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GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY The Walk

Yürüyüş το ταξίδι Il Cammino La Marche GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

The Walk April - July 2021

One little girl.

One BIG Hope. GOOD CHANCE

Little Amal, a young refugee, embarks on a remarkable journey - an epic voyage that will take her across Turkey, across Europe. To find her mother. To get back to school. To start a new life. Will the world let her? Can she achieve what now seems more impossible than ever?

Following the phenomenal international success of The Jungle, Good Chance, in collaboration with world-famous creators of War Horse Handspring Puppet Company, will present its most extraordinary work yet: The Walk - a travelling festival of art and hope in support of refugees, with Artistic Direction from Amir Nizar Zuabi.

In 2021, from the Syria-Turkey border all the way to the UK, The Walk will bring together celebrated artists, major cultural institutions, community groups and humanitarian organisations to create one of the most innovative and adventurous public artworks ever attempted. At the heart of The Walk is ‘Little Amal’, a 3.5 metre-tall puppet of a young refugee girl, created by the acclaimed Handspring Puppet Company. Representing all displaced children, many separated from their families, Little Amal will travel over 8,000km embodying the urgent message “Don’t forget about us”.

At this time of extraordinary global change, The Walk is an extraordinary artistic response: a cultural odyssey transcending borders, politics and language to tell a new story of shared humanity - and to ensure the world doesn’t forget the millions of displaced children, each with their own story, who are more vulnerable than ever during the global pandemic.

Hope. Too BIG to ignore.

“It is because the attention of the world is elsewhere right now that it is more important than ever to reignite the conversation about the refugee crisis and to change the narrative around it. Yes, refugees need food and blankets, but they also need dignity and a voice. The purpose of The Walk is to highlight the potential of the refugee, not just their dire circumstances. Little Amal is 3.5 metres tall because we want the world to grow big enough to greet her. We want her to inspire us to think big and to act bigger.” - Amir Nizar Zuabi, Artistic Director of The Walk

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GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Hope is built step by step.

Little Amal will travel 8,000km to focus awareness on the refugee crisis.

The Walk is an international arts festival meets endurance event. Little Amal, a 3.5 metre-tall puppet, will walk across the European continent to shine a light on the stories of millions of young refugees. She will travel through 8 countries, welcomed by hundreds of cultural events in cities, towns and villages all along her route. The length and sheer size of the challenge is capturing imaginations even before her first step. She will walk for all the children - many unaccompanied and separated from their families - who are forced to undertake extraordinary journeys under life-threatening conditions. Little Amal will walk so that we don’t forget them. A walk of welcome

All along the route, communities are being offered a simple idea: Little Amal is a 9-year-old girl whose journey takes her through your town, city or village. How will you welcome her?

As each locality responds with cultural events that are meaningful to them, the result builds an artistic odyssey that says something profound about ourselves, about how we live and about what we mean by home.

With events streamed online, an international audience will be able to join all those who welcome Little Amal into their homes and towns to share her story and the stories of the thousands she meets on her way.

Rewriting the narrative.

Throughout history the movement of people has fuelled human progress, enriched culture and accelerated the acquisition of knowledge. The Walk is a celebration of migration and cultural diversity that will tell the story of the contributions made by refugees and immigrants. It represents the refugee story as one of potential, success, respect, hospitality and kindness.

Art affirms our shared humanity regardless of language, culture, finance or education. We believe that The Walk has the power to create lasting change. By telling the stories of people who are often marginalised, feared or pitied we can help transform their lives and our own.

