Have Your Passport Ready is a virtual experience that puts the audience directly in the world of the UK’s hostile environment. This short film-meets-video game, commissioned by Knaïve Theatre is led by brothers Khaled and Mohammad Aljawad from Syria, now based in Sheffield. Have Your Passport Ready explores an unknown city without an interpreter as audiences become players collecting evidence to prove their right to remain in the UK.
Theatre of Sanctuary SBC ( Stand and Be Counted) are rightfully proud of this project. They’ve worked with Khaled and Mohammad over the last two years as part of their Use Your Voice programme. They hope it will make more people aware of the specifics in the asylum experience. They hope it will generate empathy and help people see what they could do day-to-day to make people feel welcome. It’s an experiment; campaign theatre meeting Khaled and Mohammad’s love of video games – something useful, something inspiring – for right now, in a digital sphere.
You can watch it HERE from Thursday 22 October at 10am until midnight on Saturday 24 October. As with all of their work, SBC love talking to audiences about the process of co-creation – join them on Saturday 24 October at 7pm for a natter, sign up HERE.