Saleem Haddad: Author Opens Up About Debut Novel ‘Guapa’

Living in a politically volatile city in the Middle East, a young Arab drag queen – who is by day a tireless human rights activist – is arrested by the police in the early hours of the morning for being at a cinema which is a cruising spot for working class men. He is subjected to intrusive questioning and cruel abuse by the insertion of an egg-like contraption into his rectum to test and gage his homosexuality.

Once released, though, he doesn’t make a fuss of what has happened to him. Rather, he continues with his work via an international NGO to expose local government human rights’ violations. He is also not afraid to keep performing his drag queen act at Guapa, the queer nightclub that is home to all outcasts. A brave and proud soul, he will never deny his alternative sexuality even in a hostile environment and putting his life at further risk.

The drag queen is, of course, Maj and he is both real and not real, just like all the other characters and the events in Saleem Haddad’s debut novel ‘Guapa’. Written in the vulnerable male voice of Rasa, who confides about his gay love pain, Haddad expertly creates imaginary figures to reflect on the competing facets of Arab society, the culture and its conservative mores. It also depicts the political, economic and religious forces at war in the MENA region today.

‘Guapa’ readers will sense many a déjà vu moment as the unnamed city in the background can just as easily be Amman, Beirut, Damascus, Tunis or Cairo, that we have all either visited, lived in or seen through our computers and TV screens. This Arab city, its inhabitants and the dynamics at large are all in our collective subconscious anyway and don’t’ need to be pinned down to one place, as Haddad rightly makes this literary choice in an engaging and timely tale.

Rasa’s emotional torment and the unrequited love which threatens his reason and sanity is the main theme that enables Haddad to firstly capture our hearts – for love is love and it doesn’t’ discriminate. But as gay relations are taboo in most Middle Eastern countries, Haddad explores the not so public but private terrain from an insider perspective, as he himself is a gay Arab male who had to keep his sexuality hidden throughout his young adulthood until one day he found the courage to come out to his family and friends.

Connecting with our intellect too ‘Guapa’ features the arguments of the great known thinkers like Edward Said and Amin Maalouf on what influences the Arab identity vis-à-vis the Western world. When Rasa finds himself at a university in America in the aftermath of 9/11, he becomes the victim of ignorant prejudice and distrust by fellow students and it makes him realise that he may never be able to fully fit in there.

From Berlin, Haddad was kind enough to answer my questions in anticipation of taking part in the Shubbak Literature talk titled ‘A New Confidence’, where he will be joined by Alexandra Chreiteh, Amahl Khouri and Alberto Fernández Carbajal to discuss recent queer writings.

Nahla: What is it really like for the LGBT communities in the Middle East? Is there more freedom in some countries and not others or would you say it is oppressive in all of them?

Haddad: “What are we talking about when we talk about ‘freedom’? Freedom from what exactly? Freedom from community? From government? From society? And what do we lose when we free ourselves from society? That sort of freedom can be very lonely and these are the sorts of dilemmas the characters in Guapa are grappling with. And what about the concept of ‘oppression’? Oppression is multi-faceted and is not as simple as victim and perpetrator. I find it more useful to look at oppression as systems and structures that are dynamic and constantly changing.

“I also believe that the binary of ‘freedom’ and ‘oppression’ is not a useful way of looking at any situation, including that of LGBT communities in the Middle East. In any case, it’s impossible to speak on behalf of millions of LGBT individuals across the Arab world. I think it’s important to recognise the diversity of experiences and how elements like social class, geography and politics play into the experiences of LGBT communities. This is certainly something I tried to do in the book.”

Nahla: Rasa is self-loathing both when he is living in the Middle East and when he is in the West. Is this unique to his character or is it a common emotional experience for people of alternative sexualities in the Middle East due to the wide spread concept of shame and sin?

Haddad: “Rasa is a sensitive and self-aware character and in my experience sensitivity and self-awareness always bring a certain degree of self-loathing. But certainly he is battling shame, particularly around his sexuality, which he had to keep hidden from a very young age. I think gay shame is a universal phenomenon, not limited to the Arab world. I was certainly interested in exploring shame from a Middle Eastern communal context. But gay shame, sadly, remains a facet of the global LGBT community in various forms.”

Nahla: Tell me about Taymour’s character and the choice he makes to get married, deny his homosexuality and reject Rasa. Is he an archetype of something?

Haddad: “Taymour represents a certain type of fear that drives citizens to conform. It’s the same type of fear that propels Arab parents to make sure their sons study medicine or engineering and the fear that drives them to push their daughters into marrying into the ‘right’ kind of family.

“It’s the fear that drives citizens to support someone like Egypt’s President Sisi, Syria’s Bashar Al-Assad or any of the sectarian militias-cum-political-parties in Lebanon. Taymour is a representation of that sort of fear, the fear that compels people to social and political conformity. I wanted to sympathise with this conformity, I wanted to understand it, and understand why someone like Rasa might gravitate towards it.”

Nahla: The background city in Guapa experiences uprisings and a civil war situation. How were you involved in the movements circa 2011 in the Middle East?

Haddad: “I was in Beirut when the uprisings began in Tunisia and in London when the Egyptian uprising began—which is when coverage was the highest. Once the protests started in Yemen, a country I spent a lot of time working in, I tried to use my knowledge of the country to lobby British politicians and policymakers to support the uprisings. And as they progressed, I began to work with an NGO that worked with youth and women activists in Egypt, Libya and Yemen. But in many cases I found myself stuck in an odd position, as both an outsider and an insider. In many ways, it was a good position from which to write this sort of novel.”

Nahla: Do you see yourself as an LGBT activist? What are the challenges facing the LGBT rights movement in the MENA region?

Haddad: “I don’t see myself as an LGBT activist, though I recognise that having published the novel I am a voice for the community. Still, it is not a title I am comfortable with. In the end, I am a writer and if I am seen as a representative of anything, I will only disappoint. There are many brave LGBT activists and allies of the LGBT community who are working tirelessly through the region that are doing fantastic work, much more than anything I have ever done – they are too many to name.

“But I have heard from the LGBT community in the region that the novel has struck a chord with many of them, and so I’m proud for the novel to be part of a growing queer Arab culture.”

Nahla: In the novel, Rasa entertains the fantasy of escape with his lover to a Western country where he thinks their sexuality won’t be a problem. And, in your own life, you live in the UK with your partner. But what is it really like for the gay Arab person who is unable to make such an escape and is bombarded by religious and cultural forces that negate his homosexuality?

Haddad: “Is my sexuality not an issue in the UK? The only time I have been called a faggot and threatened with violence was in London, just fifteen metres from my house in Hackney. Though certainly, the situation for LGBT communities in the West is much better than in the Arab world. And from my own experience, growing up as a sensitive and slightly effeminate young boy in Kuwait and Jordan, I faced some relentless bullying and violence at the hands of other boys who sought to punish me for not fulfilling social ideals of masculinity.

“But I think we should try to avoid simplistic binaries that assume the West equals freedom and the Arab world equals violence and death. As for how to tackle homophobia in the Arab world, I would caution any sweeping statements about homophobia in the Arab world being driven purely by religion. I think homophobia in the Arab world is best understood by examining the unique cocktail of authoritarianism, ignorance, and misogyny – which affects all people in the region in different ways and to greater or lesser degrees. Thus, in tackling homophobia, I think we need to tackle all three of these elements.”