“Comic Relief believes in the power of storytelling to change lives and we are committed to supporting work that continues to highlight social injustices. By partnering on this important project, we want to help highlight the issues faced by millions of people as they are forced to flee conflict and persecution in pursuit of safety.” - Ruth Davison, Chief Executive, Comic Relief

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk Sweden Estonia Russia

Latvia

Denmark Lithuania 10,000,000 steps United Kingdom 8,000 kilometres Ireland Belarus

Netherlands Poland 70 cities, towns and villages Germany 8 countries Belgium Czech Republic 1 littleUkraine girl Slovakia

Austria Moldova France Hungary Switzerland Romania

Croatia

Bosnia & Herz. Serbia

Italy Montenegro Kosovo Bulgaria Georgia North Macedonia Portugal Albania Azerbaijan Greece Spain Armenia Turkey

Cyprus Syria

An odyssey of 10 million steps.

Some of the places Little Amal’s route will take her through in 2021, include: Turkey Italy Switzerland 30 March - 11 April 27 April - 15 May 3 - 4 June Gaziantep Bari Geneva Adana Matera Basel Tarsus Candela Mersin Naples Germany Anamur Genazzano 5 - 7 June Antalya Rome Saarbrücken Denizli Assisi Cologne Selçuk Florence Ephesus Archaeological Museum Sanremo Belgium Urla 8 - 11 June Izmir France Verviers Ayvalik 25 May - 2 June Brussels La Roya Saint Hubert Greece Saintes Maries de la Mer Bouillon 13 - 25 April Arles Lesbos Marseille United Kingdom Athens Briançon 22 June - 4 July Pireaus Lyon Folkestone Elefsina Villeurbanne Dover Larissa 5 June Canterbury Trikala Belfort Lewisham, South East London Kalabaka 11 - 20 June Central London Meteora Charleville-Mézières Camden, North London Ioannina Aubervilles Coventry Igoumenitsa Paris Sheffield Lille Manchester Herzeele Dunkirk Calais

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Events of welcome.

At each stage of Little Amal’s journey she will be welcomed by artistic and cultural events created by and reflective of the communities she visits.

Some of Turkey and Europe’s most celebrated cultural institutions will join refugee artists, humanitarian groups, schools and civic organisations to create celebratory ‘events of welcome’, ranging from nature walks with families leading Little Amal in exploring the countryside, to city-wide festivals and parades.

In each location the community will teach Little Amal - and Little Amal’s international audience - something about themselves. We hope that every encounter with Little Amal will strengthen the bonds with refugees that already exist, as well as suggesting new ways to think about the meaning of ‘community’ and of ‘home’.

Some of the events currently being planned with Friends of Amal include: Farewell to the East. Turkey.

At home Amal loved to dance with friends. Now forced to leave behind everything she knew and separated from her mother, will she ever feel like dancing again?

In Izmir, just before Little Amal leaves Turkey and crosses to Europe, Yaren Cooperative will welcome her with a special performance featuring hundreds of folk dancers. Yaren Cooperative teaches children the values of unity and of community through folk culture. They will teach Little Amal a Zeybek dance, a tradition of the Aegean region, to wish her well on her journey - a joyous performance of hope and of the power of art to bring different cultures together.

Amal’s Labyrinth. Greece.

In a land steeped in legends of the old gods, Amal becomes afraid. Which direction should she go in? What if she loses her way forever?

Athens is the first capital on Amal’s journey. Alone in an unknown city, will Amal ever find her way out of the labyrinth of streets? She will carry a length of red yarn so that she leaves a trail. The city will be invited to join her, to create a living, collaborative work of public art, an old myth in a new form. Accompanied by so many, when Amal meets the minotaur she is not afraid. Befriending him they explore the city together.

“The Walk is a powerful opportunity to foster humanity, equality and unity. These principles are crucial if we want to build a better, fairer and more peaceful world.” - David Lloyd Webber, International Communications Lead, Emergency

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Amal’s Night Visions. Italy.

When Little Amal dreams, memories of war rise to the surface. When she wakes, visions of home appear. If she follows them where will they lead?

