We’re here because…

Culture needs ethnic diversity to tell stories representative of our audiences on our stages. Especially in this time of crisis, it will take every ounce of resilience and joyfulness from artists/theatre makers/creatives/dancers/filmmakers/photographers to get through this difficult time together. That super long acronym: NW BESEA simply means we are a community of British East and Southeast Asian creatives/theatre makers based in Greater Manchester and the north west of England.

In 2020, for the first time, in partnership with New Earth Theatre (previously known as Yellow Earth Theatre), Contact, HOME, Manchester International Festival (MIF) Royal Exchange Theatre, Sustained Theatre Up North (STUN) and The Lowry. New Earth Theatre brought its Writers Academy and Performers Academy to Manchester to develop the next generation of Manchester and North West based British East/Southeast Asians*.

Links:
yellowearth.org/performers-academy-manchester-3/
yellowearth.org/writers-academy-manchester-2/

Please head over to our website nw-besea-creatives.uk where the BESEA creatives and Academies Alumni - continuing to make work to inspire and to be enjoyed when our stages are ready - are waiting to meet you!

Chair: Grace Ng-Ralph
Treasurer: Manli Siu
Secretary: Paulina Voang
Artistic Advisory: Naomi Sumner Chan, Anna Nguyen

*We use the term British East and Southeast Asian to mean people of the following descent:
Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, China, East Timor, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, North Korea, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and their diasporas. These people remain severely underrepresented in the arts in the UK.