Nahla: I was very intrigued by the character of the mother who runs away from her son and husband without an explanation as to why. Can you tell me what inspired her personality and which archetype does she represent?

Haddad; “The mother character was probably the hardest character to write. I suppose because in many ways she represents a certain sensitivity and radical truth that I myself had to hide from society at a very young age. I learned the hard way that to be a man in the Arab world, one must not show sensitivity, and to be a citizen in the Arab world, one must shy away from the pursuit of truth at any cost. So in many ways, the fate of Rasa’s mother is reflective of how the characters – not just Teta, but Rasa and his father as well – chose to deal with their sensitivity and their fear of facing truth.”

Nahla: One last question. Who inspired the character of Maj?

Haddad: “Many friends inspired the character of Maj; but, fundamentally, I suppose Maj was inspired by the kind of person I aspire to be.”

——-

Note: This article was first published circa July 2017 in collaboration with the Shubbak Festival

For more information on the Shubbak Festival: http://www.shubbak.co.uk/

Barakah Meets Barakah: The Young Saudi Trio Behind the Film Speak to Nahla Ink

Like the mysterious woman hidden under a fine silk abaya, Saudi Arabia is the country cloaked in expensive outer wear but that doesn’t give away too much. Although we can smell the fragrance of her woody-scented oud, we can never quite imagine the beauty that might be beneath. With the exception of Mecca and Medina that reveal the religious pilgrim trail, the rest of Saudi seems to exist in a parallel universe that the rest of us are unable to fathom.

The lack of a visual reference point has also added to the problem. In terms of world cinema, only one film production originating in Saudi has ever made it to the big wide international screen in the past few years. ‘Wadjda’ (2012) by Haifaa Al Mansour was the first feature film shot entirely in the Kingdom and the first ever made by a female Saudi director. Now the good news is that we have a new movie made in Saudi and created by a young terrific trio that opens up the country in a new and a very much up-to-date kind of way.

Directed by the 33-year-old Mahmoud Sabbagh, ‘Barakah Meets Barakah’ is the romantic story between a rich pretty Saudi girl named Bibi – who is an Instagram video blogger and local star – and the young frustrated government employee, Barakah, who falls in love with her. The tale sees the hilarious difficulties they encounter in trying to have a proper date in a city where public space is under constant surveillance and where the moral police are on the look out for any suspicious behaviour lest it goes against the strict religious dictates.

Played by Fatima Al-Banawi and Hisham Fageeh and set in Jeddah, we gain an insight into the lives of both the very rich Saudis who live in gilded mansions with easy access to designer labels and international travel and the less well-off who are a bit more restricted. But even with her online fame and wealth, Bibi can only post images and videos on Instagram that don’t fully reveal her gorgeous face or her sexy figure. There is also the use of pixelated images in the film as a reminder of that which must be self-censored to avoid the wrath of the ever-watchful government.

           

‘Barakah Meets Barakah’ is a film that also deals with how the young generation of Saudis are responding to the new communication technologies and the use of online social media platforms. It explores how the virtual space is spilling over into their local reality and perhaps opening the way for a social revolution to be led by the millennials. With light humour, Sabbagh has directed something vey special, touching and timely that dares to challenge our perceptions of exactly what could be under that fine silk abaya.

Very much honoured, I met with the fresh-faced trio at the BFI London Film Festival and had five minutes to interview each of them to get their thoughts on the film. Already, ‘Barakah Meets Barakah’ has been screened at the Berlinale for its world premiere, the Toronto International Film Festival and in Hong Kong, Italy, Mexico, Brazil and now London. They are also in the process of submitting it for ‘Best Foreign Language’ film at the Oscars!

Nahla With Director Mahmoud Sabbagh

Nahla: What is it like for youngsters in Saudi today? Is the culture more open than what it used to be?

Sabbagh: “I would say it is very challenging to live in Saudi as a young person. We are the millennial generation and we have less privileges economically, socially and politically. We are kind of the voiceless generation and the generation that actually came after the oil boom. It is tougher for us to create our own opportunities.

“That being said and addressed, I think also that it is interesting times to be in Saudi because it is evolving at a very phenomenal pace. The big change is happening in the undercurrents with the internet and social media sweeping the country. There is a big phenomena of usage. Because we don’t’ have a very open public space, the kids use social media and the internet as an alternative.

“So they meet there, they interact and they are exposed to different narratives and different realities and they create their own stuff… This is very well reflected in the Youtube scene, maybe one of the most vibrant and prolific Youtube content is coming from Saudi Arabia in the Arab world. There is the comedy and the music, for example, and I think this is going to evolve into something more meaningful and into real cinema”

Nahla: The online world is uncensored, but is there still a need for self-censorship when it comes to Saudi?

Sabbagh: “You feel it and you cannot articulate it. I come from a journalism background, so I tend to know what are the red lines, what should we push or shouldn’t push at the moment. There are social constraints and there are political constraints. But I would say that Saudi also fairly enjoys a very critical culture, in the press, through social media and in Youtube content. There is a lot of social commentary and also very brave political commentary allowing for interaction.

“We also have a new leadership, a de facto deputy crown prince who is only 31 years old, who speaks our language and speaks our tone, who is addressing the problems we have as youth. His name is Mohammed Bin Salman. He was very vocal about how the government should change and he is participating in this critical culture, so this is a positive thing.”

Nahla: Why use humour?

Sabbagh: “I use humour as a tactic because it opens to a broader audience and it is universal. Although the film has lots of comedic lines, in the undercurrents, you can see the disarray and the discontent. I use humour because we should face our own challenges by mocking them and making fun of them. Not to appease to the West or Western values or Eastern values, but for us to distort the power paradigm through humour.”

Nahla: What is your next project?

Sabbagh: “I will still do films from Saudi and real stories from Saudi because we are among the least told about societies in the world. We should make films from home and I understand the need. I will continue to do the same with a small budget, small crew but tackle very open and honest stories.”

Nahla With Actress Fatima Al Banawi

Nahla: How is social media changing the lives of young Saudis?

Al Banawi: “It has created something like a virtual public space for people to meet up. It is interesting that at the end of the night, you can open Twitter and feel you are not alone. Your thoughts are mutual and you feel one another. There is a sort of dialogue happening. Even if it started in the virtual world, it has definitely had an extension to our actual realities.

“One of the most important things you would do however is to make the social media an extension of your reality and not the opposite way. You need a lot of concentration and a lot of time management and work, for it in your own reality to do something worthy of sharing on social media. So the focus doesn’t become sharing, the focus becomes on producing and working on something tangible and real and heartfelt.”

Nahla: Tell me about social segregation between the sexes in Saudi?

Al Banawi: “No, you are told by people that are not us. That is why the film is so highly important. We have been brought up watching films and literature being written about us but not by us and rarely would I watch something on the big screen and feel or identify with it as true or real.

“Not to say that our film is to be generalised upon a thirty million population; but, of course, it is a true, raw, real and heartfelt depiction of Saudi people, of a group of Saudi people of a certain population in Saudi. So we are Saudis and this film is Saudi and it makes a difference because it is coming from the region and not to the region about it.”

Nahla: How long have you known Mahmoud and Hisham? What was it like to work with them?

Al Banawi: “I’ve known Mahmoud as an old family friend since ten years and Hisham for about six years, when he moved back from the United States. It was these conversations about our generation and the art that brought us together and I was familiar with both of their works. I also believed in the project knowing there will be a social element to the film. So when I pursued this, it was more from my side a social contribution to this dialogue between people and between cultures of different backgrounds and traditions.”