Tammam Azamm, one of Syria’s most distinguished visual artists, now living in Germany, paints scenes of his war-torn homeland. In Italy we will project Tammam’s visceral and poignant paintings of Syrian buildings destroyed by war onto local buildings, creating a powerful installation suggesting how little separates our apparently separate worlds. Little Amal will follow her visions through the city, with audiences invited to accompany her to discover sleeping streets from the perspective of a child haunted by war, striving towards a new life.

Sheltered Worlds. France.

Little Amal wonders what makes a place a home? Is it familiarity with a location or is it the people who live there?

In June 2021 many of Paris’s open spaces will host major public art events to welcome the 3.5m tall puppet. In one such event dozens of tents will form an enormous outdoor art installation, each representing one of the many countries the world’s refugees come from.

As Little Amal walks around the camp searching for her mother, soundscapes of languages and music will be heard from within each tent while shadow puppetry and projections bring to life the people and homelands they represent.

Mothers of Manchester. UK.

Little Amal will journey 8,000km in search of her mother. Will she ever find her?

The answer to Amal’s question lies in the final event which will be a highlight of the Manchester International Festival in July 2021.

MIF will celebrate Amal’s arrival to the city with a large scale outdoor participatory event with the citizens of the city at its heart.

Visit mif.co.uk for more festival information as it is announced.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Lands in Exile. Artist Programme.

The Lands in Exile programme consists of acclaimed Syrian artists who will create public art installations for many of the stops on Amal’s route.

Artists still living in Syria and those who have relocated to new countries will create works that reflect on exile – physical or emotional, inviting audiences to think about what we mean by ‘home’. Tammam Azzam.

Amal’s Night Visions | Open-space Gallery

Tammam Azzam is a contemporary Syrian artist from Damascus, currently living and working in Berlin. After his Syrian studio was destroyed his work changed to depict the ongoing conflict of his country. For The Walk, Tammam’s work will be projected onto city walls in Italy, creating an open air art installation. Amal will lead the audience on a tour of the installation in a promenade performance that sees her waking from her dreams to follow her night visions of home.

Bissane Al Charif.

How Lullabies Turned into Orange Fish | Installation and performance

Prominent theatre designer Bissane Al Charif will create an outdoor sculpture and sound installation that will pay tribute to all the children lost at sea trying to reach a safe home, to those whose childhood has been stolen by war and violence, and to those like Little Amal who journey in the hope of a better life. During this performance participants will be invited to sing songs of their childhood into a machine that transforms sounds into colourful fish – symbols of memories and hopes that are returned to the water to swim free.

Wael Alkak.

Travelling Sounds | Sound installation

Wael Alkak is a composer and musician based in Paris who is known for his unique blend of traditional Syrian and electronic music in a style he calls electro-chaabi. For The Walk Wael will create a soundscape that can be downloaded and listened to as audience members accompany Little Amal on an outdoor walk. It will blend sounds from Amal’s homeland with sounds she has heard on her journey.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Ammar al-Beik.

Amal’s Jacket | Textile installation

Ammar al-Beik, a film maker and visual artist based in Marseille, is known for his installations and video work. He will design and sew a jacket for Amal and give it to her beneath the Port Vieux Pavilion, a mirrored canopy at the port of Marseille. With the help of the community he will dress her in her new jacket. Ammar was a refugee, his jacket his most prized belonging whilst on his journey.

“It is the source of warmth. It is the shield. It is what holds you together.”

One Hand Puppet.

A Gift For Amal | Films and performance

One Hand Puppet is a puppetry school in Shatila Camp, Lebanon, where young refugees develop creative skills. They will make a series of films through which children in the camp interact with Little Amal along her route. During a live performance she will receive a special gift sent to her by the children. As Amal reaches the end of her journey, her friends are not able to be with her but their gift can be. A film of Amal’s conversations with the children at Shatila Camp will be shared with audiences, building a bridge between her old world and new one.

Mudar Alhaggi.

