DCA Theatre Company get inspired by visit from second-generation refugee Furaha Mussanzi.
Posted 7th June 2022
Furaha Mussanzi came to Bradford with her family when she was a young girl fleeing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Now she is the centre manager of the Millside Centre in Bradford, a community outreach charity that supports refugees as well as vulnerable members of the community with getting mental health support as well offering English language lessons and employment coaching.
Furaha was invited to Dixons City by Head of Drama, Ms Johnston, to share her inspiring life story and insights with the students of the DCA Theatre Company, who are currently rehearsing their own original play based on the theme of refugees and displaced children.
Their play “Verstehen” is written and developed by the students and while the concept was originally conceived in 2021, the current events of the world and particularly the war in Ukraine made this a very poignant and relevant topic to explore through their production.
The students made the most of the opportunity to learn from Furaha’s experience and following her introductory talk the students really engaged in a discussion with her covering aspects of Furaha’s life as a refugee, the difficulties of integrating into a new country and the issues of racism in the community.
All members of the DCA Theatre Company are very grateful for Furaha taking the time to come and visit the school and the students are making good use of the experience and insights gained to improve their play.
If you want to learn more about the work Furaha does at the Millside Centre you can read about it here: https://millsidecentre.org/
“Verstehen” – an original play, will be performed from Tuesday 12th to Friday 15th July 2022, with an invitation-only preview on Monday 11th July.
For more information about the production or the work of the DCA Theatre Company, contact Ms. Johnston via: p.johnston@dixonsca.com