Many Minds

Many Minds charity celebrates the power of nature to improve mental health in times of COVID - through new musical performance

Many Minds is a mental health and performance charity based in Bristol which works with people who experience mental ill-health. By creating imaginative performances with its members the charity helps to improve confidence, reduce stigma, build self-esteem and social skills and put people in the driving seat of their own lives and wellbeing. COVID 19 has brought many challenges and Many Minds has been working to create a new musical performance piece which explores the themes of loneliness and isolation and the power of nature to offer comfort and connection. I've been waiting… - will take place on 1st and 2nd October at the Theatre on the Downs, Bristol and everyone is invited!

Directed by Artistic Director of Many Minds Viki Browne, with renowned Vocal Composer, Verity Standen and Sound Designer, Jack Drewry, Many Minds have created a celebration of the natural world. They have achieved this through the use of voice, sounds, songs and movement to bring people together and offer comfort in the most challenging of times. I've been waiting… is a 25 minute performance with a 15-minute Q&A session that will be part of a larger production due to take place at the Bristol Old Vic in October 2022. Many Minds Artistic Director, Viki Browne says; ‘The pandemic has really affected people's mental health. Since the first lockd own in March 2020, we have been safely engaging with people to keep them connected and have been working on this musical performance via online platforms and phone-in workshops. Our members wanted to create a piece about their relationship with nature and how important it has been to keep them going in these challenging times. It is more important than ever to bring people together to celebrate through performance .'

A national survey was commissioned by Many Minds and conducted by Survation with 1003 people aged 18 plus in December 2020. It revealed that almost half of people questioned feel that being creative has boosted their mental health during lockdown. Many Minds Executive Director, Olivia Ware says: ‘It's interesting to see that more people have been engaging in arts and crafts activity during the confines of the pandemic. Creative activity brings hope, joy and value to people's lives and provides a place for them to turn to in hard times. We know that being involved in the arts can be hugely beneficial for people's mental health. But not everyone has the same opportunities to take part and that's what we at Many Minds are looking to address through performances like the one we're showcasing this year and next."

Many Minds member and performer, Tabatha Rodney, 26, says: "Lockdown has been hard. My mental and physical health declined and without my usual support networks, it was really lonely. Many Minds gave me the space to creatively explore what I was going through and enabled me to continue to have fun when I felt trapped. Through making the performance, I was able to create dream images of the things that I was unable to do in lockdown, like walking with my grandma and listening to the birds, standing in the rain and letting it wash away the things that I am feeling. In the group, we worked with how nature united us and that despite being in our homes, we still experienced the same storm. We went through it, just like the pandemic, and now we have the chance to come together to celebrate the beauty that comes after a storm."

Performer and Many Minds Member, Mehdi Razi, 34, says: "The Many Minds sessions have been an honest way to endure the difficulties imposed on us, this time as lockdown. Without these sessions I would have been in total isolation.

"This performance is important to me because I have seen the process of it take shape and observed the depth of the emotions my fellow members poured into it. Every cell of this performance has come from the hearts of real people. "

We've been waiting… Caught in the same storm.

It's been a long time… …making this performance, alone and together, digitally and in person. I've been waiting… has been formed by nature and her offerings in the last year and a half. The grounding in our walks, the jubilant morning chorus of birds, the air in and out of our lungs as we danced solo towards the unknown.

...and while we lost your touch, we had hers. She filled our cup, so something could grow. And it did…

I've been waiting… will take place at the Theatre on the Downs at 3pm on 1st and 2nd October. Tickets are £6 and can be booked at https://bristololdvic.org.uk/whats-on/ivebeen-waiting 11