Our Voice Network | Rhwydwaith Ein Llais exists to empower, develop, and platform artists of the Global Majority through professional development opportunities, showcasing events, and bursaries.
Founded by Krystal S. Lowe
Our History
Our Voice Network | Rhwydwaith Ein Llais is inspired by a desire to create spaces of true diversity; to initiate change and to empower other people to make changes too.
In 2020, while Krystal S. Lowe was on Fuel’s Freelance Taskforce, she founded ‘Our Voice’ an initiative to gather the experiences of Welsh and Wales-based Black artists in order to share with the sector the voice of those who are unheard. This series of conversations and sharing from Black artists in 2020 culminated in ‘There’s Room for Me Too’ a poem/speech/declaration to the sector.
Following this initial start Krystal connected with Wales-based artists June Campbell-Davis and Marcus Jarrell Willis to facilitate a series of Our Voice Network conversations for Black artists to share their practice and process funded by the Arts Council Wales’ Sharing Together fund. The purpose of these conversations was to platform the work of Welsh and Wales-based Black artists in a truly diverse space so that they can be free to explore the fullness of their identities.
Now Our Voice Network | Rhwydwaith Ein Llais has broadened its reach to empower, develop, and platform artists of the Global Majority through professional development opportunities, showcasing events, and bursaries.
Our Work
Our Voice Sharing
An annual informal gathering for sharing and connection.
Without risk, art cannot innovate; It cannot develop and the artist cannot realise their full potential. Emerging artists get so few opportunities, and emerging artists of the Global Majority receive even less; when they finally do get an opportunity they feel they must achieve perfection in order to get another one. The Our Voice sharing allows artists of the Global Majority to take risks in a room full of people there to engage in the process, not simply watch a production.
Each year, this sharing will be a space to platform Artists of the Global Majority, bring people together to connect and discuss their passion for the arts and culture, while all ticket income goes toward funding the work of the Our Voice Network | Rhwydwaith Ein Llais.
Our Voice 2024 was supported by Awen Cultural Trust.
Our Voice 2023 sharing was supported by the Riverfront Theatre.
Our Voice 2022 sharing ‘There’s Room for Me Too’ was supported by the Riverfront Theatre.
Our Voice Bursary
2024 Our Voice Bursary | Bwrsari Ein Llais 2024
In Partnership with Sherman Theatre | Mewn partneriaeth gyda Theatr y Sherman.
For artists of the Global Majority who are seeking to develop as storytellers.|Ar gyfer artistiaid o’r Mwyafrif Byd-eang sy’n awyddus i ddatblygu fel storïwyr.
The 2023 Our Voice Bursary recipients are Plamedi Santima and Naseem Syed
In Partnership with Awen Cultural Trust
The 2022 Our Voice Bursary recipients are Karema Ahmed and Stephanie Stevens.
If you want to support these bursaries in anyway please contact Krystal S. Lowe at ourvoicenetwork.contact@gmail.com
Our Voice Conversations
The key priorities for the Our Voice Conversations are:
Amplify the work and contribution of artists of the Global Majority;
Create a space that is led and facilitated by artists of the Global Majority;
Create a place for artists to support and connect with one another, to exchange ideas and thoughts, and to help to strengthen the contribution of artists of the Global Majority throughout the sector.
Previously Featured Artists
Bakani Pick-Up
Bakani is a Choreographer who creates improvisational works centred around practice and methodology on ‘Ways of Being’ within performative structures. Research topics have explored the disassociation between live bodies and screen bodies, decolonising practice and improvisation methodology for creating performance.
Jodi Ann Nicholson
Jodi’s a dancer and visual artist based in South Wales. She studied at Trinity Laban and Cardiff School of Art and Design. Her creative interests lie between a movement and object based practice; interrogating ideas of self and connection to cultural identity.
Matthew Gough
Matthew Gough is a dance artist, senior lecturer, and dramaturg, based in Cardiff.
Their practice spans; improvisation, contemporary dance, screen dance, physical theatre, art in public spaces, and theatre for young audiences.
Recent credits include:
Green Man Festival 2020 / The Place Spring Festival 2021(Rewild: Dramaturgy), Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru (Hwn yw fyMrawd: Creative& Performer), Frân Wen (Llyfr Glas Nebo: Choreographer), and Theatr Iolo (Chwarae: Co-Creative & Performer).
