For those born in the UK, British identity is a loose and changeable concept. For those seeking citizenship from abroad, however, it’s the opposite: being subject to the government’s “Life in the UK” test, there are fixed, itemised cornerstones – which are deemed critical by immigration officials for fitting into British society.

British Enough? critiques this regime through a future manifestation of the test. A collaboration between the artist and filmmaker Kristina Cranfeld with the writer and director John Harrigan (of FoolishPeople theatre company) around Kristina’s short film, Manufactured Britishness*. In this site-specific, immersive piece of theatre, the audience is invited to move through different assessment zones, participating in various, often bizarre, demonstrations of British values.

Together, the two strands of this project serve to question the notion of “becoming” British. By introducing the audience to a surreal process behind that idea, it exposes the test’s underlying values, and the political agendas guiding those values — with immigrants seen as exploitable material to support nationalistic identities and capitalist norms.

Kristina’s work, presented through films, is concerned with transition and human identity. The FoolishPeople company, founded by John Harrigan in 1989, is an early innovator for immersive and ritual theatre.

* Manufactured Britishness was previously presented in Birmingham at Ort Gallery.

www.foolishpeople.com
www.kristinacranfeld.co.uk
www.johnharrigan.com