Pick Me Up (& hold me tight) was an invitation for collective listening, experienced through public pay-phones across Leeds.
Created by award-winning theatre and digital art company ZU-UK in response to rising suicide rates across the country, we made all the working phone boxes in Leeds ring daily.
Through an invitation to answer a public pay phone, Pick Me Up (& hold me tight) was a mass act of contemplation about the relationship between mental health and modern life.
The gentle but thought-provoking audio experience explored contemporary loneliness was an invitation to pause, take stock, and explore what kind of listeners we are.
At a time when suicide is the most common cause of death for men in Britain aged 20-49 and 1 in 4 people are affected by mental health issues at some point in their lives, Pick Me Up (& hold me tight) offered an opportunity to reflect, remember and gather.
It has become more important than ever to listen. Pick Me Up (& hold me tight) was an opportunity to reflect on changes in the fabric of our communities, the shrinking of public space and the innate power of listening – on an ambitious yet intimate scale.
During its run from 19 – 28 March 2020, over 500 calls were answered from people across Leeds.