A selection of images of Istanbul and a Czech Republic banknote

I was born & bred in Istanbul and I lived there until I was 29. In the early 2000s, it was very cosmopolitan; full of art and culture, inclusive and free.

The feeling in Istanbul changed and following the Gezi protests in 2013, there were a lot of restrictions that affected the music industry; changes to sponsorship and working hours. Even today, it’s the place where things happen and is still my home.

I’ve been in Turkey most of my life, except for the 6 months I spent as an Erasmus student in Karviná in the the Czech Republic. And that was a really important experience for me.

I’ve realised that it is easy for me to feel at home somewhere. It doesn't matter how long I'm there, if there's an opportunity to connect...

I will connect.

A document, sketchbook drawing, and an everyday cup

I was looking for an MA programme in creative writing, and got offered a place here at Lincoln University. I have a family, I have my husband, and my son was 3 ½ .when we arrived, so a small city like Lincoln made sense.

As I was finishing my MA, a PhD & Teaching Fellowship came up, asking for a candidate to explore & research the cultural assets of the university. I submitted a proposal and I think that alongside the fact my educational background included economics & performing arts - they also liked that, being from Turkey, I was an outsider looking in - whilst also an insider from the industry, having spent my adult life as a performing artist.

Now, I am both a member of staff and a PhD student - aka “researcher in residence” for Lincoln Art Centre & the Barbican Creative Hub. My PhD is very place based, and so I've had a lot to learn about UK cultural policy, and about Lincoln!

Thinking back now, I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but luckily I'm a very curious person… I want to learn everything!

A microphone, performance images, and a personal stage item

After my BA in Economics, I studied EU Law at Istanbul University. I was always interested in the sociological side, but this MA was ‘law, law’. I was interested in cultural relations, which related to my love of music, but there was this itch I felt…

I'd started making money as an interpreter and translator while I was a student, and that gave me the means to apply for a musical theatre programme - and to finally pursue my life-long passion for performing arts!

When I graduated, I spent 4 years working as a singer in a production called ‘Caprice The Show’ - it was a full glam Studio 54 style extravaganza. There were make-up artists, glamorous costumes, and an amazing producer who taught me a lot. 18 people in total with 8 of us singers - I was working with the best!

I definitely felt a transition from being a talented young person, to a professional.

A copy of Dialectic of Enlightenment and one of Burcu’s tea cups

During my EU law MA, I was assigned this sociology professor as a supervisor, who on our first meeting gave me this book and just said, "come back to me when you’ve read this”.

It took me 15 years but now I’m at University of Lincoln finally reading it for my PhD. I realise the supervisor did me a favour - giving me a bit of a reality check about how to be self-directed in my work.

PhD life can be quite lonely. Although help is available, no one tells you what to do, and no one knows the answers. It's the most difficult thing I’ve ever done in my life - but I love it - and I love academic conferences. When I'm presenting, it feels very similar to being on stage - I love listening to the speculation, the provocation, and I'm so happy that I found a platform as an academic. It feels like a playground of ideas, but it can sometimes be restrictive as even in a playground there are rules.

A personal photograph and a keepsake from travel

It was 2016 in Bodrum, I was performing at a wedding for the owner of a large airline, and I’d had my eye on this bass player named Şener - so I asked a friend to introduce us.

On our break, we talked, walked, and he kept me stable while I was wearing heels. He was convinced that we'd met the previous season at the cafe that inspired the Chris Rea song, “Blue Cafe”. But I wasn't sure we had… Maybe he’d changed his hair or lost weight?

After that, he visited me in Istanbul, and took me on a strange date: involving paperwork for his car, and travelling hours across the city to visit his brother at his dental clinic… you know, strange normal things… but I just felt so comfortable sharing time with him. We returned to Bodrum, and spent the rest of that summer together.

Şener was convinced we would be together; "We're going to get married, so I need to do my military service." he said. 2 months later, he was doing his 6-month mandatory service, he stored all of his stuff in my house, and when he finished, we moved in together.

