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John Rwothomack, who is taking charge of his first Migration Matters Festival as director. Photograph courtesy of Migration Matters Festival<\/p>\nJohn Rwothomack, who is taking charge of his first Migration Matters Festival as director. Photograph courtesy of Migration Matters Festival<\/p>\n
Encompassing art, film, food and conversation, the nine-day event explores identity and belonging and celebrates the diverse culture of the UK\u2019s first City of Sanctuary<\/p>\n
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The Migration Matters Festival<\/a> returns to Sheffield<\/a> in June with a new director and a packed nine-day programme exploring identity and belonging to life through art, film, food and conversation.\u00a0<\/p>\n Taking place on 19-27 June, the award-winning event is the UK\u2019s largest Refugee Week<\/a> festival, bringing together artists, performers and communities from around the world to celebrate the diverse communities and welcoming spirit of Sheffield, the UK\u2019s first City of Sanctuary<\/a>. The theme for 2026, Forged by Migration, is a nod to the local steel industry and a reflection on the journeys and the people that have helped shape the city\u2019s identity.\u00a0<\/p>\n The 2025 edition of Migration Matters attracted around 16,000 people and organisers are hoping for a similar turnout this year. The programme will feature dozens of events across Sheffield, including theatre performances, cinema screenings, exhibitions, workshops, live music, a show by the Mobo Award-winning singer Fuse ODG<\/a>, and live discussions.<\/p>\n The opening also marks a new chapter for Migration Matters, with Ugandan-born, Sheffield-raised actor, writer and theatre director John Rwothomack<\/a> taking over from founder Sam Holland<\/a> as director.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis festival is for Sheffield, for the people of Sheffield. It belongs to the city,\u201d Rwothomack says. \u201cThe team and I, we\u2019re just a vessel through which the festival is realised.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Having moved to Sheffield at the age of 11, Rwothomack adds that leading the festival is particularly meaningful for him.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI want people to feel seen,\u201d he says. \u201cBeing seen is not just about the programme. It\u2019s how we welcome people, how we treat them and how we make them feel like they belong to what we\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n The festival\u2019s new theme emerged from Rwothomack\u2019s reflections on Sheffield\u2019s long history of migration<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a very long time since the first person arrived in Sheffield as a migrant,\u201d Rwothomack says. \u201cThe cultural makeup of the city as we know it now has been forged by those journeys.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Migration has become an increasingly contentious political issue within national politics, but Rwothomack believes that the festival offers an opportunity to build understanding.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI truly believe these things happen because we don\u2019t understand each other and don\u2019t spend enough time breaking bread, talking, communicating and having communion,\u201d he says.\u00a0 \u201cIf we do, then we actually get to understand what we share a lot more than the things that divide us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n With that in mind, here are our picks from this year\u2019s programme:\u00a0<\/p>\n The Horse of Jenin\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Palestinian actor and comedian Alaa Shehada brings his award-winning one-man play<\/a> to Sheffield. The show tells the story of a young boy growing up in Jenin in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. It focuses on the famous horse sculpture<\/a> created from the debris of an Israeli military invasion in 2002. Combining storytelling, standup comedy and physical theatre, the production explores memory, resistance and hope through a Palestinian lens.\u00a0<\/p>\n Quo Vadis, Aida?<\/strong><\/p>\n A powerful Oscar-nominated Bosnian drama<\/a> that follows a UN translator attempting to save her family during the Srebrenica genocide of 1995. Directed and written by award-winning director Jasmila \u017dbani\u0107, Quo Vadis, Aida? has been widely acclaimed for its devastating portrayal of the genocide against Bosniak Muslims, bringing one of the darkest chapters in modern European history to wider attention.\u00a0<\/p>\n In Between: Daughter of Two Worlds\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Staged in association with Side eYe Productions<\/a>, this youth-led theatrical show<\/a> explores how it feels to navigate life between cultures. Developed from real conversations with women in the Somali community, it draws on stories of life in Somaliland alongside the experiences of young people growing up in Britain today.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Sisters 360\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n This moving drama<\/a> follows two 10-year-old Muslim stepsisters growing up in Bradford. When a new job opportunity threatens to separate them, Salima and Fatima team up to keep their family together, bound together by their love of skateboarding<\/a>. The family-friendly play is part of Mini MigMat \u2014 a programme of events aimed at younger audiences.\u00a0<\/p>\n Flavours of Belonging<\/strong><\/p>\n Led by chefs from Sheffield social enterprise Ammi\u2019s Kitchen<\/a>, this hands-on cooking workshop<\/a> offers participants the chance to learn recipes from a range of cultures, including cuisine from Iraq, Pakistan, Nepal, Iran and Sri Lanka. Alongside cooking, attendees will hear the stories behind the dishes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Khalida Popal In Conversation<\/strong><\/p>\n Internationally recognised advocate for women\u2019s rights and refugee athletes Khalida Popal joins the festival for a thought-provoking conversation<\/a>. As founder of the Girl Power Organisation<\/a> and former captain and co-founder of Afghanistan\u2019s women\u2019s national football team, Popal knows exactly what she\u2019s talking about.<\/p>\n Migration Matters Festival<\/a> runs from 19 to 27 June across venues in Sheffield.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/02-migration-matters-2026.jpg\")
Alaa Shehada performing his one-man play The Horse of Jenin. Photograph by Amelia White, courtesy of Migration Matters Festival<\/p>\n![\"Jasmila](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/03-migration-matters-2026.jpg\")
Jasmila \u017dbani\u0107\u2019s Oscar-nominated Bosnian war film Quo Vadis, Aida? Photograph courtesy of Migration Matters Festival<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/04-migration-matters-2026.jpg\")
Khalida Popal. Photograph courtesy of Migration Matters Festival<\/p>\n