A street procession by Eelyn Lee and Collaborators in Sheffield
Ancestral Futures 源流之後 is a processional street performance in honour of the first recorded Chinese people in Sheffield –a group of magicians on tour from China, who performed at the Whitsuntide Festival in 1855.
On 31st May 1855, the lead magician, Teh Kwei 德貴, buried his 5-week old baby in a Sheffield graveyard. The baby is listed in the St Paul’s Burial Register as ‘A Chow’ (Chinese).
Guided by Sheffield’s East and Southeast Asian [ESEA] communities, a new mythological creature, created by artist Eelyn Lee and her collaborators will embody the spirits of these ancestors. Taking place during the Hungry Ghost Festival, where in some ESEA cultures, the deceased are believed to visit the living, the procession will conjure the British born Chinese baby and his family. Weaving movement, costume, ancestral objects and sound to activate stories from the past, present and future, the procession will re-write the archive into the city streets.
ARTCRY funding supported Eelyn and C&G Apartment to run two workshops for the local ESEA community in Sheffield to make their own work as part of the performance.
We funded this project during the riots in the UK as the streets were being taken over by racism. It felt especially important to support this project, taking up space on the streets in celebration of the history and stories the ESEA community in Sheffield - right now.
Comments