Why Hope | A text-based performance

Mudar Alhaggi is a celebrated Syrian playwright living in Berlin. Many of his works tell his own story as a refugee crossing Europe. A Sundance alumni, his work is regularly produced in Germany and across the Arab world. He will act as a big brother to Amal, writing her intimate letters as though from a family member that has stayed behind. These will be performed by local actors as messages of advice and news of the world from which she comes.

Batool Mohammad AKA OM.EL BEAT.

A Moment Before the Sea | Performance

Batool Mohammad, a Syrian DJ and musician living in Istanbul, draws on trip-hop, deep house and chords of nostalgia found in the ambient sounds of life to invite listeners to hear the feelings within. OM.EL BEAT will create a playlist to accompany The Walk that will be available online. She will perform for Little Amal’s farewell in Ayvalik and join her in the UK months later to celebrate her arrival.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Tanween Company for Theatre and Dance.

Siesta | Installation and performance

Siesta is part of Syrian Dreams Projects, initiated by Tanween Company for Theatre and Dance. The Syrian dream project collected and documented real dreams of people fleeing the war.

In Siesta, audience members will be invited to experience a Syrian dream in an immersive installation using projections, light and soundscapes, and interact with a series of dreams inspired by the Syrian tragedy, including Little Amal’s.

Maryam Samaan.

Length of the Rope, Length of the Way | Installation

Maryam Samaan is a visual artist, set designer and puppeteer based in Paris. She is also co-founder of One Hand Puppet in Shatila Camp, Lebanon. For The Walk, Maryam will collect everyday objects that Amal encounters on her journey - a teacup, a newspaper, a handshake, a candy wrapper, a word of advice, a child’s drawing - and weave them into a long rope. The result is a visual representation of Amal’s journey, that intertwines the memories of people, textures and colours from her experiences along the way.

Omar Abu Saada.

Through Her Eyes | Site-specific performance

Omar Abu Saada is a Syrian director and playwright whose work focuses on contemporary writing and documentary theatre. He lives and works in Damascus. For The Walk, Omar will design a site-specific and interactive performance where the audience will be invited to re-explore the city of Rome through Little Amal’s eyes.

Kinan Azmeh.

New work | Performance and composition

Hailed as a “virtuoso” and “intensely soulful” by the New York Times and “spellbinding” by the New Yorker, Syrian-born, Brooklyn-based genre- bending composer and clarinettist Kinan Azmeh will create new work for The Walk in 2021.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

No child walks 8,000km away from home. Unless home isn’t safe anymore.

Please support The Walk so we can support young refugees.

The average length of time that refugees remain displaced is 20 years. Even though almost half of all refugees are children less than 2% of humanitarian aid goes towards education. Many young refugees have therefore been displaced and without education their entire lives. But the next potential world- transforming artist or scientist, the next Nobel prize-winner or peace-bringing world leader could be living in a refugee camp right now. Every young refugee deserves a ‘good chance’ of fulfilling their potential. By celebrating cultural differences and shared humanity, Little Amal’s journey can help change the story for refugees and migrants and empower a potentially lost generation of refugee children.

Please support The Walk to support young refugees. If you are interested in sponsoring a country or a leg of the journey that is meaningful to you or in otherwise making a donation please contact Philip Cowell on [email protected] (+44) 7984 870 736.

Don’t forget about us.

As the world entered a new unknown many of us were forced to experience temporary isolation from loved ones and disruption of our daily routines. But for many of the 79.5 million asylum seekers and refugees who have fled their homes, devastating isolation and disruption are a permanent reality.

Little Amal represents the millions of displaced refugee children separated from their families. The pandemic has made these young people more vulnerable than ever. Shining a light on their stories could not be more urgent.

DONATE TO THE WALK

“Little Amal’s journey represents the journeys of millions of young Syrians who have survived the trauma of war and displacement and yet are bursting with creativity and unlimited potential. We must all bear witness to the plight of refugees and welcome them as they make their way to new homes. Together we can build more peaceful communities and brighter futures.” - Lina Sergie Attar, CEO and Founder, Karam Foundation

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Step Forward Education Programme.

