A Nation’s Theatre – Selina Thompson: Race Cards

18-21 May. 11am-10pm. Free.

65. Are you black, or are you ‘new black’?

170. What is the long term psychological impact of white supremacy on people of colour?

220. My mum does not talk about race any more. It makes her uncomfortable, tired. Will this happen to me?

307. Why do people assume that racism will just passively die out if we wait long enough?

440. Are you angry?

541. What ever happened to Kony 2012?

660. Who is more problematic – famous racist Nigel Farage, or the liberal journalist politely asking him questions?

720. When does it all end?

Selina Thompson has devised 1000 questions concerning issues of race and identity. You are invited to respond to one of the questions which will feed into her research for this ongoing project.

For Race Cards, Selina Thompson devotes 12 hours to writing questions around race on postcards and sticking them on the wall. As with many of the shows at the festival, it involves an exchange: you read the questions and are invited to supply your own answers. Number 136 is: “Did you watch and enjoy The Help?” Number 73 is “I know that you are black, but why is that my fault?” From the writing on the walls, you can see how a conversation has started.
Lyn Gardner, The Guardian 

thoughtful, generous , brave & unspeakably brilliant
Maddy Costa 

The work isn’t about answering questions; it’s about igniting an internal discussion in each of us that allows for the possibility of self-awareness, analysis and reflection.
Harold Offeh, This is Tomorrow 

Selina Thompson is an artist and performer based in Leeds. Her work is playful, participatory and intimate, focused on the politics of identity, and how this defines our bodies, lives and environments. She has made work for pubs, cafes, hairdressers, toilets, and sometimes even galleries and theatres, including SPILL Festival of Performance, The National Theatre Studio, The Birmingham REP, East Street Arts and the West Yorkshire Playhouse.

Seed commission from Camden People’s Theatre. Developed at Buzzcut and Forest Fringe. Supported by Fierce FWD.

This show is part A Nation's Theatre Festival – a celebration of creativity from across the UK. Theatre-makers from around the country will be presenting and developing shows across London April-May 2016.