Curious Monkey was a Theatre Company of Sanctuary. This means that we welcomed people seeking sanctuary in the UK, one of the ways that we did that was through the Arriving project. The Arriving project was a place where people seeking sanctuary in the North East of England could be creative, have new experiences and feel welcome. It was a place to meet up with friends and make new friends.

We went on monthly trips to the theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne, and ran events and projects that were led by our group and Curious Monkey’s creative team – from yoga to salsa to creating theatre to writing a book. We met up regularly in person and online to chat, to eat and to be creative.

We alternated between meeting in-person for creative workshops and online for a social catch-up on a Zoom video call. This was a great opportunity to get to know each other better and for new members to find out more about what we do. 

The group were also the co-creators of the Happiness Project – a commission from Battersea Arts Centre’s Co Creating Change Network. Members of our group created projects aiming to improve happiness in their communities. 

We supported Arriving group members who wanted to develop their skills in the performing arts to work one on one with artists in areas they showed a particular interest in. The group were also involved in volunteering at events and projects to gain experience in different public facing roles, put their many varied skills to good use, practise English in different settings and be part of the Curious Monkey team.