The next year, we did get married…

Photographs from two wedding celebrations

Şener and I got married in 2017. Twice.

Our 1st wedding was really a wedding party, a dinner, and was held in a tavern located in an old train station in Istanbul named Haydarpaşa. It’s a really important landmark. We didn't hire a photographer, my sister took the photos, but it just happened that there was a Biennale taking place. And so the train station was decorated beautifully. It felt really nostalgic, and there were these old-fashioned swings. It was pure luck, but it became like this accidental performance, as we were surrounded by all this beautiful art.

Our 2nd wedding was in the Black Sea region where Şener’s family are from. In the north, the weather is similar to the UK and it's very green. There's also a different kind of etiquette outside a big city, and it’s a lot more traditional. He has such a large family, so there were a lot of kisses and hugs from people I'd never seen in my life!

Jora’s Lego object, Jora’s artwork, and family photographs

In the Summer of 2018 I became pregnant, and the last gig before I went into labour was on New Year's Eve. People were always worrying about me being so visibly pregnant onstage, saying things like, "Maybe you shouldn't hit that high note incase you pop?"

Our son’s name ‘Jora’ means ‘the sun’ in Şener's native tongue (called “Laz”). It also means Autumn Rain in Hebrew. Having him has changed me significantly - I really think about my time, and I've learned to say no sometimes, to save my energy for him.

Being a parent really increases your motivation; you make bold decisions. I don't know if I would have decided to come to the UK if it wasn't for Jora. We love Lincoln, but who knows where we might end up as a family in the future? Spain, Italy, Central Europe, the Far East? We’ll see what opportunities arise - we have the power of mobility and want to become global citizens.

A rolled text art work, small remnants, and an exhibition card

During COVID, we weren't allowed to do live performances, there were no concerts - I was scared by the thought that we would never go to a club, gig, festival - anything in close proximity. Somehow, we kept creating, writing songs, doing voice overs; but it showed us how precarious our jobs are, and it gave me a chance to miss singing.

I was feeling physically and mentally tired. But, I had this itching in my brain and it wasn't getting any better - so I felt like we probably needed to do something. I’d been talking to a friend who had been applying to LAMDA in London, which inspired us, and so we thought that we could start looking for a new family adventure too.

I applied for MA’s all over the world - Canada, Australia, The UK - writing so many cover letters. When I had my interview for University of Lincoln, the interviewer’s questions felt like the first time I’d ever been asked to articulate who I am. I was accepted, and it felt like the right fit, so we moved to Lincoln.

Original score-books and album imagery

I always said yes to singing everything. Soul, R&B, rock, pop… that’s my vibe.

Turkish classical music is quite a challenge - but generally I love performing everything!

In my musical theatre training, my singing teachers were from opera, the dance teachers were from ballet & contemporary dance, and the theatre teachers from straight theatre - no one had a ‘musical theatre’ background. I was part of the first generation in Turkey figuring out how musical theatre singing works in the voice.

In The Heights was the first show I fell in love with, I'm a Les Mis girl, and I love The Wild Party. Around 2015, I set up a theatre company with my friend and transitioned from music performer to performing arts producer. I translated Sondheim's Company into Turkish, and we created a production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch. It was very early days, and there is much more Musical Theatre in Turkey now, so I’d love to go back and produce something a bit more experimental at some point.

A disco ball light, family photographs, and a small everyday object

I love living in Lincoln, it’s beautiful. I love walking around and all the amazing history & architecture being on my doorstep!

Most days contain the school rush, researching, teaching prep, school pick-up, cooking, housework. In between the deadlines, spending quality time with my family, maybe a movie or Netflix - and there is always music.

We have all kinds of guitars and I love dancing. We have these out of nowhere dancing sessions at home before dinner, before bedtime, whenever it happens. We play K-Pop Demon Hunters, Guns N' Roses, ABBA, Boney M, and we just dance it out!

Then my husband will start playing a song, and I'll start spontaneously singing too. Most of the time my son interferes and wants to sing his own songs about Ninja Turtles, brilliant…

There's always music, there’s singing, there’s dancing, all the time.