We sat down with dance artist Farah Saleh to talk about her upcoming work The World We Share, created in collaboration with the company of artists. Bringing together a multi-generational ensemble of performers, the work asks:

‘How do we solve individual and collective problems together?
Can we do it together, even though we are all so different?’

Through a series of playful, and sometimes, poignant propositions the ensemble proposes ways we might better act in solidarity with one another, share our resources and attend to seemingly unsolvable problems through collaborative effort, collective encounter and shared experiences. The performance sees Farah Saleh as Choreographer and Director, with performers Diane Mitchell, Jack Anderson, Jazmina, Kieran, Nala, Phoebe and Surya. It hosts a multi-generational ensemble, for a multi-generational audience.

How did you approach translating complex themes like personal and collective problems into movement in The World We Share?

I usually start by presenting tasks that are undertaken in a collaborative way.

Firstly, I ask the young artists and adults to look into themselves individually to explore their own issues, problems or thoughts. We then share them in a group, to decipher how we will transform these thoughts into movement.

I may give them tools in the warm up sessions, such as gestures, texts, songs or props, to decide how they will transform their idea into movement language but, at its root, it is problem solving as I don’t tell people how to do things.

The performance features both young people and adults from diverse backgrounds— how did their different experiences influence the choreography and storytelling?

All the input comes from the artists themselves, so the whole performance comes from their diverse backgrounds – whether that’s age, ethnicity or social background.

All of this influenced the content of the performance because they are bringing their own input to the work, and I am just putting the fragments and the mosaic together.

What role does collaboration play in your creative process, and how did working with your collaborators shape the final outcome of this project?

It’s a collaborative process from the beginning until the end. This is from the warm-up, through to the rehearsals, and to the performance itself.

We propose ideas, thoughts and movements that we compile together until things become fixed. This happens when I propose a structure, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t. In this process I always take suggestions from everyone in the room, so it really is a collaborative process from start to finish.

In The World We Share, the performers explore the idea of solving problems together despite differences. What challenges and breakthroughs did you and the performers face during rehearsals in relation to this theme?

There are challenges and breakthroughs throughout the process.

We explore 3 themes in particular – ageism, ableism and authority. Whilst we may have had similar views in reference to some areas, our experiences were different. For example some of us are older, some of us live with disabilities, some of us do or don’t have authority in life.

We had to navigate all of our feelings related to these areas, whilst staying together to create The World We Share. As a performance, we invite audience members into the world we have created where navigation of feelings and tensions is the norm. In the end, it’s about how we work together to make it work.

As a Palestinian dance artist, how do your cultural roots influence your work, particularly in a piece that emphasises diversity and collective action?

Being a Palestinian dance artist very much influences my work, especially during the genocide. We started working together 2 weeks after the genocide so my head wasn’t in Scotland, as it was in Palestine. As soon as the young artists came into the room however, they really helped me reground.

We had to work together to create this world we were creating. It is a proposition of a world that starts from where we are in Scotland to an alternative, that collectively explores individuality and being passive. It explores a world where we can be a collective and negotiate things together, even if there is difficult conversations or tensions on the way.

The World We Share will have its world premiere on Friday 18 October at Assembly Roxy in Edinburgh with performances at 11am and 2pm, before transferring to James Arnott Theatre in Glasgow with performances at 12pm and 3pm.
https://www.farahsaleh.com/the-world-we-share