Nahla: Can you also tell me more about the humour in the film?

Al Banawi: “Mahmoud wanted to write a film about public space which is what the film talks about. But of course it is hard to tackle public space in a film format, otherwise it will be more like a documentary. So Hisham has a very nice witty kind of humour character and I feel like his energy was nicely brought into this film, in the sense that you would see him and you would laugh at certain facial expressions for example.

“Also the other characters in the film master this natural humour. One of the nice things about this film is that it is local, so that a lot of the locals would watch it and laugh at certain humour that maybe the international audience would not laugh at. The international audience might laugh at a different part of the film, while the locals would feel otherwise.”

Nahla: What about young romance in Saudi?

Al Banawi: “These things have changed. As Hisham mentioned, he met his wife online on Twitter and they are happily married now. This kind of gives you a glimpse of how social media has an extension outside of the screen and directly applied in our own realities, which is very important for me.

“When social media first started, I was careful and I didn’t want to feel that I had a reality that was only inside a screen. It was very important for me and very responsible of me that I wanted to make the extension and to work on the extension and not what is happening inside the screen.”

Nahla With Actor Hisham Fageeh

Nahla: Tell me, is there a sign of social change taking place in Saudi?

Fageeh: “Change is inevitable and I think that is what you will see in the movie. Sometimes change can be for the progress of specific people or sometimes it is a regression for specific people. It all depends, but change is imminent and it is always happening. Whether you call that progress is based on your value system that is subjective and fluid. It is definitely different from 1994 and it will be different in another ten years.”

Nahla: What are your views about social media and the impact it is having on young Saudis?

Fageeh: “I have made a career out of social media! I met my wife on social media. I was living in New York and she was living in the Eastern Province and we started following each other because we liked each other’s tweets. We met up and then we dated when I got back to Saudi Arabia. She was tweeting about Kendrick Lamar lyrics, and the things that we both identified with. As Fatima says, it creates a track record or a breadcrumb trail relating to different societies and different niche groups.”

‘Barakah Meets Barakah’ was screened twice as part of the BFI London Film Festival 2016.

The team hope that it will continue to travel the world and perhaps even win that Oscar gong!

For more on the BFI LFF: http://www.bfi.org.uk/lff

Note: This article was first published circa October 2016

Charlotte Desorgher: Choreographer Who Is Elevating Middle Eastern Belly Dance to a New Theatrical Potential

As a professional dance choreographer one of the greater milestones is to be able to create a genius enough production that is worthy of being staged at Sadler’s Wells. Recognised as one of the world’s top venues dedicated to international dance, only the very best of ballet, flamenco, hip-hop, jazz, Latin and other forms is allowed on its London platform with a standard that requires no less than artistic perfection. So it was that when I met Charlotte Desorgher, she had just realised this very big aspiration.

Modest, energetic and friendly in person with a twinkle in her eye, she relayed to me the start of her passionate love affair with belly dance and the Middle East as well as revealing the great efforts and time it has taken her to finally get to this stage to be able to see her latest production ‘Scheherazade and the One Thousand and One Nights’ being performed for two nights at Sadler’s Wells.

‘Scheherazade’ is Desorgher’s brave experimental take on belly dance based on the vision and desire to elevate the exotic feminine dance form to a higher theatrical level that has hitherto not been achieved in the UK. She said: “My dream for a long time has been to tell the wider world about belly dance and I want to take it out particularly to the Western world and the wide general public in the same way that Michael Flatley did with Irish dancing in Riverdance. He made it spectacular and people saw Irish dancing in a new way.”

Desorgher’s credentials today can be matched by very few other dance experts in the UK and possibly far beyond. Since her first synchronistic exposure to belly dance in 1981, when the then 22-year-old Charlotte visited an Arab nightclub in Grosvenor Square and saw a belly dancer, she was determined to learn the technique, immerse herself in its history, development and culture as well as to teach it to as many women as possible for them also to be able to enjoy and share in the fun of it.

She said: “The club I visited in 1981 was a completely magical place called ‘The Empress’. There were long tables and all nationalities of Arab men and women as well as a stage and orchestra. It was the beginning of the oil boom and the Arabs, especially from the Gulf, had a lot of money. There too they would bring lots of singers and dancers and I saw some famous Egyptian performers there. It was very heady for me and I loved seeing the way Arabs get completely into the music.”

At the time, Desorgher had always dreamed of being a ballerina and had trained in ballet from the age of five, but by the age of fifteen it was clear that she was never going to have a tiny English ballerina body. As she says: “I grew hips!” So she decided to go into dance teaching instead and followed the classic European route. At the Froebel Institute of Roehampton University, she learned about contemporary dance and theory as well as the Martha Graham and Merce Cunningham techniques. But it was this new and rather strange dance that had captured her heart and imagination.

Desorgher: “When I first saw a belly dancer, it was an epiphany because I thought that this is a dance for a woman with hips and it is a dance where you can get in touch with that sensual womanliness. You can have hips, a bit of belly and boobs. I just thought this is totally for me! So then I taught myself belly dance because there was nobody teaching it back in those days.”

Fast forward thirty-five years with a little time out, Desorgher is the authority to go to for all things belly dance. Over time, she has not only trained herself but thousands of others at the professional, semi-professional and beginners levels. She is the Founder-Director of ‘Hipsinc’, the largest belly dance school in the UK with branches throughout the country since 2007, and the Founder-Artistic Director of ‘Company of Dream’s which is behind the production of ‘Scheherazade’.

The Origins of Belly Dance and Its Heyday

Although nobody knows the exact origins of belly dance, it has been associated with both the goddess myth and birth celebrations. According to Desorgher, there is strong evidence to suggest that it was part of birthing rituals. Like the Lamaze technique that helps to make childbirth pain free, a lot of the exercises are the exact same movements used in belly dance. For example, rocking the pelvis helps to release contractions and belly rolls help to get rid of cramps.

It is also agreed that belly dance originated somewhere in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with the most likely locations being either Egypt or Turkey. There is also the probability that the Moors took it along North Africa and up to Spain as some say that Flamenco is the daughter of belly dance. Traditionally, also, belly dance was done by women with each other at home and didn’t have any overt sexual connotations.

Desorgher explained: “If you consider that the dance comes from the Muslim world, of course men and women are separate and women dance for each other. There is a suggestion that what happened was that circa WWII, when the British soldiers heard about the women doing this exotic dance, they wanted to see it and some women needed the money. So they started to perform for the British and the French soldiers and it started to get associated with the sex industry.“

One can say that belly dance had its heyday in the 1960s and early 1970s, when in Cairo particularly and through Egyptian cinema some terrific female belly dancers gained an artistic appreciation for their work as actresses who added an incredible dimension to the films and were almost revered. These included Samia Gamal, who had a longstanding romantic relationship with the famous Syrian composer Farid Al Atrash, Tahia Carioca and Suheir Zaki. More recently, Fifi Abdou and Dina Talaat are recognised as talented belly dancers.

Over time, however, belly dance has become more sexualised. I asked Desorgher what her views are about this. She said: “It is true that the costumes are now skimpier and there is lots of breast enhancement as well, so it is kind of more overtly sexual. But, for me, as a trained musician, one of the great things is the way that when you are belly dancing, what we are trying to show the audience is what is happening in the music that is unique to belly dance.

