Taking place annually on March 8 across the world, International Women’s Day continues to serve as celebration and education in equal measure. This year, look out for events in Wales including the ones listed here – compiled by Julia Bottoms, and beginning over a month ahead of schedule because every day is in fact International Women’s Day, am I right?
Women’s Empowerment Day
Brynmill Community Centre, Sat 1 Feb
Tickets: £5. Info: here
Home to Women’s Collective Swansea, Mioe Creative Productions hosts arts, wellbeing and nature-focused community events. For women of all ages, their Empowerment Day offers a plethora of enrichment activities, including yoga sessions with Womankind Yoga, menopause workshops with Dr Rachel Churm, and Mindful Creative Writing workshops with poet Becky Lowe.
Deep Listening: The Story Of Pauline Oliveros
Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff, Sun 2 Feb
Tickets: £9/£7. Info: here
Daniel Weintraub’s 2023 documentary film Deep Listening (reviewed by Buzz that same year) celebrates the half-century career of feminist musical pioneer Pauline Oliveros, who died in 2016 aged 84. Her practice of ‘deep listening’ transforms the act of listening into meditative ritual, and “profoundly affects those who experience it and eludes many who try and write about it”.
Audrey Albert: Belongers
Ffotogallery, Cardiff, Fri 7 Feb-Sat 10 May
Admission: FREE. Info: here
Mauritian-Chagossian artist and photographer Audrey Albert’s new exhibition – her first solo show – runs for three months here, and draws on the history of the Chagos Islands as the UK’s last African colony. Exploring ideas of home and memory through confrontations with colonialism, it opens at a moment where the territory risks becoming a political football for Britain and the United States’ respective governments.
Music For International Women’s Day
Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama, Cardiff, Sat 8 Mar
Admission: FREE. Info: here
The RWCMD dedicates a day-long event to spotlighting the merits and accomplishments of past and present female musicians – including a concert celebrating works by Nadia Boulanger, Judith Weir and Cecilia McDowall, as well as panel discussions and a special AmserJazzTime segment.
Celebrate International Women’s Day
The Riverfront, Newport, Sat 8 Mar
Admission: FREE. Info: here
Down at Newport’s Riverfront, a jamboree of live musical performances, community group events and panel discussions from inspiring local women, as well as food and other refreshments. Popular every year, this IWD celebration returns to “reflect on progress that has been achieved and consider what still needs to be done”.
Everyday Women: Inspirational Stories
Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon, Sat 8 Mar
Tickets: FREE. Info: here
Often, the most inspiring stories are those of everyday life. This panel discussion and Q&A, organised by local women’s wellbeing group Ebb & Flow, is “a celebration of the extraordinary in the ordinary,” championing the voices of four Brecon-local women. A perfect opportunity for relaxed networking with drinks.
Steppin Sistas: IWD Walk & Pub
Pensford Viaduct, Bristol, Sat 8 Mar
Tickets: FREE (sold out – waiting list available). Info: here
Grassroots group Bristol Steppin Sistas have been making strides recently, encouraging women of colour to enjoy nature with wellbeing walks around Bristol and the south-west. This free, one-mile walk around Pensford viaduct is followed by a pub lunch.
words JULIA BOTTOMS
