The Body Remembers Joy: Movement workshop (Farah Chamma & Aracelly Firmo)

Story Of the Changing hosts this movement-based workshop led by Palestinian Performance Artist Farah Chamma as part of her UK tour, Troubadour this summer. Alongside Brazilian theatre practitioner Aracelly Firmo. Come together to build capacity in these turbulent times - Activate a child-like wonder, lean into play as a resource, a tool for resistance, a time to remember and activate joy.

What to expect:

This workshop combines movement, imagination, voice, and creative writing to help participants access new ideas, emotions, memories, and stories through the body. Participants will be guided through a series of movement exercises that encourage playfulness, curiosity, and self-expression.

The workshop invites people to move, listen, respond, and create without focusing on getting things “right.” Instead, the emphasis is on following impulses, exploring different energies, and discovering what emerges naturally.Throughout the session, participants will move between physical exploration and writing, using movement as a starting point for reflection, storytelling, poetry, personal writing, or creative expression. Voice work, rhythm, imagination, and group exercises help build connection, confidence, and creativity.

Please wear comfortable clothes for this workshop.

Workshop Facilitators:

Farah Chamma: A Palestinian poet and performer, Farah is known for her vibrant and unique spoken-word performances, in which she combines orality, acting, and live music. Her words are fiercely political, but also laced with heart and a love for humanity. One half of musical duo chamaeleon, she’s participated in many different events and festivals around the world including France, Germany, Jordan, Portugal, Mexico and Holland. She holds a master’s degree in Performance and Culture from Goldsmiths, University of London and a BA in Philosophy and Sociology from the Sorbonne in Paris. She is currently an actress in training at Sharjah Performing Arts Academy.

Aracelly Firmo: A Global Marjory Artivist working at the intersection of creativity, collective healing, and social change. Her work is grounded in theatre that reconnects, using performance and its processes as tools for dialogue, healing, and collective reflection. Through participatory theatre, storytelling, and collaborative creation, Aracelly engages communities in conversations around justice, identity, and liberation. Her practice centres theatre as a means of restoring connections with self, community, and nature, using eco-embodied methods to address personal and collective challenges while rehearsing alternative ways of navigating the living world. Her work is rooted in activism and artistry, understands art as action: a living force that connects, challenges, and inspires, opening pathways toward meaningful transformation and, therefore, liberation. Aracelly holds a bachelor degree in Performing Arts, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco - Brazil; A postgraduate in Art Therapy, Instituto Pomar - Brazil; and a MA in Applied Theatre, York St John University.

Story Of the Changing: A radical artist-led enquiry into the end of empire. A women-of-colour led collective dreaming and practising towards a future for collective liberation, remembering and grounding in our ancestral and indigenous wisdoms.

Ticket Price:

3 sliding scale ticket prices

• £15
• £25
• £35

We believe our events should be accessible to everyone, regardless of budget. If our sliding scale options don't fit your current financial situation, please email us at [email protected]. Please do contact us if money is a barrier.

Accessibility: This is a movement based workshop held at Theatre 41. The space is wheelchair accessible with a lift to take you up one story. If you have access needs we welcome you to let us know in advance so we can offer you bespoke adaptations based on your needs. Please email us at [email protected]

Capacity: There are only 12 tickets available for this workshop, if you purchase a ticket and can no longer come, please let us know so someone else can.