The Moving Century: A History of Migration Seen from the Future

About

A hundred years ago, there were no visas or passports. Today on the seabed of the Mediterranean lie the bodies of fifty thousand migrants drowned along the smuggling routes. How did we get here? And, above all, how will we get out of it? Gabriele Del Grande takes us on a journey through images and words through the history and future of migration in Europe to provoke us with a visionary proposal. The author, alone on stage, accompanies the story with the projection of photographs and archival videos of an entire century of history. “The Moving Century, a History of Migration Seen from the Future” is a 105 minute multimedia theatrical performance that combines social research, visual archives, storytelling and activism. It is a journey through images and words, from the landing of African soldiers in Marseille in 1914 to today's illegal sea crossings of the Mediterranean and the English Channel. In terms of its methodology, the project combines a decade of journalistic and anthropological fieldwork research across the Mediterranean with historical and qualitative archival research from across Europe and the US to illustrate the painstaking and at times perilous process of collecting, analysing and interpreting data, as well as the process of translating research into non-traditional performances. Del Grande's monologue is followed up by a ‘how I did’ workshop, which enables PGRs and other attendees to gain insights into its methodological process. Its findings will be shared with researchers through Q&A opportunities throughout the performance that invite their direct participation and engagement. Gabriele Del Grande is an independent journalist, social researcher and film director. He has been researching illegal migration since 2006, and reporting in many countries in the Mediterranean and Sahel regions, publishing hundreds of articles, directing an award-winning documentary film, On The Bride’s Side, and writing five books on topics. The event is chaired by Dr Letizia Alterno, Artsmethods Academic Skills Lecturer. Gabriele Del Grande will be performing this event in English. Generously supported by Methods North West and Methods@Manchester, with support from the Doctoral Academy.