”For example, when the flute plays, we use our hands to show what the flute instrument is doing. Also with the kanun, we shimmy our shoulders. It is all about describing what is happening in the orchestra in a way that you don’t see in any other dance form… this attempt to show the detail of the music and all the little isolations. It is sexy yes but it is also to present the rhythm of the tabla.”

Turning Belly Dance Into A Dramatic Performance Piece

Desorger admits that there are some limitations in imagining belly dance being performed on the big stage and felt the need to incorporate other types of dance movements to make it more dynamic. Another problem for her was that the standards for belly dance on the international level were nowhere as high as those of say professional salsa, ballet, contemporary and jazz.

She said: “I started to think that although belly dance is a wonderful thing as an experiential dance form and also for the women who come to my classes to learn, performance dance is very different. Also when I once talked to the Editor of ‘Dancing Times’ and wanted him to do a feature on my work with my team, he said he would never cover it because the standards are not high enough. I was upset but realised he was right.

“If you think about the dancers on say ‘Britain’s Got Talent’, there is always a wow with real explosive energy and excitement, whereas belly dance is a bit more internalised and softer. To make it bigger and to achieve the dream of taking belly dance out to the wider world, I had to, for example, bring guys in as I do also have a thing for lifts. If you think about ‘Strictly’, everybody loves the lifts and romantic duets! I have also added a bit of ballet and jazz.”

To raise the standards, Desorgher invited some of the very best belly dancers in London, including one male dancer to join her in the quest to create something spectacular. Since 2012, they have been working together and when an Arts Council grant came, they knew there was no going back. Pulling things from other dance forms has enabled them to create a theatrical production that promises to excite, entertain and fascinate everyone.

Desorgher said: “When you come to see our show, you will see the belly dance but there is other stuff in there. I wouldn’t call it a fusion but a blend. I like to think that I am taking belly dance beyond rather than just sticking other stuff into it. We did the pilot in May this year and it sold out for one night and people went mad for it!”

‘Scheherazade’ includes fifteen female and two male dancers and they come from many different countries, including Russia, Poland, Barbados, France, Spain, Portugal and Ireland. One of them is also a fire artist and illusionist who will bring fire on the stage and snakes too. Together, they will be reinterpreting the ancient tale of the woman who had to seduce a king with her tales in order for him not to kill her. It is as we know a story filled with drama, conflict, cruelty but also with love and a happy ending.

For Desorgher, however, there is just that one extra hope for the production. She said: “One of the things I would love is to bring in people from the Middle Eastern community in London to come and attend. I can’t say I am trying to overcome the negative stereotypes of people from the Middle East by that story but I want to see people together in the theatre and rubbing shoulders.”

I personally cannot wait to attend ‘Scheherazade’ and I hope that the tireless Desorgher achieves her next big ambition, which is to roll it out to other UK cities and potentially to Europe and the Middle East itself where the dance has been practised for centuries and still forms an integral part of many celebrations.

For more information on the Company of Dreams: http://companyofdreams.net/

Note: This article was first published circa September 2016

Hannah Khalil: Palestinian-Irish Playwright on ‘Scenes from 68 Years’

I had the privilege to meet up with the Palestinian-Irish playwright Hannah Khalil this week in London a day before the opening of her latest production ‘Scenes from 68 Years’. A project that has been in development for over five years, it went through several stages to secure all the necessary funding and for the script to be artistically developed to a tee. It is being produced by Sandpit Arts.

Here she tells me more about the inspiration behind her latest theatrical creation, her hopes for the play, the choice of cast, intended audience and the use of that signature black humour in tackling the very complex story of Palestine and its people.

Whether you are one of Khalil’s avid followers – who frequently attend her plays or listen in to her productions on BBC Radio 4 – or new to her work, this will be a must attend for Londoners. It promises to be the freshest, liveliest and most dynamic theatrical treatment to date that looks sharply yet lovingly into the lives of Palestinians whose historical journey has seen them live under and survive a brutal occupation over the passage of 68 years.

For the award-winning Khalil, ‘Scenes from 68 Years’ is her fourth major play being put on a big London stage, following the earlier works of ‘Leaving Home’ (at King’s Head Theatre), ‘The Unofficial Guide’ (at Battersea Arts Centre) and ‘Plan D’ (at Tristan Bates Theatre). This latest production will also be the second project to be directed by Chris White, who is not just the playwright’s artistic partner but also her husband of eight years.

One unusual element for the audience is that one of the cast members will be performing every night via Skype from a base in Nazareth. The Palestinian Maisa Abd Elhad will be making an online debut as she interacts with the other six also highly esteemed actors. Tackling the challenge of completing 30-plus scenes and 50-plus characters in 100 minutes, the other cast members are: Yasen Atour, Taghrid Choucair-Vizoso, Janine Harouni, Pinar Ogun, Mateo Oxley and Peter Polycarpou.

Nahla: Can you give me an example of one of the scenes, your inspiration and the artistic approach you have taken in creating the play.

Khalil: “For all the scenes, I wanted to set up a scenario where the audience think they know the version of the Arab world and Palestine that is being portrayed; but that, by the end of each scene, their expectations have been undercut. That is what I am trying to do. Also, bar none, these scenes are based on real stories that have been given to me by somebody or based on research and or anecdotal evidence.

“One example scene is of a little girl who is all covered up in bandages and she calls on her father for help because she is feeling uncomfortable. So the audience presume that she has been in some kind of a horrible accident or something to do with the war. But the end of the scene, you realise that actually her father is a doctor who in 1948 was helping resistance fighters learn first aid and that the girl was being used as a test dummy.

“The writing of the scenes was in fact very quick and easy but the devil of the play is getting those scenes that are seemingly unlinked into a framework and order that gives a dramatic satisfaction, without having one character whose journey you are following through. It is about getting a form whereby you have a moment of climax where you need to have it and a moment of pathos where you need to have it also.”

Nahla: Can you tell me more about the characters in the play?

Khalil: “Only two characters are named in the script. One is Rula and the other one is Nadia. Otherwise, everyone is called as ‘man’, ‘soldier’, ‘friendly soldier’, ‘woman’, ‘daughter’, ‘mother’. They are all non-specific, because the idea is to give a sense of what it is like to live under occupation and not just necessarily for the Palestinians but also for the Israelis as well, although they don’t’ get as much of a look in.

“There are in fact two family scenes which are set up in counterpoint to one another. In one there is a table in an Israeli household with a teenage girl and her parents and in the second a Palestinian household with two teenage boys and their mother. They were written as a pair of scenes and I hope they resonate for the audience, to see the similarities between them and especially regarding the wants and needs of young people.”

Nahla: Being half-Palestinian, do you feel an artistic responsibility to tackle the subject of Palestine?

Khalil: “In my twenties when I first started writing plays, I avoided writing about Palestine like the plague because I was very scared of it. Everyone still asks me about the situation in Palestine and almost wanting me to be a spokesperson. But I didn’t feel like I had the knowledge. I felt very uncomfortable about it.

“But later on I met Chris White, the man who is now my husband, who gently encouraged me to explore it by offering books, seminars and other things. So suddenly I did loads and loads of work and research and was fascinated to learn the history of Palestine and now I feel really equipped to write about it.

“It is possible that some Palestinians might watch this play and think that here is an opportunity to bang the drum for Palestine and that I am not doing it hard enough. But my argument will always be that I am not actually writing for people who know what is going on. I am writing for a middle class English person who goes to the theatre and is terrified and doesn’t’ want to engage with Palestine because it is too much.