Step Forward is an education programme that will run in tandem with The Walk’s artistic events.

Before, during and after her journey, Little Amal will connect young people from refugee and non- refugee communities through creative learning projects to help forge lasting bonds of friendship.

The programme will be developed by, with and for each community, responding to local realities, with a focus on bringing people together through projects that transcend borders, culture and language. Working with all age groups, we aspire to build a programme of workshops, performances and apprenticeships that celebrates migration and has the potential to empower what might otherwise be a lost generation of refugee children.

Learn more about some of our Step Forward plans below.

Amal’s Odyssey

Ahead of Little Amal’s arrival, scenes from Homer’s Odyssey will be rehearsed by community groups across the route. By the time Amal reaches Manchester, she will have watched the story performed by many cultures in many styles.

Each performance will be filmed so that a multi-cultural participatory performance of The Odyssey can be shared online.

“Perhaps the biggest invisible price refugees pay each day and for the rest of their lives is that of mental health, often to devastating consequences. The Walk gives refugees a voice and visibility, a sense of pride and confidence. We know that being seen and heard will be a first step for so many. We feel privileged to join this journey.” - Humanity Crew

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Puppetry workshops.

All along the route Little Amal will inspire people of all ages to create their own puppets and learn new skills by sharing the guiding principles developed by Handspring Puppet Company over many years.

In the weeks leading up to each of Little Amal’s visits, a network of community groups will run workshops teaching how to create puppets out of everyday objects.

Education and The Walk.

Education and creative learning are at the heart of The Walk. Little Amal’s journey will raise awareness of the lack of access to education for young refugees, especially for young women and girls.

A recent UNHCR report warns that the pandemic is threatening the potential of millions of young refugees, only half of whom were in school even before the virus. COVID-19 has increased poverty and restricted the ability of refugee families to send their children to school or to enable them to study remotely. This is especially worrying for refugee girls who already have less access to schooling than boys. The Malala Fund estimates that in many countries half of all refugee girls who were in secondary education will not return when schools reopen.

Little Amal needs your help to support young refugees. Please donate today to help her advocate for the right of young refugees to a better future. Did you know...

More people are living as refugees than at any time since World War II.

Almost half of the world’s refugees are children, millions of whom are unaccompanied.

The average length of time refugees remain without a home is 20 years, a lifetime for children who can lose their entire education and any chance of a better future.

Less than 2% of all humanitarian aid funding goes to education.

COVID-19 further threatens the potential of millions of young refugees. The impact is worse for young refugee women and girls who already have less access to education than young men and boys.

“Millions forced from their homes by bombs or fear of detention. Education cut short and families separated. Girls like Little Amal deserve for their stories to be told and for the world to take action. Little Amal’s journey will be a vivid reminder of so many who have been failed by world leaders.” - Anna Ridout, Director of Communications The Syria Campaign

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

GOOD CHANCE

Hello, we’re Good Chance.

The world is on the move, our climate is changing, a pandemic keeps us apart. We’re working with artists from around the world, bringing communities together to tell bigger stories of hope and humanity.

Good Chance began in the Calais refugee camp in 2015, where we built our first ever ‘Theatre of Hope’, to bring people living in the camp together into our geodesic Dome for conversations, connections and creations. After the camp was demolished, we created the play The Jungle, to shine a light on the refugee crisis and start a global conversation around immigration. The Jungle had critically acclaimed sold-out runs from the Young Vic theatre and London’s West End, to New York and San Francisco, and will return to tour the US in 2021.

‘Theatre that shakes hands with the world’ Sunday Times on The Jungle

We create Productions that tell big stories of hope and humanity, and we have an Ensemble of refugee artists we collaborate with to create visionary new art. The Walk is our most ambitious endeavour yet.

Everyone deserves a Good Chance

“The refugee who sits alone does not just need food, or some materials, they need also hope. Good Chance Theatre gives hope. You need to feel you are not alone, you need to feel someone sit beside you, that they care about you.”