Krystal Dawn Campbell
Krystal has worked and continues to work with various UK dance companies and independent artists, and choreographs, directs and performs in her own works.
The work Krystal creates draws from personal experiences and the stories of others to make powerful, impactful dance/physical theatre that challenges socio-political norms, inspires introspection, and stimulates long-lasting conversation. In June 2020 she became Creative Associate at Jermyn Street Theatre, London.
Marcus Jarrell Willis
Marcus has performed with RIOULT, Tania Pérez-Salas Compañía de Danza, Ailey II and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
Commissions, residencies and tip creations include works for Ailey II, TU Dance, NY Choreographic Institute, with dancers of New York City Ballet, Ballet Cymru, The Juilliard School, Purchase Conservatory of Dance, The Ailey School, University of Minnesota, Lucia Marthas Institute for the Performing Arts, Rubicon Dance and COCA, among others.
Yusha-Marie Sorzano
Yusha-Marie is originally from the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago.
As a choreographer, Ms. Sorzano has created works for The Alvin Ailey
American Dance Theater, Jeanette: A New Musical, Ballet Idaho, Santa Barbara
Dance Theatre, New Century Dance Project, The Ailey School, & Zeitgeist Dance Theatre.
Ffion Campbell-Davies
Ffion is a multidisciplinary artist and Associate
Director of House Of Absolute. Born and raised in
Wales, an advocate for welsh speaking women
of mixed heritage, she completed her degree in
dance at The California Institute of the Arts
and London Contemporary Dance School.
As a movement director and choreographer, her
work can be seen in adverts for Nurofen and she
has presented numerous stageworks for Richmix,
The Place, Shoreditch Town Hall, The Albany,
Bernie Grants, The RSA and The Now Gallery and
more.
Anthony Matsena
Anthony is a Zimbabwean born and Welsh Raised choreographer, performer and director working between the mediums of dance, theatre, music and poetry. His work often is politically charged, hoping to make sense of his the experience of being brought up in an Afrocentric house and having Eurocentric schooling. He has built a love and curiosity for telling stories that express themes of culture, race, change and belonging.
Anthony co-founded (formerly Matsena Performance Theatre) with brother Kel Matsena in 2017 as a reaction to the lack of representation they were seeing in schools, on stage and screen. They both felt there were very few companies that made work around black stories while using their different skills in African dance, hip-hop, contemporary, rap, theatre and poetry.
Adeola Dewis
I am an artist and researcher. Originally from Trinidad and Tobago, I have keen interests in ritual, folk and indigenous cultural performances involving aspects of masking and performance.
I am particularly drawn to performance aesthetics within the Trinidad Carnival and masquerades and the potential ways in which an understanding of these and other manifestations of emancipatory performances, are relevant to art-making or art presentations for individuals or groups experiencing forms of displacement and social anxiety within the diaspora.
My work engages performances of transformation and explores ways of re-presenting self.
My life and experiences as a mother and Caribbean immigrant have informed aspects of my practice and continue to contribute to the ways in which my work takes shape.
Liam Wallace
Liam started dancing at the age of 15 at Swindon Youth Dance Academy, training in ballet, contemporary and jazz for 5 years. He then continued his training at Northern School of Contemporary Dance working with choreographers such as Odette Hughes, Douglas Thorpe and Avatâra Ayuso before graduating with a BPA(Hons) in contemporary dance in 2015.
Liams career has been a mixture of teaching and choreographing with a focus on how to create a healthier and more open environment in both. Using strong, powerful and emotive work - often relating to a dancer's physical strengths and their understanding of their body, while still giving the dancer freedom to explore possibilities within his movement style.
June Campbell-Davies
Cardiff-based for nearly 38yrs, June sustains her artistry through working as a freelance Dancer, Choreographer, and Teacher.
She is one of the directors for Oasis One World Choir, leads movement sessions for Refugee and Asylum Seekers, is a Board Member for Laku Neg - a Collective Arts Organization set up by Dr. Adeola Dewis; Carnival Consultant for Butetown Arts and Cultural Association under the creative direction of Keith Murrell; and performer in partnership with Wales Millennium Centre community projects.