Portfolio
My Father & Other Superheroes
My Father & Other Superheroes Nick Makoha, in Association with mac birmingham and Pippa Frith Present The day Nick Makoha realised he was going to become a father, he also realised he had no idea how to be one… an honest and moving story about the journey from childhood to fatherhood. Directed by Benji Reid. ‘A fantastic piece of theatre…Makoha’s performance is raw and captivating’ – UoBlogfest Set across continents and eras, My Father & Other Superheroes follows one man’s struggle to come to terms with the responsibilities of being…
The Complete works
A national two year development programme for ten advanced Black and Asian poets. It partners The Arts Council England, The Foyle Foundation, The Old Possum’s Practical Trust, In association with the Arvon Foundation. It supports writers to produce a full-length collection by providing Individual poet-mentors who will offer intensive critical feedback, tailored support and career development. Writers will have access to a professional development programme, seminars, critical reading sessions, meet-the-editor events and career support and advice. Each year will feature a residential week of writing…
Newham Writer in Residence
I was the Writer in Residence for Newham Libraries in a venture conceived by Spread the Word and Newham Libraries and Arts Service together with Arts Council England. The project aimed to increase the number of residents in the borough of Newham actively involved in creative writing and literature. Working with 14-18 year olds in Kingsford and Langdon School I piloted The Hero In You Project. It attempts to help young people identify with positive role models from similar cultural backgrounds as well looking at,…
Tate Remixed 2008
It is a digital media collaboration between B3 Media and The Tate. Four spoken-word artists and filmmakers were commissioned to produce a series of short films based on their interpretation of three Tate exhibitions. My poem Vista was used to interpret the Turner prize 2008. I worked along side Stacy Makishi, Francesca Beard and Polarbear. The poems are available online at the Tate website or to download. The Poem Vista reflects on how controversy surrounding the Turner Prize is a great thing for stirring artistic…
Spread the Word Commission
Drawing upon my experiences as writer in residence in Newham I was commissioned to write some poems inspired by the diversity of the borough. I was asked to explore my Ugandan roots and look at how my exodus from Uganda in 1979 had impacted on my life. I gathered aural history form Ugandan elders and young people in the community that I had worked with on The Hero In You pilot. From the interviews and memories I extracted the poems. This new writing commission was…
London 2012 Olympic Bid:
As part of Kensington and Chelsea Council’s support for the Olympic bid, the Libraries and Arts service decided to express its interest in the bid through poetry. The Land of Hope and Glory’ and `The Measure of all Things’ were written by myself. I spent time discussing London’s bid to hold the Olympics with a dance class and a basketball team at Lancaster and Golborne youth centres. I spoke to people in libraries across the borough and staff at Kensington and Chelsea Council about their…
Ignite
I have worked for over five years on the Ignite! Programme. They are interested in creativity with a purpose. They encourage young people to offer creative thinking solutions to problems as well as creative thinking for cultural activity. Ignite was initially pilot project at NESTA, The National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts. The Programme was set up in 2003 to identify and support exceptionally creative young people between the ages of ten and twenty-one. The programme is interested in offering creative thinking solutions…
Malika’s Kitchen
As a former lead member of Malika’s Kitchen’s I have a commitment to developing new poets and writers, and building connections with diverse communities nationally and internationally. As an organisation, Malika’s Kitchen has identified and nurtured new writing and performing talent, several of whom have completed the Complete Works Programme In 2007, Malika’s Kitchen – the seminal urban international writing collective – launched at Foyles Gallery, Charing Cross its first anthology – A Storm Between Fingers – published by Flipped Eye press and distributed by…
The MAP Consortium
I initially met the MAP directors Chris Higgins and Fiona Lesley when they were training myself and other collegues to be Creative Agents for Creative Partnership. They are a consortium of artists producing cutting edge work in the fields of performance, creative development, education and training. Its members are experienced artist-facilitators who draw on the visual, performing and structural arts to reach diverse audiences. They work to deliver performance training, theatre education, and arts based interventions in the corporate and public sector. Map Consortium
Our Urban Playground from Nick Makoha on Vimeo.
Architecture for Everyone
Architecture for Everyone helps Britain’s best young designers to turn their talent into a career. It is a partnership between the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust and architectural firm RMJM – a nationwide project which encourages young people from Britain’s inner cities to consider a career in architecture and urban planning On the 9th of June 2009 – Six British youngsters joined some of the world’s most elite students at Harvard University in the USA. The group, aged between 18 and 25, have won an all…
London Teenage Poetry SLAM
For five years I was a Poet on the London Teenage Poetry Slam. The project is the culmination of six months’ training for teachers and poets, with workshops in schools run by professional poets in seven London boroughs and an all Wales Ethnic Minority Association team. The poetry produced by the students is published and archieved on CD/DVD with a final performance at an established London venue. The winning SLAM team each year are accompanied on the trip to Chicago by their teacher and their…