ZARA

When Eva was born, her mother wasn’t prepared for what was coming next.

Eva is no ordinary baby. Eva is a giant threat to society.

The army is called; the world’s media descend on the UK; there are protests and placards, opinions and destruction.

And there is Zara, her mother.

A mother who will defend the child she loves with all her might.

A mother against the world.

With a soaring musical score, a cast of over 100, cherry pickers, tanks, 3D projections and a mechanical, moving ‘baby’ that’s bigger than a double decker bus, ZARA is a one-off, unique experience. A giant outdoor theatre event for the whole family, which tells the epic story of one learning disabled mother and her fight to protect her baby.

A Mind the Gap and Walk the Plank co-production in association with Emergency Exit Arts.

“Zara successfully challenges assumptions, and boldly and creatively gives a voice to parents with learning disabilities.”

The Guardian

“[ZARA] shows what fantastic large-scale productions can be produced when communities, artists and designers come together.”

A Younger Theatre

“…ambitious, original and delightfully weird.”

The Telegraph

Behind the Scenes

They say it takes a whole village to raise a child and our giant baby Eva was no exception. Meet some of the people who made the project such a huge success in the behind the scenes videos below.

An Introduction to ZARA

Director Joyce Nga Yu Lee explains the inspiration behind the giant co-production with Walk the Plank and Emergency Exit Arts, ZARA.

A Day on Lust Island

Join filmmaker Emilie Flower and Production Manager Ben Pugh as they film a spoof advert for ‘Lust Island’, which appears in ZARA.

Watch more Behind the Scenes videos on our YouTube channel below.
ZARA Behind the Scenes Playlist

Partners

Mind the Gap logo

Mind the Gap

Co-Producer

Walk the Plank logo

Walk the Plank

Co-Producer

EEA: Emergency Exit Arts logo

Emergency Exit Arts

Community Engagement Partner

Royal Holloway University of London logo

Royal Holloway, University of London

Research Partner

Gallery

Funders

ZARA is the third instalment of the Daughters of Fortune project, which explores learning disability and parenthood. Sister projects include Anna – a forum theatre workshop, Mia – a national touring theatre performance, and Paige – a research project.

The Daughters of Fortune project would not have been possible without financial support from the following funders.

Arts Council England logo

Arts Council England

ZARA received funding through Arts Council England’s Ambition for Excellence programme to help supersize the issue of learning disability and parenthood.

Wellcome logo

The Wellcome Trust

The Wellcome Trust funded the research behind ZARA’s sister project Mia in 2015. They reinvested through their Public Engagement Fund for research and dissemination connected to ZARA.

phf Paul Hamlyn Foundation logo

Paul Hamlyn Foundation

Paul Hamlyn Foundation invested in building partnerships in Calderdale and London to create the community casts and ensure ongoing legacy of the project. They also supported the involvement of learning disabled artists and staff in the delivery of ZARA.

The Rayne Foundation

The Rayne Foundation

The Rayne Foundation funded research and further development behind ZARA’s sister project Anna to help create a training package for health and social care professionals. This will help create a training package to improve practice of people working in Health and Social Care.

Community Foundation for Calderdale logo

Community Foundation for Calderdale

Community Foundation for Calderdale invested in ZARA by supporting the engagement of a large diverse community cast in Calderdale.

The Piece Hall: Established 1779 logo

The Piece Hall

The Piece Hall was the location partner in Halifax and part of the project since 2015, before the building had re-opened.

Southwark Council logo

Southwark Council

Southwark Council was the location partner in London. Southwark Council were the first partner to sign up to the project following a pitch by Mind the Gap at an event in 2015.

Check out more projects in the Daughters of Fortune family below.

Anna

Mia

Paige