Manchester International Festival 2021: Zoe Iqbal, actor and poet on her part in ‘I love you too’ and reads ‘Happiness’ (video)

More than a hundred residents were involved in contributing reflections about love in a book which can now be purchased and a public event marking its production is still in the planning…

IN THIS, the last of our videos on the Manchester International Festival (July 1-18), actor and poet Zoe Iqbal explains her role in the festival’s ‘I Love You Too’ project which will continue to exist through the form of a book of poems.

This project saw the residents of Manchester share their experiences and thoughts about what they loved – from people to places and objects – even trainers/sneakers as Iqbal explains. More than 100 worked with 11 writers in all – just one of the writers helping them was Iqbal.

The project was conceived by Keman Wa Lehulere, a South African artist who was resident artist at MIF2019 and was based at Manchester’s network of libraries and ‘I Love You Too’ was inspired by his time in the city.

As you will see in the video, the poems have already been collected into a book, and it is hoped that at some point in the near future, those involved in the project will meet at an event to celebrate this work.

There are also plans to spread the idea of such an initiative to other cities and possibly create a network of global ‘I Love You Too’ projects.

To purchase the book: https://mif.co.uk/whats-on/i-love-you-too/#buy-the-book

More on the Manchester Internationl Festival 2021 (#MIF21): https://mif.co.uk