Owain (he/him) Historian & Artist

brutalisturinal is an artist who makes work about trans and queer sex, BDSM and cruising practices and public space, temporality and transience. His work has been described as equal parts horny, sad and funny which also sums him up as a person. 

I’m excited to join Birmingham Queer Archive to help preserve and work with often overlooked but important queer histories in our city; those of cruising, kink communities and sites of sexual self discovery both past and present.

Sym (they/it) Assistant Interviewer

Sym is a live artist, arts & community facilitator and ritualist based in Birmingham. Its practise primarily focuses on connection and communication, and how liberatory practices can be attempted on both micro and macro levels. 

As a Brummie / Black Country bab who experienced their queer becoming in various communities in Birmingham – as well as working with queer and QTIBPOC folk in the city for over 8 years – Sym is interested in queer archives and histories as a part of their own lineage in Birmingham, and how these stories can bring a new sense of affinity to the city – for themself and other queer brummies trying to find their place.

 

Fran (she/her) Assistant Interviewer

I’m an artist working in writing, performance and audio. I also sit pets. I make work in response to histories of place, people, nature, objects and the way stories are collected and told. My work has been co- produced and commissioned by Birmingham Rep, Duckie & Fierce Festival and I’ve been artist in residence at The National Waterways Museum and Warwickshire Archives. I made podcast Stories to Tell in the Middle of the Night (strange stories for sleepless nights) and audio works for Coventry City of Culture and The National Trust. I’m usually trying to get wet in a pool, pond or puddle.  

I’m excited to be part of the team recording conversations for the Birmingham Queer archive for now, for the past and for the future. The importance of an archive to recognise voices that are not always clearly present or heard, to document Birmingham’s queerness and diaspora. The focus on Global majority, trans, non-binary and women’s voices is a reason and passion to be involved with this project. More than ever, giving increasing danger, minimising and taking away of the personhood and rights of LGBTQA+ people, listening, documenting, asking questions of people and their experiences is about care and recognition. Birmingham is a place I live and I’m delighted to be part of this team and project to document people in their own words to show queer life as it has been lived, is being lived, could and will be. 

Dr Hassan (he/him) Lead Interviewer

Hassan is a researcher, theatre-maker, and cultural facilitator. His research predominantly investigates the de/construction of queer identities both on, and off, the British stage. His practice explores the transformative effects of (queer) histories and lived experience(s) on present and future iterations of (queer) identities, communities, and (sub)cultures. Hassan loves rewatching Buffy, playing Pokémon & losing himself on the dancefloor.  

What really draws me to this project is that it sits at the intersection of things that have shaped my work for years: queer storytelling, archival practice(s), and working directly with communities to document lived experience(s). So, a project like the Birmingham Queer Archive feels incredibly important, particularly because of its focus on voices that have historically been overlooked: women, Global Majority communities, trans and non-binary people. It is also very important to me that the interviews we conduct are not extractive and are instead led with care and as a means to platform underrepresented voices from our community. And on a local level, being based in Birmingham, I think there’s something really powerful about creating a resource that captures the city’s queer histories in a way that people can access, recognise themselves in, and build from. 

Candice (she/they) Digital Archive Officer

Candice Nembhard (okcandice) is an artist-curator, writer, archivist and musician. They are the director of sonic practice studio Bedtime Stories, co-founder of queer dance party SHUBZ and a radio resident for Berlin’s Refuge Worldwide. Their practice is concerned with grief methodologies, Black audio-visual archives and uses of the sonic in civic space. Previous positions include Curator (Sheffield Doc Fest), Digital Curator (Birmingham Museum & Gallery), Curator (Eastside Projects), Guest Lecturer (Royal College of Art), Acquisitions Advisor (Government Art Collection) and fellowships with the Woven Foundation, Jerwood Foundation, and Obsidian Foundation. Candice is currently researching the sonic-somatics of grief through their live performance series ‘Offering’ and is training to be a Death Doula.  

For the last six years, I’ve been working closely with local archivists and collections documenting various aspects of Birmingham life; Vanley Burke (Soho House), Baff Akoto (BOM) and the Birmingham Now oral history project (Birmingham Museum & Gallery). I’m keen to continue developing publicly accessible platforms for stories derived from my native Birmingham — especially for communities who are often underserved and overlooked in our city’s wider narrative. I’m a firm believer that archiving is a civic duty and my hopes is that in joining the project, we can begin to shift the narrative on who gets to be an archivist and what gets to be recorded and collected. 

Lacey (she/her) Project & Marketing Lead/ Curator

Lacey has worked in Birmingham’s LGBTQ+ community in various capacities for over 10 years and is currently an Artist, Marketing Manager and Project Manager. Connecting, showcasing and working with local LGBTQ+ Brummie businesses & creatives is her passion. She loves all things LGBTQ+, kitty cats, pink things & fluffy things.

I’m proud to lead this archive as it’s aims reflect values and goals I’m passionate about and have channelled into my work throughout the years. Being a part of Birmingham’s LGBTQ+ history through this archive project has given the team and myself an opportunity to document many previously unheard voices and hopefully, add a bit of Queer joy and light in a time that feels as though it’s getting darker.

