Free performance to raise awareness of the challenges faced by young people struggling with their mental health
Young people, parents, care professionals, and researchers are invited to a free performance to raise awareness of what it’s like for young people who struggle with their mental health. The event is set to take place at the Royal Northern College of Music on 11th May at 1:30pm, to coincide with Mental Health Week (9-15 May 2022).
The performance has been created by Manchester-based researchers at the Applied Research Collaboration Greater Manchester (ARC-GM), which is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
Ten young people aged between 16 and 18 were recruited by ARC-GM and have worked with not-for-profit creative organisation Made by Mortals, to create the performance. It will involve an immersive listening experience of a pre-recorded podcast written and performed by the young people, as well as music crafted by them. The podcast aims to put the audience squarely in the shoes of a young person struggling with their mental health. This will be followed by a live performance from the perspective of a caseworker from Children’s and Adolescents Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
One of the young people involved in the performance, said:
“Our podcast provides an insight into the daily thoughts and feelings that people who have a mental illness may go through. If you’ve ever known someone who has struggled with mental health or you’d like to develop your understanding of it, I’d really encourage you to come to this immersive experience.”
An interactive workshop will take place after the live monologue. Organisers believe this will be an opportunity for young people, and those involved in their care, as well as researchers, to come together and share their experiences. The experiences and suggestions shared will be combined to form a resource that will be shared widely after the event.
Prof. Karina Lovell, lead for Mental Health at ARC-GM, said:
“We believe the podcast we’ve created with young people and Made by Mortals gives an accurate portrayal of the challenges faced by young people struggling with their mental health. It’s a powerful podcast and we hope it makes a difference to not only the people who come along to the live performance, but also to all the people who read the resource we’ll be creating on the day.”
The event is supported by the NIHR Greater Manchester Patient Safety Translational Research Centre (GM PSTRC).
One of the researchers, Dr Leah Quinlivan, who leads mental health research at the GM PSTRC, said:
“We’re delighted to be involved in ARC-GM’s event to raise awareness of the challenges faced by young people struggling with their mental health. We have research underway in this area.”
Anyone interested in attending the performance can register here - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/hidden-live-tickets-297920788097?aff=erelexpmlt
Published 22/04/2022