“But, of course, there is so much to it and you may be afraid to go there because you feel you have to spend too much time and effort to make sense of the situation and understand it, so let’s ignore it. But what I really hope this play does for such an audience member is to make them laugh. I have tried to make this a funny play so that anyone watching, please laugh!”

Nahla: Are the scenes chronological and do you refer to any particular historical passage?

Khalil: “The scenes are not chronological and I consciously don’t refer to things like BDS but the Nakba is referred to. Every scene has a date at the top of it but this was done more for the director and the actors so they understand the time and place of that scene, whether it is pre-second intifada or post and what has happened around it.

“But for the audience, I don’t want them to be afraid for not knowing those details. Actually, the point I am making is whether it is 1949 or whether 2015, the situation for the Palestinians is the same. They are still in the same position and nothing has changed or hasn’t changed enough! So the dates are just to help the audience locate the scenes, as there are so many different places and we can’t be too specific.”

Nahla: Can you tell me more about the use of humour in the script? Does humour defuse the difficulty and complexity of the subject?

Khalil: “I don’t’ set out trying to be funny but I do set out to find the truth. I think because I am half-Palestinian and half-Irish, they are both backgrounds that find humour from bleakness. I am really inspired by Samuel Beckett and that whole Beckettian way of existence and being that is sadly reminiscent of the Palestinian condition; that of being in stasis but having to remain good humoured and having that dreaded hope that keeps you going.

“Theatre is also different from documentaries, hard news or even feature films, in that theatre is for metaphor, it is for symbolism, it is for the live experience and the immediacy of that live experience… and that is why I am so excited for having Maisa in Palestine.

“What I am hoping that will do is to make people think: ‘Hold on a minute, are we sat here watching a play and it is all pretend; but, that actually, this is a play about Palestine and there is someone who is actually there now, whose life is affected by all the things that are being described in this play?’”

Nahla: What about the cast, rehearsals and preparations for the big day? And what is it like to work with director Chris White?

Khalil: “Part of the reason why I started writing plays about Palestine was not just to explore it for myself but also to try and write great roles for Arab actors or actors of colour, because there are just not those parts for them or not good ones. How many times am I hearing my friends who are Arab say: ‘Yes, I have my hijab on for an audition for a crying mother.’ It is really reductive. So I want to write great and interesting parts and unusual parts, which are all in this play. Of the cast, four are Arab actors (Maisa, Taghrid, Yasen and Janine) and Peter who is Cypriot, Mateo who is English and Pinar who is Turkish.

“What is also so humbling and gratifying is that when I last went to the set, I started to cry and got really emotional, partly because they were all doing such a great job. But it wasn’t just about the cast but the whole production team, including the production manager, stage manager, sound designer, our PR and producer. They all believe in the play and are working hard to try to bring it to life. It also means that I have gone to buy waterproof mascara, cause I’ll be needing it!

“Chris is the one who has always encouraged me to explore my Palestinian roots and he has read every single thing I have ever written. He knows me very well obviously and understands my family and background. So, it is okay for me not to be in the rehearsal room, because when I go and see a run, I feel that, yes, of course, it is exactly how I imagined it would be because he knows.”

Nahla: What are your hopes for this play?

Khalil: “Of course I want an Arab audience to come and watch the play and like it. But what I really would love is if someone to come up to me and say: ‘That is totally not what I thought this play would be. It has made me think that I quite like to know more about Palestine and about Palestinian people, because I don’t think they are what I thought.’ If a couple of people go out of the play with that in their head, then hallelujah, I’ve done a good job!

“I would love it if the play has further life because there is a lot you can do with it depending on budget and location. You can have it with a minimum of six actors with little set or with 30 actors on the main stage of the Olivier with loads of money and different sets for every scene. So it would be exciting to think that other people might be inspired to do it their way.

“But for me, success looks like, wow, it is going to be on tomorrow! That it is finally happening! We have an amazing cast and an amazing crew and I just feel completely blessed and privileged for them to be doing my work.”

Scenes from 68 Years is on at The Arcola Theatre from 6-30 April, 2016.

For more information on Sandpit Arts: http://www.sandpitproductions.com/​

Note: This article was first published circa April 2016

Mohammed Joha: Palestinian-Gazan Artist On ‘Joha – The Journey’ Exhibition

I first met with the 37-year-old Palestinian artist Mohammed Joha a couple of days in advance of the launch of his latest solo show at the Rich Mix venue in Shoreditch. He was with Aser El Saqqa, the curator of the exhibition, as they were taking care of the last touches to the artworks before the final presentation to a London audience.

The two men, both from Gaza, have been in collaboration for quite some time, as El Saqqa has also organised two previous shows for Joha in the United Kingdom. The last one, held in Durham in 2014, was under the theme of ‘Traces and Revelation’s, where Joha’s work was alongside that of another Gazan artist and friend Hazem Harb. So I spent an hour with the two men, as Joha talked me through the paintings and El Saqqa expressed his hopes for the exhibition.

Partly retrospective and partly current, ‘Joha – the Journey’ includes the paintings from three very important series created by the artist. From the recent and on-going ‘Lost Tracks’ Series to the ‘IN x OUT’ and the ‘Sound Barrier’ Series, some pieces are seven years old whilst others have never been seen before.

One can easily decipher the significant developments in the themes and research undertaken by Joha through the past few years. From depicting the local situation in Gaza – that will always be his bedrock inspiration – he is now also dealing with the wider issue of what is happening to the Middle East and North Africa region on the dire political, social and economic fronts.

Since the failure of the so-called Arab Spring – and he has a lot to say about this! – it has now become the Arab predicament in general that is reflected in his art and swaying his imagination. Sadly, today, we have all become collectively witness to the greater horrors that impact not just Palestine, but Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Iraq and Syria.

Joha: “Today I can only deal with the greater theme of freedom. As an artist I just want to be able to move and fly anywhere and show my work wherever I need to without difficulties. I don’t like the bureaucracy of borders and this is the freedom I seek, to be able to fly like a dove and cross borders without being stopped or blocked.”

With his trademark surrealist expression, Joha with acrylic on canvas is forever bold, colourful and powerful with his interesting choice of symbols. Our hearts are immediately taken with the souls and the objects in his paintings as well as the hidden tales behind them. Even if viewed without knowledge of the historical background, the works hold a universal appeal and offer a narrative significance that urges one to ask questions.

For example, one would want to know in the ‘IN x Out’ pieces why there are people running off with furniture and carrying cabinets over their heads? Why also in the ‘Sound Barrier’ works, do we see upside down flowers, odd umbrellas and what does the bird mean? How come there is a shark flying in the air rather than swimming in the sea as one would expect it to? And, finally, when we view the boats with people drowning, we want answers as to how, whom and why.

Below Joha offers some insight into his personal story and creative intellect as well as hinting towards his ultimate desire and mission – to be an effective artistic ambassador for his people, the Gazans and the Palestinians. Joha’s goal is for the art to evoke strong enough feelings to encourage discussion on the international level and help translate into positive action.

I would urge everyone to visit the exhibition because more than just holding and depicting the Palestinians’ suffering, it serves as a reminder of the human strength, resilience and willpower to continue to fight for one’s rights no matter how long one has been oppressed. Joha himself is the expression of the indomitable Gazan spirit that will keep in its efforts to achieve freedom and obtain justice; and, I would trust him to be my diplomatic representative.