The post Meet The Birmingham Queer Archive Team appeared first on Shout.

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Important Dates:  

These are provisionally the dates and times for the steering group: 

May 7th 6pm-8pm  
July 9th 6pm-8pm 
September 10th 6pm-8pm 
November 12th 6pm-8pm 
January 14th 6pm-8pm

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Deadline: 15^th October

About Catwalk Extravaganza

Fierce Fashions – Luscious Lip syncs – Delectable Dance and a splash of the XXX factor are all on show in this spectacular event. Born out of Queer Black Joy, Catwalk Extravaganzas are exploding around the UK to sell-out crowds.

Following on from the success of the last three shows, the Shout Catwalk Extravaganza will be the ultimate competition in Lip sync, Dance and Performance. Community participants, professional queer collectives and fierce individual performers are invited to battle it out for the audience, and they will have the power to decide who will be crowd winners.

18^th October, 7pm till late

Express your interest

Please email us shoutfestival@blgbt.org the following information, we will only accept applications where all criteria is included:

• Freelance/Company website
• Examples of previous work showing movement experience
• Contact details

The post Call out: Videographer & Photographer appeared first on Shout.

Chloe shared with us her experiences of seeking intimacy as a lesbian post heart break. It turns out the kindling might be within ourselves, and not in the others we physically connect with. PSA: Traction alopecia from tight buns is real.

Rosa experimented with a more particpatory performance, and oh huns did we unbox a lot with this one. We discussed the (very real) baggage we want to take with us, and maybe not dump or set fire to material and emotional souvenirs from past lovers. As a chorus, we honoured and thanked the opportunities to love, learn, and leave behind.

Rupinder entrusted us with snippets of writing from her current research into an anti-nazi, suffragette, Punjabi Princess (yes, you heard us). Through detailed research, Rupinder brings to life intimate connections of lesbian life so we can glimpse into the multifaceted world of an affluent Punjabi lesbian from last century. The pieces were tender, relevant, and depicted worlds that often never make it to the pages of our history annals.

Sym, our invited guest sharer, honoured us all inviting and leading us into a collective ritual. They took us into a space of reverance, remeberance, and connection to our transcestors past, present, and future. A deeply intimate, poignant, and timely reminder of ensuring acts of transcendence and defiance are necessary. It was their last performance with their chest pre top surgery, and we thank them for allowing us to be witness. Their fundraiser is still open.

Catch us on the 19th of August at The Edge for Messy B*tch Energy >> Tickets available here.

The post Our first Talk of The Town: (Queer) Love, Sex & Magic appeared first on Shout.

This opportunity helped me build my dance skills within Vogue, particularly Fem Vogue, and gave me a chance to develop a consistent practice and build community with other queer dancers. I learned not only the fundamentals of Vogue but also more about the history of ballroom culture, which has deepened my appreciation of the form.

A personal highlight was when we took our session outdoors on a sunny day, followed by an impromptu picnic in the park. That day really embodied the sense of connection, joy, and shared experience that dance can foster.

I’m grateful to Shout Festival for making this journey possible. The experience has had a lasting impact on my confidence as a performer and as a member of the wider queer creative community.

Follow Diana @the_psyber_giantess @inner_giantess.art

The post My Disco Extravaganza experience by Diana Amma-Gyankoma Abankwah appeared first on Shout.

What followed was a mix of dramaturgical exercises, staged scenes, improvisation, and debates over actioning. The piece was disassembled, then rebuilt. Four actors, one director, a writer, and a draft of a full script – a collision of voices, experiences, and perspectives. Most queer, some not. Most from Birmingham, some not. They wrestled with the text, advocating for lines to be cut, changed, or expanded. Objectives were debated; intentions picked apart. It forced me to interrogate my own choices – not just intellectually, but viscerally. Some decisions couldn’t be justified through research or technique alone. They just felt right. Felt interesting. Felt alive.

Of course, words on a page land differently when spoken aloud. The script, animated by new voices, became unfamiliar territory. Some phrases now rang glib or clichéd; others cut deeper than intended. Some tripped the tongue; too dense, too slippery, too complex.

And then there were the gaps. The silence between lines. Perhaps the biggest question in the room, and the one that still lingers, is how much an audience needs to see. How much are they owed? Is it enough to let them fill in the blanks? When does a gap become a chasm? I don’t want to spoon feed answers, but I also don’t want to leave them stranded. Where’s the line between intrigue and frustration? These questions remain.

Breeders has always been iterative. What began as an oral histories project morphed into scenes written to Bronski Beat, sharings at the Nightingale, interviews conducted before the final pages existed. Now, drafts are rewritten in Our Facility – a franken-script stitched together from each iteration’s lessons. But when does the process end? When does the next draft become the last draft? I don’t have an answer. Only the certainty that the questions themselves are what propel me forward.

In a way, Our Facility was the perfect place for this R&D. That April, I went back to school. It was a reminder that creation is, at its core, an act of curiosity. I’m still learning. 

My thanks to the team – Elodie, Lizzie, Daniel, Dominic, and Natalie – for their generosity and rigour. And to Stan’s Café, for hosting us in a space that refused to let us forget the joy of asking why.

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