Yousef from Syria

“The Genesis Foundation is proud to support The Walk. In 2018 we awarded the Genesis Prize to Good Chance Theatre. Its vision and ground-breaking community building projects have, we believe, the power to change the world.” - Cécile Beauvillard Burman, Associate Director Genesis Foundation

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Handspring Puppet Company.

Handspring Puppet Company was founded by Artistic Director Adrian Kohler and Executive Producer Basil Jones in 1981 in Cape Town, South Africa, and has grown under their leadership for 40 years.

Handspring’s work has been presented in more than 30 countries around the world. The company is widely recognised as South Africa’s pre-eminent puppet theatre company with work spanning four decades of creating theatre for adults and children. Handspring’s work has established its signature of artistic excellence through the use of finely crafted puppets within a live theatrical context. The marriage of the disciplines of Fine Art and Theatre is at the heart of the discipline of puppetry in general and Handspring’s work in particular.

The runaway hit play War Horse, produced by the National Theatre in London, has established Handspring as one of the most important puppet companies in the world. This success has afforded the company the opportunity to further develop the art form they are so passionate about.

Little Amal is Handspring’s latest inspired creation - a 3.5 metre-tall puppet of a young Syrian refugee girl at the heart of The Walk.

Creating Little Amal

Little Amal must travel 8,000km through 8 countries crossing many contrasting terrains. To build a puppet capable of such a physical challenge, Handspring has carefully crafted Little Amal from robust but lightweight materials such as cane and carbon fibre so that she can be operated for extended periods in varying conditions.

It takes four puppeteers to bring Little Amal to life: one on each arm, one supporting her back and one inside walking on stilts. This fourth puppeteer also controls ‘the harp’, a complex tapestry of strings that animate Little Amal’s face, head and eyes.

Handspring and The Walk.

Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler, founders of Handspring, put their retirement on hold to be a part of The Walk. As Adrian says:

“This is a fantastic way for us to end our careers with a puppet walking through Europe where we’ve made much of our work over the last 40 years. The story of refugees is so important for the whole world. Many countries are on the move because of conflict, climate change, farmers that can’t work anymore through lack of rain. It’s the big story of our time. Because it’s an outdoor event, The Walk has the potential of bringing people together again. At a moment when theatres are struggling to reopen this is something everyone can be a part of.”

Handspring is represented by Quaternaire worldwide.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

About us.

The Walk is a Good Chance Production presented by Good Chance, Stephen Daldry, David Lan and Tracey Seaward. Little Amal was created by Handspring Puppet Company.

Amir Nizar Zuabi, Artistic Director.

Amir Nizar Zuabi, is an award winning theatre writer and director. He was an associate director of the Young Vic, a member of the United Theaters Europe for artistic achievement, and an alumni of The Sundance Institute Theatre Program. Alongside The Walk he is the Artistic Director of ShiberHur Theater Company, is creating a show for Rkestatren Theater in Stockholm, and is writing a new play for the National Theatre in London.

His writing and directing credits include I am Yusuf and This is my Brother, In the Penal Colony, Oh My Sweet Land The Beloved (ShiberHur/Young Vic); Three Days of Grief, West of Us The Sea, Mid Spring Musical, Dry Mud, Against A Hard Surface (ShiberHur); Last Ward, Who Killed You Asmahan, The Huta and Grey Rock (La Mama NYC).

Directing credits include: Samson and Delilah (Flanders Opera, Antwerp); Jidarriya by Mahmoud Darwish (Edinburgh International Festival, Bouffes du Nord and world tour); Forget Herostratus, Le Mallade Imaginer, War or More, Sneeze, Deep Sorrow, Fall Tale, When The World Was Green, Lanterns Of The King Of Galilee, Taha and The Comedy of Errors (Royal Shakespeare Company).

Stephen Daldry, Producer.