The ‘Sound Barrier’ Series – The Sharks, Flowers + Imaginary Umbrellas

The ‘Sound Barrier’ series explores the experience of the sieges on Gaza. Joha, who was born, brought up and lived there until 2006, has more than first-hand experience of the matter, telling me also of his memories of being active in the various intifadas as well as having been put in an Israeli prison for nine months. Another awful recent development in 2014 saw his home quarters of Shuja’iyya being demolished and obliterated from Google Earth. These pieces are part of nine paintings and made circa 2009-2010.

Joha: “This series is about the Palestinian story. When the Israelis started to bomb us by the nightmare of the F16 and tanks, it was genocide. Every five minutes, there would be a bomb. During 2005-2006, everyday they were killing people and destroying our houses. I called this project the ‘Sound Barrier’ because I remember how the Israelis would deliberately drop bombs that failed to explode but that created a noise and a dull impact, just to make us scared.

“In these works, I imagine and depict the F16 as a surreal shark shape in the sky and not as a fish that you would normally expect to see it in the waters of a clear blue sea. Under siege, it felt like our lives were being in a zoo that was far away from other lives and other worlds and other nations. I imagine this life and how, as you see, the flowers are upside-down.

“But then there is the umbrella shape that symbolises for me the only means of protection we had, physically and psychologically. And then the pigeon, which I painted just as a bird, that is about the possible freedom. I was working on this painting late at night on 31 December, 2008 and completed it early on 1 January, 2009 when I was in Norway seeking asylum.”

The ‘Lost Tracks’ Series – The Migrants Situation Work In Progress

   

Never seen before this exhibition and forming the start of Joh’a current ‘Lost Tracks’ project, these reflect on the present day migrants’ situation and the suicidal attempts to reach Europe. We see people drowning and boats sinking but with a strong shade of orange colour as the background. Joha is aiming to complete this series by the end of 2016 with eleven oil paintings altogether and each will be sized 180x130cm.

Joha: “This is a series in progress and engaged with the concept of the so-called Arab Spring – which to me is more like the Arab Autumn – as it has only given rise to disasters. So many young Arab men are just trying to escape from a hard situation by coming to Europe via boats.

“From Syria, Libya, Egypt, Tunis and Palestine, they are all fleeing from wars and think they will find a better life, but many of them drown in the Aegean Sea or the Mediterranean. Their dreams, their lives and their hopes are over and ending. I have used the boat shape in different sizes and colours because the boats to me are as human beings that come from many locations and backgrounds.

“The bright choice of the orange however does give a visual hope. In all of my work, even when I talk about the occupation and other dramatic stories, I give a bright colour for optimism and it is also a good way of opening up a dialogue.

“As Arabs who live in Europe, we also have to be more open about the culture surrounding us and learn from this environment. I think it is important to be free in our minds first so that we can see with wide-open eyes and exchange opinions with others. My role as an artist is to be open and create the exchange of ideas and dialogue, because we are dealing with global issues, especially at this time of conflict.

“When I originally approached the subject of the ‘Jasmine and Bread Revolution’ in 2012, and showed it at the Courtyard Gallery in Dubai, when the Arab Spring had just erupted in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and later Syria, as an artist and as a human being, I thought maybe these revolutions could free the Arabs from dictatorships. But what we have now seen is total mass destruction and we have as Arabs lost a lot. There are no flowers blooming, just lots of bleeding.”

The ‘IN x OUT’ Series – The Invasion of Home Privacy

Made circa 2013-2014, these paintings explore another Palestinian theme and consider the physical and psychological impact of the Israeli invasions on home privacy. It is about the reality that five minutes before bombing, the Palestinian would receive a phone call to tell him to leave his house, because his home will be targeted. But, then, in such a situation, what can you really take with you and where do you go.

Joha: “For the Palestinians, the house is like our identity and we feel the house like a human being – it is not just a building made of stones. But then imagine that you live somewhere all of your childhood and within a minute you cannot find it. So here I depict the houses in a particular way with the scattered furniture items with beds and cabinets flying everywhere. In #3 I have also used a collage to show in a photo image the devastation of a woman’s house just over her head.

“This IN x OUT series actually started before the Gaza war, when I listened to the news of what is also happening in the West Bank, in Jerusalem and Ramallah and Bethlehem. The Israelis did the same. They would push out the Palestinians from their houses and say that they bought the buildings one hundred years ago. So what are we left with? Our privacy is no longer.”

+ Statement from Curator Aser El Saqqa, Director of Arts Canteen

El Saqqa has worked with Joha for many years, going back to when Joha was an arts student in Gaza. El Saqqa: “As a curator, I want to make Joha’s voice heard on this very important platform in East London and to highlight the stories through his personal experiences and reflecting the hope and the colours in a surreal way on his own canvases.

“What we are trying to do here is to bring some of these interesting stories to the grassroots communities. I do also feel that there is much more to be done in terms of contemporary Palestinian art and to bring some of it to art lovers and art collectors the world over. This exhibition is a rare chance to see Joha’s work whilst on display.”

For more information about Arts Canteen: https://artscanteen.com/

For more information about the artist Mohammed Joha: http://www.mohammedjoha.com/

Note: All images above are subject to copyright. Arts Canteen approval must be granted prior to reproduction. Images with kind permission: Lost Tracks #2, Lost Tracks #3, Mohammed Joha the Artist.

Note: This article was first published circa February 2016

Aimen Ajhani: Libyan Graffiti Artist’s Journey from the Streets of Tripoli to Copenhagen, Denmark

Originally from Misrata, Aimen Ajhani is the 25-year-old Libyan street artist who is set on chasing a big dream – to keep up the artistic political-resistance movement that began in Tripoli, Libya when he was just a teenage boy. His activity then started by creatively engaging against the repressive system which had threatened not just his freedom of expression but that of his entire generation and killing off their innocent aspirations.

Inspired by the history and philosophy of the hip-hop counter sub-culture that originated in 1970s New York, Ajhani was part of a group of about 300 youths that included five girls. They used to gather in central Tripoli streets to practise their breakdance, rap-songs and spray the walls with graffiti as a way of voicing and exorcising their fears, worries and frustrations. Their collective journey would take many twists and turns from before to during and then after the February 2011 Revolution.

I quickly felt Ajhani’s great defiant energy as he opened up to me via Skype about the personal story that started circa 2007 in Tripoli, but has landed him in Denmark, where he is currently resident. Although he is working mainly as a graffiti artist, he is still determined to keep up the struggle that has had to be adjusted to an entirely different cultural, social and political context.

Ajhani: “I started as a break-dancer before the Revolution but eventually discovered the power of Graffiti to make a political statement. I was a member of different crews – including the Bugs Bunny, the Sharks and the Ninja Crew – but at that time it was all underground and funny because we were always running away from the National Security.

“Some of us even got arrested as we were accused of bringing a poison culture to Libya. They called us different names and big words but we were just dying to practice. Even just to buy colour spray cans, there was worry we were going to write something against the system.”

Emboldened by the energy of the Revolution, Ajhani’s first official graffiti was the word ‘Libya’ painted on a wall on 1st September Street – now renamed 24th December Street – in Tripoli. This was followed by his most original signature stencil of ‘Fatima’s Hand’ that basically sticks up the middle finger at the repressive regime and the ‘Owl’ that appears to ironically state ‘Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil.’

