Little Amal: refugee puppet walks a message of hope
By Joe Bulman
Good Chance Theatre and Handspring Puppet Company. Little Amal on her 8000 km journey. Image: Bevan Roos.
Navigating the length of eight distinct countries by foot seems no small feat. It is, however, the successful goal of a three and a half metre tall puppet called Little Amal. The inspiration for Little Amal began when Good Chance Theatre founders Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson, visited the Calais refugee camps, in 2015. There, they would create theatre productions for the refugee population from hand-built dome tents. These initial performances proved a vital foundation for the political and significant pieces that were to follow.
Soon after, a production entitled ‘The Jungle’ was born, which sought to tell the tough story of these residents through themes that explored community, identity, and hope. One of the characters from this production was called ‘Little Amal,’ who’s role was to place a lens on the younger population of the Calais refugee camp, and especially those that were separated from their families.
‘The Good Chance Theatre Dome being Set Up in the Calais Refugee Camp in 2015. Image: Good Chance Theatre.
‘The Jungle’ soon became a well-known production across the nation, allowing Good Chance Theatre to collaborate with Handspring Puppet Company. This resulted in the retelling of Little Amal’s story, but with more depth and understanding, and thus formed a puppet of colossal proportions. The puppet was made from moulded cane and carbon fibre and allowed for a team of ten puppeteers to operate it in varied weather conditions. Two of the puppeteers themselves came ‘from refugee backgrounds who have themselves travelled the route.’ Their aim was for Little Amal to walk a totalled distance of 8,000km through an array of countries including Turkey, France, the United Kingdom and more. ‘The Walk’ started in July of 2021, beginning at the Syria-Turkey border, and has concluded this November, in Manchester.
Little Amal arriving in Folkstone Kent in October 2021. Image: Gareth Fuller/PA via AP.
This journey was one of mammoth proportions and speaks of the struggle and courage refugees face day to day. David Lan, a producer at Good Chance Theatre proclaims ‘we’ve long believed that artists, grassroots communities and civic society leaders should come together to make art that matters in the real world. The Walk is that coming together.’ Little Amal helps to portray the impact grassroots and community engagement within the arts can have on the world around us, enabling progressive social change. It suggests a direction of how humanity can progress and transform, through careful and considered art practice.
‘A refugee is (n) a person, like you and me, who just wants to call a place home, to belong, to be safe and to live without fear. When all those things suddenly disappear, we have to create space in our communities, to help refugees repair and rebuild their lives – so that one day they can find home again - Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’
Bibliography
Good Chance Theatre. “One little girl. One BIG hope.” Accessed November 3, 2021. https://www.walkwithamal.org
Maghribi, Layla. “Giant refugee puppet Little Amal arrives on UK shore holding Jude Law’s hand.” The National, October 19, 2021. https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/2021/10/18/giant-refugee-puppet-little-amal-to-arrive-on-uk-beach-for-last-leg-of-european-journey/
Sherwood, Harriet. “Little Amal in Britain: giant puppet of Syrian girl reaches her journey’s end.” The Guardian, October 17, 2021. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/oct/17/little-amal-in-britain-giant-puppet-of-syrian-girl-reaches-her-journeys-end?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=twt_gu&utm_medium&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1634480924
The UN Refugee Agency United Kingdom for UNHCR. “The Refugee Dictionary.” Accessed November 3, 2021. https://www.unrefugees.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/refugee_dictionary_updated_digital1.pdf