Refugee Week 2026: Odyssey Ensemble & The Ayoub Sisters
An Evening of Poetry, Music, and Conversation
| Sarah Frances Jenkins / George Szirtes | The Way There |
|---|---|
| The Ayoub Sisters | Lamma Bada Yatathana |
| Sarah Frances Jenkins | World Premiere |
| The Ayoub Sisters | Misirlou / Ah Ya Zein |
| The Ayoub Sisters | soloists (violin, cello) |
|---|---|
| George Szirtes | poet |
| Basma Kamel | poet |
| Malak Zainelabdin | poet |
| Malka Al-Haddad | poet |
| Rehab Jameel | poet |
| Kate Clanchy | panellist |
| Krish Kandiah | panellist |
| Josh Asokan | conductor, moderator |
Odyssey Ensemble presents an evening of poetry, music and conversation for Refugee Week 2026, featuring The Ayoub Sisters as soloists, a world-premiere commission, readings from poets Malak Zainelabdin, Malka Al-Haddad, Rehab Jameel and Basma Kamel, and panellists Kate Clanchy and Krish Kandiah. An evening honouring the contribution refugees have made, and continue to make, to British cultural life.
A quintet from Odyssey Ensemble is joined by The Ayoub Sisters in Hall Two for a Refugee Week evening of music, poetry and conversation, where new texts and scores unfold side by side in live performance.
The programme opens with The Way There: George Szirtes’ poem, spoken over music by Odyssey’s composer-in-residence Sarah Jenkins. Szirtes arrived in Britain as a refugee from Budapest in 1956, and his words set the tone for an evening rooted in lived experience. In the second half, Jenkins’ new Refugee Week 2026 commission receives its world premiere, interwoven with live readings from poets Malak Zainelabdin, Malka Al-Haddad, Rehab Jameel and Basma Kamel.
The Ayoub Sisters perform Lamma Bada Yatathana and a pairing of Misirlou with Ah Ya Zein. Two panel discussions, moderated by Josh Asokan, bring further perspective, featuring Kate Clanchy MBE and Krish Kandiah of the Sanctuary Foundation.
Odyssey Ensemble, the UK’s first professional orchestra dedicated to amplifying refugee voices, brings together musicians and artists to share powerful stories through music, building connection, empathy and understanding.
A moving and celebratory evening honouring the enduring contributions of refugees to British cultural life.
This event will last for approximately 75 minutes without an interval.
Concessions & Under 30s tickets
Kings Place Concessions Tickets
We want to ensure that people who may be struggling financially to purchase a ticket can still enjoy visiting Kings Place. A limited number of tickets are allocated for certain events (if the ticket type does not show in the booking pathway, it means they are not available for this event or have all been sold). Concessions tickets are accessible for people on the following criteria (for more information visit our FAQs)
- Pension Credit
- Universal Credit
- Disability Benefit
- Income Support or Job Seekers allowance
- Students
£10 ‘Under 30s’ tickets
A limited number of £10 tickets are available for certain shows to attendees aged under 30. To access Under 30s tickets, your account needs to be updated with your Date of Birth. Please visit the account centre to add your Date of Birth and go to ‘Other Preferences’ to opt in to the Under 30s Scheme.
If £10 tickets are available, the ticket discount will apply automatically at checkout. If the discount does not apply, this means all ‘Under 30s’ tickets have sold out for the performance.
Please note that proof of age may be requested at the venue.
Plan your visit
Getting here
Kings Place is situated just a few minutes’ walk from King’s Cross and St Pancras stations, one of the most connected locations in London and now the biggest transport hub in Europe.
Our address is:
90 York Way, London, N1 9AG.
The Venue
Our performance spaces are situated on the lower ground floor. Hall One, Hall Two and St Pancras are located in level -2, reached by stairs, escalator and lift from the ground floor entrance level.
Event Times
Door times indicate auditorium entrance times only. Visitors are welcome to enjoy the Kings Place seating areas, gallery-level art, canal-side terrace, café, restaurant and bar throughout the day and evening.
- Our events begin promptly at the advertised start time. Typically, there is no support unless otherwise stated.
- We recommend arriving in good time before the performance. The Hall doors will open 30 minutes before the performance to allow time to take your seats, or to choose a space for standing shows.
- Latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance where possible
Access
We aim to make your visit to Kings Place as comfortable as possible. For more information about the accessibility of Kings Place, including details about our Access Scheme, please visit this page.
If you would like to discuss your access requirements with a member of our team, please get in touch with the Box Office team at info@kingsplace.co.uk.
Food & Drink
Rotunda Bar & Restaurant
Rotunda, situated on the ground floor of Kings Place, offers a unique dining and drinking experience alongside Regent’s Canal. The concert bar in the venue foyer will also be open for select events.
Green & Fortune Café
Recently re-furbished and now open with a new look, the Green & Fortune Café is open for selected concerts. Serving hot and cold food and drinks, including sandwiches, salads, soup, stew and a pie of the day, alongside a choice of cakes made by the on-site bakery team. See here for selected concert dates and standard opening hours.