Ajhani: “During the Revolution, it was all good as we got some positive attention and people started to accept us somehow. We even created a small organisation called ‘Art of Expression’ that took part in many art and dance events and bringing some rappers and MCs to sing. Some of this was to raise money for people who lost their loved ones. I also took part in a mural project called ‘Flame of the Capital’ that was against domestic violence.”

He at this point began to develop his graffiti by constant practice and using various techniques and styles. He fully participated in what seemed a lively hip-hop art scene in Libya when the youngsters could finally express their hopes and dreams for a better future; and, when their artwork and performances for a short time signalled a positive aspect to the revolution. They no longer had to be underground but could be publicly celebrated.

Liaising with others based both in Tripoli and Benghazi, he became known by his signature of ‘Elbohly’ that he still uses to sign off his work today. His rebellious graffiti became the colourful background wall to many music videos of Libyan rappers and dancers. He mentioned the names of several crews, DJs and MCs that included: MC Sweat, MC Squad, MC Black Tiger, Good Against Bad ‘GAB’ crew and Razor Record.

Ajhani: “They called me Elbohly which means the crazed one. It started with the graffiti because whenever I do something, you can talk to me or call me but I will never listen to you. When I am in, I am in…. “

But sadly for him and his hip-hop mates, their big hopes were soon crushed as the political situation began to escalate in a newly menacing direction. The threat this time was not the Gaddafi regime but the religious radicals – mainly the extremist group ‘Ansar Al-Sharia’ – who began to hound them, questioning what they did and branding them as unbelievers committing haram.

He said: “As Libya’s youth we just needed to express ourselves but it has become scary and risky once more. Also, I don’t want to make it look bad, but many of the youngsters have turned to drugs in desperation. The only other person I can speak for is my friend Ryan. He and I share the same dream to spread and develop the hip-hop culture. At the moment, he is based in Tunisia with the B-Boys Crew from North Africa. We are the only two hard core mother-f***ers who will finish what we started.”

Ajhani fate would also take an unexpected turn, as his graffiti work had caught the eye of a Danish organisation called ‘Turning Tables’ whose aim is to empower marginalised youth globally by encouraging expression through music and film. They invited him to take part in an ‘Images Festival’ in August 2013 in Denmark, where Ajhani was the only Libyan with a few others representing Tunisia and Egypt from North Africa.

At one point, Turning Tables had visited Benghazi and helped to produce a video clip with MC Sweat in 2011 and in January 2012 supported a ‘Rebirth Music Festival’ focusing on the liberation of creative expression in post-Gaddafi Libya when at least 2,00 people attended. They had also planned to give workshops but Ansar Al-Sharia threatened to kill them and confiscate their equipment, so they left and travelled back to Copenhagen.

Now in Denmark he no longer has to run from any authority when making his graffiti. He even expressed glee and surprise at how easy it is to ask for permission to do work in public spaces and that he gets commissioned and paid to do it! With Arabic calligraphy now being one of his style fortes, he is thriving as an artist and offering something quite unique for a European audience with what he refers to as ‘Calligraffiti’.

He said: “It is now a great chance to represent my culture in a good positive way. Whenever I do something, I like to hear what people have to say. Instead of the traditional graffiti with English lettering, I am doing something different so people can see that the Arabic and Islamic culture can be artistic and that it is not all bad as you might think.”

Presently Ajhani is involved with several street art projects that include three recent murals in Ringsted and one mural dedicated to the 18-year-old Libyan peace activist Tawfik Ben Saud who was killed this year in Libya for speaking up against extremist groups. The latter is a tribute to those who continue to fight for freedom, rights and justice in a dangerous environment.

Recently, also, he has started to experiment with painting on canvass and drawing on the Callgraffiti and using it to create and manipulate form out of the written message. One of his latest works, for example, is based on a Rumi poem. A first canvass exhibition is also on its way, whilst teaching calligraphy in schools in Denmark and looking forward to taking part in the ‘Shubbak Festival’ in London in 2015.

Lastly I asked the artist if he is likely to return to Libya and how he feels for the friends he’s had to leave behind. He said: “It is depressing but there is always hope in people. I will go back one day to do workshops for the young ones. It will also be a great chance – if after this crazy civil war – to do big murals in open places. For me, as long as I am doing something and complaining, I am happy. I want to show the world that I am not sitting doing nothing because otherwise Libyan people give up too easy.”

For more information about Turning Tables (TT): http://turningtables.org/about/​

Note: This article was first published circa September 2014

Nabil Elouahabi: British-Arab Actor Speaks on Identity and ‘The Nightmares of Carlos Fuentes’

The message is urgent and impassioned when I caught up with the incredible British-Moroccan actor Nabil Elouahabi last week during a break between rehearsals. His new play ‘The Nightmares of Carlos Fuentes’ opens tonight at London’s Arcola Theatre and is about an Iraqi refugee who comes to the UK seeking asylum but adopts a Mexican character in the form of Carlos Fuentes.

Elouahabi spoke frankly about the conflicts he’s experienced as an actor from an immigrant Arab background, the soul-searching about his identity living in the West, the frustrations of being typecast as well as giving me a sneak preview of the edgier elements of ‘The Nightmares of Carlos Fuentes’ – a project he’s been instrumental in getting off the ground, from initial concept to premiere-ready production.

Elouahabi is best known for playing Tariq Larousi in ‘EastEnders’ (2003-2005) and Mr Mustapha in Channel4 TV drama ‘Top Boy’. His impressive succession of complex roles also include parts in ‘The Path to 9/11’, ‘Mad Dogs’, ‘Ali G Indahouse’, ‘Generation Kill’, ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ and ‘Journey to Mecca’.

I started by asking him how he defined his ethnic identity today.

Elouahabi: “The pull and push of Identity in my personal experience has been fascinating. Being first generation born in London of Moroccan parentage, I can speak Arabic in the dialect, but am not able to read or write the language. But I’ve also felt this apprehension as a slight outsider in my own community; when as a family we used to go back to Tangiers it was clear that we were Brit-Moroccans. So I started to identify as a Londoner.”

In his thespian career he has been cast as the ‘Other’ which has, on the one hand, clearly been an adventure -it has helped push his success and being offered many lucrative roles here in the UK and in the US – but what has that really felt like to be type cast?

Elouahabi: “Although I am one of the lucky few whose had a varied career and played many parts, I do find the prevailing Arab narrative in TV and film very frustrating. The documentary ‘Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies A People’ directed by Sut Jhally highlights this brilliantly.

“Recently, also, there was a piece in the London press regarding my frustrations about playing terrorists and I had some comments claiming I was being naïve – as obviously there are terrorists who happen to be Arab and therefore by extension Arabs would be portraying them. This is logical and one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had to date was playing the real-life terrorist Ramzi Yousef in ‘The Path to 9/11’, but what I do have an issue with is the lack of or the very small spectrum of representations available that are not the all too familiar.”

Starring Role In ‘The Nightmares of Carlos Fuentes’

Eluoahabi: “As I’ve grown older, I now want things with more depth and addressing more difficult questions. I was looking around for work involving Arab men and Arab stories, but not in the traditional Western prism of either terrorist or the ‘Other’. The chance came in 2009 when I narrated the Iraqi author Hassan Blasim’s collection of short stories called ‘The Mad Men of Freedom Square’ that included ‘The Nightmares of Carlos Fuentes’.

