MAYK Salon

A monthly conversation event

Every year at Mayfest – the theatre festival we run in Bristol – we notice the energy and passion of the conversations that take place, whether those conversations are part of one of our breakfast talks or late night propping up the bar, or in the queue for a show. We wanted to find a way to keep hold of that energy and passion all year round.

So we came up with the idea of the MAYK Salon. Salon seems a grand term, but it seems right somehow: “a meeting for learning or enjoyment”. MAYK Salon was a monthly event for anyone to attend, held in a pub or a café after work where we met, socialised, and heard from a specially selected speaker. The speaker wasn’t announced beforehand – it could be an artist, a politician, an academic, an activist and so on. MAYK Salon’s took place on the last Thursday of every month.

We provided the space and the speaker, and all we asked of our audience is that they came along with an open mind, a positive attitude, and a willingness to listen.