From Wales to New Zealand, Vietnam, Brazil, and beyond...
Join award-winning Welsh musician Georgia Ruth for the second season of Breaking Boundaries - exploring how artists across different disciplines are pushing creative boundaries and fostering international collaborations.
Featuring interviews with diverse Welsh artists and cultural figures, the series uncovers how international exchange enriches creative practice, builds lasting connections, and positions Wales on the global arts stage.
The series includes Welsh musicians Carwyn Ellis and producer Greg Haver, discussing their work connecting with musicians and producers in Aotearoa, New Zealand; Lleuwen Steffan sharing how her 'Tafod Arian' project celebrates the roots of Welsh sacred music; writer Ian Rowlands exploring his boundary-pushing 'Aurora Borealis' anti-theatre project; and poet Joshua Jones celebrating LGBTQ+ communities' spaces with connections to Vietnam.
Listeners will also hear from Welsh theatre companies Dirty Protest Theatre and Hijinx about their connections with communities in France and remote areas of Brazil; internationally acclaimed artist Sir John Akomfrah discussing his upcoming exhibition moving from the Venice Biennale to the National Museum Wales; and Anna Falcini's connection with France and exploration of Welsh artist Gwen John's legacy.
Breaking Boundaries S2 is produced by Hannah Loy.
Breaking Boundaries: Series Two | Trailer
Breaking Boundaries: Series two | Episode one | Music across oceans
Host Georgia Ruth in conversation with Welsh musicians Carwyn Ellis and producer Greg Haver, discussing their work connecting with musicians and producers in Aotearoa, New Zealand; Lleuwen Steffan sharing how her 'Tafod Arian' project celebrates the roots of Welsh sacred music.
Breaking Boundaries: Series two | Episode two | Literature without borders
Host Georgia Ruth explores how Welsh writers connect with global perspectives through international collaboration. Welsh playwright Ian Rowlands' discusses his boundary-pushing "anti-theatre" Aurora Borealis project with South African director Tiisetso Mashifane wa Noni. We also hear from poet Joshua Jones about his Room/Ystafell/Phòng anthology celebrating LGBTQ+ spaces connecting Wales and Viet Nam, featuring Lauren Morais, Xuân Tùng and Maik Cây.
Breaking Boundaries: Series two | Episode three | Exploring global theatre links
Georgia Ruth explores innovative theatre partnerships across borders. Discover Dirty Protest Theatre's "The Exquisite Corpse" initiative with Brazil's People's Palace Projects – a creative chain connecting artists in Wrexham, Rhondda Valley, and Caernarfon with indigenous performers from the Wauja community in the Amazon region of Brazil. The episode then features Hijinx Theatre's 'Bon Appétit,' a playful puppetry project with France's Compagnie de L'Oiseau-Mouche that includes performers with learning disabilities. Using the absence of a Welsh equivalent for "Bon Appétit" as inspiration, this Wales in France programme production examines cultural connections through food.
Breaking Boundaries: Series two | Episode four | Visual art across borders
In the series two finale, we explore how visual arts can create powerful international connections. Sir John Akomfrah discusses his immersive exhibition Listening All Night to the Rain, which premieres on Saturday, 24 May 2025, at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales. It marks the first stop on its UK national tour, following its acclaimed run at the 60th Venice Biennale. Museum curators Lowri Angharad Williams and Ceri Jones also reveal how the installation—weaving themes of memory, migration, and climate change through sonic landscapes—represents a significant moment for Wales in the global arts scene. Then we journey to Paris with artist Anna Falcini as she explores the legacy of Welsh artist Gwen John. She traces Gwen John's footsteps in Paris, discovering personal letters and notebooks in the Musée Rodin archives inspiring a moving performance piece.