work with the company in a relaxed and sociable group setting over the course of a day (11am-4pm), at the Shopfront Theatre in Coventry. The workshop will be led by Richard Hayhow, friend of Talking Birds and Director of Open Theatre Company.

The aim of the workshop is to identify talented and versatile performers the company can draw on for future projects (see www.talkingbirds.co.uk for examples of our previous work), particularly in the run up to Coventry’s year as UK City of Culture in 2021. We will also be inviting Artistic Directors from other regional companies to join us in the afternoon.

Travel expenses and lunch will be provided, along with any additional support you need to participate fully in the workshop.

Open Cast is aimed at expanding the casting pool for Midlands-based companies and priority will be given to D/deaf, disabled and learning disabled artists, artists from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and those based in the region.

Application is by submitting a video that lasts between 90 and 120 seconds (phone camera is fine) giving us an introduction to you, your work and why you want to come and do the workshop.

In addition to this, we encourage you to include any information that will help us consider your application. You can also attach a resumé/CV if you wish.

Please e-mail birdmail@talkingbirds.co.uk (Subject: Open Cast) with the link to the video or the video attached.

Applicants of any age over 18 welcome. The workshop is aimed at both emerging
and established artists. Full-time students are not eligible to apply.

Please note revised dates:

Date of Workshop: Friday 4th May (Coventry)

Deadline for applications: Sunday 22nd April

We will inform successful applicants by: Wednesday 25th April

Telephone number for any queries: 024 7615 8330 (please leave your name and number clearly) or e-mail access@talkingbirds.co.uk

 

Royal Mint Minds its Ps and Queues with new 10p coin

| dereknis

The Royal Mint has issued a new 10p coin which celebrates the pursuit of Queuing.

The move was welcomed by The Q Corporation, a Coventry-based organisation formed in 2011 to promote Queuing in all is forms.

Royal Mint’s Q Coin (2018)
Q Corp Badge (2011)

A spokesperson for The Q Corp said: “We’re delighted that the Royal Mint has recognised Queuing as one of the UK’s great cultural traditions with this new coin. We’ve no doubt people will be lining up in a courteous and orderly fashion to collect one.”

In the run up to London 2012 Queuing formed part of the UK’s Cultural Olympiad. The spokesperson said: “We narrowly missed getting Elite Queuing included as an Olympic event, as it was deemed by the IOC that UK athletes would have an unfair advantage over the rest of the world.”

However it is believed that post-Brexit there will be an unprecedented increase in Queuing at airports and other UK borders. “Without Brussels prescribing the length and shape of our Queues, it could become a major growth area for the creative economy.” It’s even been suggested that Queuing could be added to UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage assets, alongside Belgium Beer Culture and Poetic Duelling in Cyprus.

The Q Corporation will be helping launch the programme for Coventry UK City of Culture 2021 later this month at the Shop Front Festival on 23-24 March 2018. “In 2021 people will be queuing up for cultural events across Coventry. It’s our intention that the experience of these Queues will be so good that people won’t actually feel the need to go to the events they have been waiting for.”

Follow on twitter: @Q_mob

Call the Q-line: 0800 012 2401

Ornage clad queuers wave flags in shopping arcade
The Q_Mob lining up for the Shop Front Festival (Pic: Andy Moore)