In Spring 2010, GAP Unit and the Arise and Shine steering group worked with WAST (Women Asylum Seekers Together) to bring their play ‘How I Became an Asylum Seeker’, written by Lydia Besong, to public sector audiences in Liverpool and Manchester. The WAST actors worked with freelance director Magdalen Bartlett and Community Arts North West (CAN) (www.can.uk.com) to reshape and develop the play. The project was sponsored by North West Together We Can (www.nwtwc.org.uk), and the Network for Social Change.
After three months of collaboration co-ordinated by the GAP Unit, two performances played to over 290 people in Manchester and Liverpool in late March 2010. Each was followed by a workshop in which the issues raised emotively in the play could be explored and reflected on further by the audience of decision makers and service providers, in dialogue with the women.
The 90 workshop attendees included men and women working in law, housing, education, welfare advice, children’s services, the police, immigration and asylum, health, employment and local government (including local councillors) across Greater Manchester and Merseyside. The ultimate aim was to raise awareness and improve the policies and procedures currently in force around asylum seekers.
People were moved by the powerful content of the play, particularly as the performers were acting out their own experiences. In the workshops they expressed their determination to spread awareness of the issues in their workplaces and suggested ideas and oportunities for future awareness raising.
 

   
 
 
 
A DVD of the performance, including documentary footage on the making of the play and interviews, was completed in May. The video was filmed and edited by Siobhan McGuirk of Other Than Media. Copies of the DVD ‘How I became an asylum seeker’ cost £5 and can be obtained from WAST. Email wastmanchester@yahoo.co.uk or call 0161 833 8835.