At Birds of Paradise we have a role to play in nurturing the next generation of deaf and disabled performers and artists. We aim to work with young disabled people in Scotland to enrich their lives through participating in and engaging with theatre and performance and, through this, to establish Birds of Paradise as a national and international leader in working with young disabled people.

Our Be-BoP Ensemble was a group of young theatre-makers we worked with from 2013-2015 to develop their performing skills and to develop their knowledge of how theatre comes together.

In 2014 one of our ensemble created this piece for the National Theatre of Scotland’s Five Minute Theatre.

Let me show you around where I live. Come to my house and I’ll tell you all about myself, some of my darkest secrets. I’ll tell you about my friends and family, freedom and fame, my deepest fantasy and how a few seconds changed my life. But you’ll have to stay quiet and listen because we’ve only got 5 minutes and what I decide to tell you will depend on the spin of a wheel. It’s all a bit of a lottery. And a lot can happen in a few seconds.

Performed by Rosie Smith and Blanche Doobie
Created by Garry Robson, Rosanna Hall, Rosie Smith and Andrew Campbell for Birds of Paradise’s Be-BoP Ensemble”

This project came to its’ natural end in 2016 and led to the development of our new project for young disabled people: BOP Young Artists.