Refugee Week Takeover at Mac

Saturday 21st June - 12-6pm

Activities for all the family!

Save the date for Celebrating Sanctuary's annual World Music and Arts Festival.
Bringing people together to celebrate and experience the culture, arts and stories of refugees and migrant communities through a universal appreciation of music, joy and life. This year its a Refugee Week Weekender, and we're kicking off at Mac on 21st June. As always, we promise you will leave happier and more inspired than when you arrived.

This year's event will bring music and arts from around the world, showcasing the work of highly acclaimed, UK based refugee and migrant artists, from: Guinea Bissau, Kurdistan, Sudan and more to be announced!

This Year's Programme

12-1pm – Hexagon Theatre – Refugee Week Weekender Launch
Welcome to this years festival
Presentations and spoken word

1-2pm – Family Storytelling Workshop in the Garden Studio

2 – 6pm – Music in the Courtyard
Live music and presentations from artists and communities, including:
Zirak & Traditionals (Kurdistan)
Mohamed Osman (Sudan)
Nifeco Costa & Babock Djazz (Guinea Bissau)

More to be announced!

Information stalls, arts and crafts activities

About The Artists

Mohamed Osman (Sudan)
Mohamed Osman is a multi-talented Sudanese artist who sings in the Arabic language as well as Tigre. Mohamed has performed for us the last 2 years for Refugee Week with his band and as a duet, and got everyone up and dancing in the Mac Outdoor Arena. We are delighted to welcome him back this year as a duo.

Zirak Hamad – Zirak & Traditionals
Zirak Hamad is a violinist, drummer and singer who came to the UK in 2002 from Iraqi Kurdistan. A graduate of the Institute of Fine Arts in Iraq, he has a wide range of artistic experience in his home country where he worked as a teacher, festival organiser, broadcaster, television presenter and music critic. During his time in the UK he has worked as a freelance artist delivering Middle Eastern dance and music workshops for schools, community groups and festivals, in the UK and internationally. He performed with eclectic trio Village Well and gypsy/klezmer band Karaj, as well as forming Daholl Kurdish Band. Zirak also performs as a solo artist introducing audiences to a range of Middle Eastern music and drumming.

His new ensemble Zirak & Traditionals, is a trio of traditional Kurdish instrumentalists representing the more traditional music of his culture.

Nifeco Costa
Nifeco Costa is a singer and guitarist from Guinea Bissau, West Africa, who came to the UK via Portugal, where he spent several years performing many events, festivals and making television appearances. Now based in the UK Nifeco has formed the band "Babock Djazz", bringing together local musicians with origins from around the globe. Nifeco brings beautiful melodies, a sweet voice and an infectuous Latin groove, guaranteed to get people dancing! He has become a regular contributor to the CSB programme and has also been involved in a number of artist collaborations, with Surge Orchestra at MAC, David Austin Grey & Jonno Gaze at Symphony Hall. We are delighted to have Nifeco Costa and Babock Djazz as our headline act to close the event.

Stay tuned for announcements!

Celebrating Sanctuary is a charity who support refugee and migrant artists and work with refugees and asylum seekers through community projects. We are currently unfunded and are bringing you this event due to the partnership and support of Mac. If you would like to support Celebrating Sanctuary or find out more about our work please visit our Donate or Become A Member page.

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