Theaterproduktionen
Theaterstücke über vergessene und verleugnete Frauen in der Geschichte
PAIN OF MAN
A dance performance
The script, drawn from interviews with Egyptian men, explores various stages in a man’s life. It delves into his emotions, his deepest pains, and the struggles he faces. Can a man truly change? Is there more to him than simply fulfilling traditional roles and stereotypes? This narrative examines boundaries, beginning with endless potential. Right from conception, or certainly once gender is identified, societal conditioning based on gender roles starts.
TWO FEMINISTS TWO MONOLOGUES
Ghada Samman & Nizar Qabbani, Two icons of the Arab world
Ghada Samman (1942) and Nizar Qabbani (1923-1998) from Syria, were both revolutionary in their views and poetry. They unreservedly demanded the equality of women in every respect, without this they wouldn’t see no development in the Arab world and society. The two icons of poetry telling their opinions about “social transformation”.
Ghada Samman: “I believed that the only way to truly liberate women was a radical revolution in all areas of politics, economics, society, culture and religion, just as there could be no social revolution without a revolution in intimacy…”
Nizar Qabbani: „I perceived a revolution in women as a path to liberation for both genders. I connected women’s rights to the broader struggle for social freedom in the Arab world. As long as we view women only through a sexual lens, true liberation remains unattainable. Sexual repression is the most significant issue facing the Arab world.“
DORIA SHAFIK (1908-1975) – THE PERFUMED LEADER AND THE ONLY MAN IN EGYPT
The Seeker of the Absolute, the woman who achieved the right to vote for Egyptian women
A dedication to one of the most admirable women:
A forgotten and denied life of The Seeker of the Absolute and its contribution to Egypt
Based on texts by Doria Shafiks family and Cynthia Nelson
A forgotten and denied life of The Seeker of the Absolute and its contribution to Egypt (1908-1975). This is the story of “The perfumed leader and the seeker of the absolute”, Doria Shafik.
She was an Egyptian feminist, poet and editor, and one of the principal leaders of the women’s liberation movement in Egypt in the mid-1940s. As a direct result of her efforts, Egyptian women were granted the right to vote by the Egyptian constitution.
Doria Shafik: “Turmoil was raging in my country. Lied had replaced the truth. I was revolted. It must change! Before it is too late!
But how to attack mountains? One had to find the stand from where to begin. It had to begin at the beginning: the woman! A nation cannot be liberated whether internally or externally while its women are enchained.”
Tarek, great-grandson: “…how to repress the memory of a woman ahead of her time… No neighborhoods, government buildings or streets named after her. Could it be that the men who tirelessly sought to erase Doria Shafik’s memory from history succeeded? The only question left to answer now is how did men attempt to repress Doria Shafik and her memory?”
DORIA SHAFIK (1908-1975) – THE PERFUMED LEADER AND THE ONLY MAN IN EGYPT
Performed 2025
This is a dedication to one of the most admirable women of Egypt. The play (premiered 2023 in Cairo, revival 2025) is about the forgotten and denied life of „The Seeker of the Absolute“ and her contribution to Egypt, and the one who achieved the right to vote for Egyptian women. Based on texts by Doria Shafiks family and Cynthia Nelson
LIBERTY WALKS NAKED
A dialogue between two poetesses. By Dorothea Walter, adapted from Qisetna
A dialogue about language, identity and freedom between the Syrian poetess Maram al Masri and the Iranian poetess Samar Shahdad. Maram Al- Masri, the award-winning Syrian poetess who has lived much of her life in Paris, meets her colleague Samar Shahdad, an Iranian poetess, who is based in Bradford. The two women are seeking their identity not in the geography of their birth country but also in poetry. A destination, which Maram believes can only be reached once one starts the journey from within.
Maram Al-Masri from Lattakia in Syria, now settled in Paris. She studied English Literature at Damascus University before starting to publish her poetry in Arab magazines in the 1970s. Today she is considered one of the most renowned and captivating feminine voices of her generation. Besides numerous poems published in literary journals, in several Arab anthologies and in various international anthologies, she has published several collections of poems. Thus far her work has been translated into eight languages. Maram has participated in many international festivals of poetry in France and abroad. She has been awarded the “Adonis Prize” of the Lebanese Cultural Forum and many more.
Samar Shahdad coming from the city of Shiraz in Iran, based in Bradford, is an exiled poet and a researcher whose work explores the themes associated with exile such as language, identity, and belonging. Samar holds an MA in Middle East Politics and Security Studies, and her literary research explores Portuguese and Spanish literature.
THE HIDDEN TREASURE – WOMEN OF SUFISM
Based on the book by Camille Adams Helminski
Overlooked – dismissed – neglected
This production focuses on women who tread the spiritual path of Sufism, the mystical dimension of Islam. These women were enlightened and awakened, serving as spiritual teachers and guides, known as Gnostics and Saints. Yet, they were often overlooked and dismissed. The most prominent figure who remains well-known is Rabi’a al-Adawiyya (717-801). However, many others, such as Fatima of Cordova and Sha`wana, have faded from memory. This performance gives them a voice. The production highlights women from the 7th to 12th centuries.