Stephen Daldry is an award-winning Theatre, Film and Television Director & Producer.

He has directed many theatre productions, with sold out runs in London’s West End & New York’s Broadway, winning multiple Olivier & Tony awards. Most recently The Inheritance. His production of Billy Elliot the Musical has had several tours worldwide the latest in Japan which opened Sept 2020. Stephen’s 1992 version of An Inspector Calls is the longest running production in the National Theatre’s history. His next play, The Jungle, will open at St Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn in 2021, following a successful run in London’s West End, before it embarks on a US tour.

Stephen has directed 5 major feature films, Billy Elliot, The Hours, The Reader, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close and Trash, all of which have been nominated for the most prestigious film awards.

NETFLIX’s The Crown, which he serves as Executive Producer, releases Season 4 in November 2020 and is in pre-production on Season 5.

David Lan, Producer.

David Lan is a writer and theatre producer. He was Writer-in-Residence at the Royal Court 1994/1996 and Artistic Director of the Young Vic 2000/2018 during which time many shows he produced played in the West End and in New York winning many major awards. He was Consulting Artistic Director at the Pearlman Performing Arts Center in NY 2014/2016 and is currently Theatre Associate at BAM where he produced Medea in early 2020. His books include Guns and Rain: guerrillas and spirit mediums in Zimbabwe and a memoir As if by Chance: Journeys, Theatres, Lives published earlier this year.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411 GOOD CHANCE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL 7 OCTOBER 2020 introducing The Walk

Tracey Seaward, Producer.

Tracey Seaward has been instrumental in many interesting projects to hit audiences around the world, from producing the Oscar-winning film The Queen to bringing the Queen and James Bond together for the 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.

Tracey’s producer credits include Danny Boyle’s Millions, Fernando Meirelles’ Academy Award-winning The Constant Gardener; David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises; Steven Spielberg’s War Horse; eight movies with , including BAFTA and Academy nominated Dirty Pretty Things, The Queen for which she won a BAFTA for Best British Film and a Golden Globe and Academy Award nomination; Tamara Drewe, Philomena for which she received a further Golden Globe, BAFTA & Academy Award Best Film nomination; Golden Globe nominee for Florence Foster Jenkins starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant; and Victoria & Abdul. In 2012 she once again collaborated with Danny Boyle producing the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Tracey’s latest film The Two Popes was nominated for 4 Golden Globes, 4 BAFTAs, 3 Academy Awards.

Naomi Webb, Producer and Executive Director for Good Chance.

Naomi has worked as a producer for internationally renowned theatre company Complicité (worldwide tour of The Encounter, A Pacifist’s Guide to the War on Cancer at National Theatre, The Kid Stays in the Picture at Royal Court), at the Rose Theatre Kingston and Oxford Playhouse.

She first visited the Good Chance Dome in Calais in October 2015 and joined Good Chance as Executive Director in September 2017. Since then she has led the company’s growth alongside Artistic Directors Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson, including over 300 presentations of award-winning production The Jungle in London and the US, the production of seven Dome theatres across the UK, France and America and the creation of the international Good Chance Ensemble.

Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson, Artistic Directors of Good Chance.

Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson are writers and founding co-artistic directors of Good Chance. Their debut play, The Jungle, grew out of the seven months they spent running a theatre in the refugee and migrant camp in Calais, and was presented at the Young Vic and Playhouse Theatre in London, St Ann’s Warehouse in New York and the Curran Theatre in San Francisco.

Their work with Good Chance centres around the building of theatres across the world, using art to give a platform to newly arrived refugees and migrants, and creating spaces of welcome and introduction with local communities. They were the recipients of the Genesis Prize 2018 and are currently working on new projects for theatre and film.

GOOD CHANCE, STEPHEN DALDRY, DAVID LAN AND TRACEY SEAWARD PRESENT A GOOD CHANCE PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY GOOD CHANCE REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1166833 / COMPANY NUMBER 09952411