Interview: Celebrating Yarrie

After a sell-out season at Riverside Theatre in 2013, the award-winning production The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe returned in 2015 before touring internationally. We are excited to be screening the uplifting documentary in September about the making of this inspirational show.

This documentary is a celebration of the remarkable spirits of four African women survivors of sexual abuse, and the triumph of their improbable theatre troupe. The film reveals their extraordinary journeys of struggle, empowerment and healing through the arts, as the four African women, former refugees, play themselves in a moving story based on their own terrifying experiences.

One of these women is Yarrie Bangura, who is now an Australian. She came here as a refugee, twelve years ago, via Guinea, speaking no English, fleeing persecution in Sierra Leone. Yarrie has become a writer, public speaker, textile designer, and visual and performing artist. She is currently in the middle of a degree in international development a qualification she wants to use to help those still languishing in refugee camps.

ABC Radio National – Life Matters caught up with Yarrie to find out more about her incredible journey and The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe. Click here to listen to this phenomenal interview ahead of our screenings of the deeply affecting documentary.

The Baulkham Hills African Ladies Troupe screens at Riverside 17 and 18 September. Our 17 September screening includes a special Q&A with writer, director and producer Ros Horin. Click here to secure your tickets now.