Cabaret for Freedom with The Untold Orchestra, Sukina Noor & Young Identity
St John's Church
7:30 PM
Poetry
Partner Organisations
Join us for an evening celebrating legendary poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron. Enjoy the sublime vocals of Yemi Bolatiwa supported by a string quartet from the Untold Orchestra, soul nourishing poetry from spoken word artist Sukina Noor, and the premiere of new work created especially for the occasion by Young Identity members Biz Bond, Elijah Brown, Cherry Eckel, Iona Fournier, Teniola Osayemi and Kamran Sajid.
Sukina Noor was the co-founder of Poetic Pilgrimage, a female spoken word and hip hop duo. Her work has been featured on global media channels including the BBC World Service and Al Jazeera. She recently released her debut poetry collection Love and Longing: Yearning for the Face of God.
Independent soul artist, and topline vocalist Yemi Bolatiwa has performed and featured on BBC Introducing Manchester, BBC Radio Manchester and BBC 1Xtra, singing her confessional soul tracks and as co-writer on many underground electronic releases. In 2023 she expanded her music into the orchestral realm with the addition of a string quartet, adding to an already dynamic and genre bending soul repertoire.
The Untold Orchestra are a collaborative ensemble redefining what an orchestra is and who it's for. From shows celebrating popular music icons from the last 100 years to running creative workshops for community groups across Manchester, they believe orchestras should be building community and telling stories untold.
Young Identity is a Manchester-based arts charity with a mission to nurture, develop and champion the voices and creativity of diverse young people through literature, writing and performance:
Teniola Ajasa Osayemi writes from the intersection of race, gender, and nationality, exploring the themes of cannibalism as a metaphor for love.
Biz Bond has been writing poems to make sense of the world since they were a kid. She recently won One Mic Stand and represented Manchester at Mind Over Matter.
Elijah Brown is a writer from Old Trafford. They are currently studying for a degree in Creative Writing at Sheffield Hallam University.
Iona Fournier-Brown has been writing poetry since she was a teenager, drawing inspiration from her grandmother whose writing across borders has always mesmerised her. Poems about diaspora and identity are core to her writing.
Cherry Eckel is a theatre-maker, spoken-word poet, performer and facilitator. Cherry’s work was longlisted for the 2022 Outspoken Poetry Prize longlist.
Kamran Sajid is a 24 year old writer based in Manchester. He is currently writing a poetry pamphlet, A Theory Is An Omen, which draws from Punjabi music and poetry.
