Little Amal Walks Across Massachusetts

As summer winds down and Massachusetts prepares to usher in autumn, we can look forward to an exciting visit from a friend in search of a home. Little Amal, a 12-foot tall, little girl puppet from Syria, will land in Boston on September 7 to begin her nine-week journey across the United States, “from sea to shining sea.”

Massachusetts was chosen because of the resonance of Boston as the site of the beginnings of European immigration in 1620. Welcomed on behalf of the city by members of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and Mayor Wu, Amal will spend three days in Boston and the rest of the week in Massachusetts, visiting Ashfield and North Adams.

Dozens of Massachusetts arts organizations and hundreds of artists, advocates, and community leaders will host Amal across the Commonwealth’s neighborhoods, cities, and towns. We invite you to join in welcoming Amal and in celebrating the beauty and diversity of the cultures and creative expressions that breathe life into Massachusetts and illuminate the vibrancy and necessity of human connection.

We invite you to join in welcoming Amal and in celebrating the beauty and diversity of the cultures and creative expressions that breathe life into Massachusetts and illuminate the vibrancy and necessity of human connection.

Little Amal, whose name means hope in Arabic, is a powerful fusion of theater and public art that brings together communities to raise awareness for local and global issues, including immigration, migration, gentrification, and climate resilience. Her walk opens spaces for communities to come together and openly discuss these challenges while also sparking joy, celebration, and unity.

Little Amal was created in response to the growing refugee crisis set off by the war in Syria and is an international collaboration among the U.K.-based The Walk Productions, Handspring Puppet Company, Artistic Director Amir Nizar Nuabi, Choose Love, and thousands of artists. In her 2021 walk from the Syrian-Turkish border to Manchester, England, over a million people walked with her along parts of her journey, with another 10 million participating online. Little Amal quickly became a symbol of human rights on behalf of the millions of refugees around the world and has participated in over 200 welcome events in 97 cities in 15 countries.

Little Amal has three primary goals as she walks around the world in search of home, community, and belonging: 1) To foster empathy by fully being who she is – a 10-year-old Syrian girl; 2) To work as an ally for people migrating; and 3) To create moments of beautiful artistry and joy that are authentic and meaningful to the local people she meets.

Amal has an urgent message on behalf of refugees and migrants displaced by war: “See us. We are right here.” This global crisis affects tens of thousands of people world-wide, half of whom are children. She is also a source of her namesake hope, and her journey reminds us that people are not defined by the bad things that happen to them or the challenges they face. We are part of a global neighborhood and there is beauty in welcoming those who are different than us. Sharing and uplifting the diverse experiences that make us all human help us imagine possibilities for a thriving world greater than one person, or even one community, can imagine.

Amal has an urgent message on behalf of refugees and migrants displaced by war: “See us. We are right here.”

At Barr, the Arts & Creativity team is excited to support Little Amal’s visit for several reasons:

• Amal’s walk will uplift and celebrate Massachusetts immigrant communities and their culturally-specific creative expressions and disciplines;
• Little Amal’s walk demonstrates the power of theater and public art to speak to current issues and to imagine solutions;
• Local artists will be celebrated as key players in driving change and as assets in creating thriving, vibrant communities;
• Artists, changemakers, and activists from multiple sectors are coming together to collaborate on Little Amal’s welcome in perhaps the largest collaborative community celebration that Boston has seen since the pandemic;
• Amal’s journey in Massachusetts provokes artistic responses that catalyze new ways of thinking about racial and cultural equity; and finally,
• The welcoming events for Amal are fantastic opportunities to gather in person to celebrate community, culture, and healing after three years of ongoing pandemic and social upheaval impacts. Her visit is a chance to be together, and, to borrow a phrase from Barr’s Climate team, to pause for joy with Amal!

This massive group effort involves organizations across the state – including, in Greater Boston, ArtsEmerson, American Repertory Theater/Harvard University, Company One Theater, Extinction Rebellion Boston, the Institute of Contemporary Art, Now + There, the Boston University Center on Forced Displacement and BU Arts Initiative, the Puppet Free Library, Foxborough Public Schools, and RefugePoint; Okheteau Cultural Center and Double Edge Theater, and Jupiter Performance Studio in Ashfield; and Mass MOCA in North Adams.

In Boston, Amal will make stops in Chinatown, Dewey Square, Franklin Park, East Boston’s Piers Park, and Fenway Park – could Boston really let her leave before throwing out the first pitch and joining us for a Red Sox game?

The full list of partners and participants is still growing. More information about Little Amal’s itinerary and events can be found here. Find out how you or your organization can get involved!

Published 08.28.2023