“I found them all beautiful, visceral, direct and disturbing; as they look at what happens when the human condition is disrupted and where there is violence; something common in any displaced culture. So I approached Hassan for the rights to adapt the story and commission a play to be performed here in the UK. With some challenges along the way including funding, I am now working with the incredible director Nicolas Kent and writer Rashid Razaq and we are almost ready for the opening. ”

Relishing the first night of a project he is proud to call his baby, Elouahabi will – perhaps surprisingly – address the issue of self-loathing that can many times accompany an identity crisis.

Elouahabi: “What really got me in Hassan Blasim’s original story – and to a degree in our stage version which slightly differs – is the self-loathing the character of Salim/Carlos has. I have witnessed this growing up and when mixing amongst the Arab communities, that there is a bit of a self-loathing. I must stress that it is my experience and not to generalise; but, I have heard grown Arab men comment on other Arabs in derogatory ways which you would expect from far right fascists!

“So I wanted to explore this kind of illness, where the play is not really about the politics – because we understand or claim to understand the politics – it is more about the human cost and what happens on the interpersonal level; when we look at this Iraqi refugee who comes to the UK and as we follow his experience of trying to assimilate and to put a human face to the story. I knew it was going to be a challenge but very much worth exploring.

“That is when I approached Nicolas Kent because of his many, many fantastic plays that offer a platform and voice for what I call the ‘Voiceless’. Not only has he dealt with the Nuremberg Trials, Stephen Lawrence and Guantanamo, I was fortunate to have worked with him on ‘Crossing Jerusalem’ (written by Julia Pascal) and ‘The Great Game: Afghanistan’ (2010). He agreed and we both then co-commissioned Rashid Razaq to write the play.”

As much as this production will offer a much needed insight into some of the issues of being Arab at a time of severe unrest back in the Middle East, the content is likely to inflame as many controversies here in Britain today.

Elouahabi: “I don’t want to spoil it but at the heart of the play is Salim’s yearning for his family. He has a wife and child back home but has to flee because of sectarian violence. He is propelled and forced to leave Iraq and be a refugee coming to Britain, where he tries to reinvent himself as a Mexican Carlos.

“In Lydia, he is attracted to this older, very successful and powerful lady who tries to turn him into a British gentleman; where all that is British is great and anything foreign is rubbish. Metaphorically and maybe in a cruel way, it is also about her liberal ways of treating him as the exotic Arab. But then as in many relationships, they become strange bedfellows.

“The script is very funny but the story is also tragic, approaching the split in the psyche that makes this play very Jungian. What is it that is real? And, what happens when the sense of self becomes fractured or when disorder becomes the norm? There is a lot to see, with a bit of sex in there and a bit of kinkiness too.”

Ultimately for Elouahabi, this play is about creating a better platform for Arabs and their stories. He said: ”It is all about changing the prevalent theatrical lens because we need to put on a different lens. We have as Arabs in the West many stories to tell and they are wonderful stories. What drives me is in the continual sharing because in that we immediately share our frustrations, share our aspirations and share our dreams. This is what can really bring us all together.. the human experience.”

For more information and to book tickets: https://www.arcolatheatre.com/event/the-nightmares-of-carlos-fuentes/

Note: This article was first published circa July 2014

What Is In a Game of Polo?

Reading of Prince Harry’s first official trip to New York last week, he visited Ground Zero to meet up with New York’s Governor and the emergency fighters who helped quench that mad raging fire. There Prince Harry paid tribute to the victims of Nine-Eleven and opened the British Memorial Garden in Hanover Square to honour the 67 British casualties. He then planted a Magnolia tree.

Although this was a solemn affair, the star-struck Americans were completely bowled over by this young bad-boy royal. Many adoring young and old female fans had come from all over the United States, to catch a glimpse of him as he lay a wreath and hoped to get in line to shake his hand.

Exactly the following day, fantastic, racy and sexy pictures came out of the Prince as he played Polo at Governor’s Island. Not disrespectfully, the small game event turned out to be a greater highlight of his short visit.

New York’s stars and celebrities all fought to get a seat; and, the likes of Madonna, her toy-boy Jesus, Kate Hudson, the Rapper LL Cool J and his wife reportedly paid up to $50,000 to be there – all going towards charity of course.

Admittedly, he is a handsome prince and I understand how this attractive, young and athletic male on horseback – all sweaty and hot from riding – is a turn on for any woman, irrespective of age. Still, I’ve never manically followed the Royals and I cannot understand the frenzy surrounding their love and fascination with horses. But who could I judge the Americans when I don’t know a thing about appreciating a game of Polo?

Call it synchronicity. On the following Monday, I got an unexpected invite to attend a game of Polo between the English Guards and the United Gulf Cooperation Council, the GCC. They were having their annual match at Smith’s Lawn in Windsor Great Park and I was promised there would be drinks, lunch, a charity auction, speeches and scones with clotted cream.

When we arrived after a two-hour drive from central London, we found the place surrounded by greenery, peace and quiet. As we entered the white gates, the ushers indicated where to park the car and led us to the large white marquee where everyone had already gathered for lunch.

It was clear that this was not your average run-of-the-mill sports event but something highly exclusive. There were no more than a hundred and fifty attendees and the women were dressed in designer outfits and the men in formal suits and tie. The tables inside were also decorated with expensive flowers and tea lights and the especially prepared food served on china plates and silver cutlery.

Unusually for such a small group, there were ten professional photographers snapping away and a couple of Arabic TV crews taking coverage and interviewing the guests. In jest, I was nudged to be on good behaviour because I was in the presence of royalty. What? Royalty? My friend pointed to the head table.

Sitting in traditional garb was HRH Prince Abdel Aziz Bin Ahmed of Saudi Arabia surrounded by dignitaries. Next to our marquee also was the Royal Box for HM, the Queen for when she arrives. Apparently, it is tradition that she presents the Polo trophies. Ashamedly, I squealed in delight before I could check myself! I was excited to see, for the first time, this constitutional imperative of an individual and the face of Great Britain. Where was she? I couldn’t wait to see her.

Before her arrival, the game started. I thought to learn a few things. Polo is a truly graceful sport with four members on horseback playing for each team. They have mallet sticks with which to hit the ball – usually made of wood or plastic – in order to reach the goal post on either side of the field.

It is played in four quarters or six round – called chukkas – that normally last seven minutes with up to thirty seconds for overtime. And, in between, the horses rest for some minutes to recharge. That is it! Nothing too complicated. But it is clear how the players have great skill and training to get the horses to play in such an elegant way.

On the day, the GCC team won four and a half points to three by the Guards. When it was over, the players disembarked from their horses and got ready to receive their prizes.

“This is my moment to see her!” I thought. So, I ran near to the field for the ceremony and minded I didn’t slip on the grass with my high heels. As expected, everyone else was trying to get a good view too. And she finally walked out of her Box. Total silence descended and then, quickly, the cameras began to click and roll. It was all I could hear for five minutes- click, snap, click.

HM the Queen did not disappoint. Close up, she is impeccable charm, style and refinement. For the occasion, she was wearing a floral white and fuchsia dress with matching long jacket, white shoes and signature pearls. As it was slightly raining, she also had a matching pink umbrella held by her assistant.

I cannot say that I heard her speak or that I shook her hand. She just stood five metres away from me and presented the BMG Trophy and medals. Before I had more time to satisfy my curiosity, it all ended and she was escorted back and everyone cheered and clapped for her.

I realise now that I was got too eager and excited to see the Queen. So, yes, I’ll eat and enjoy the humble pie I owe to the Americans. As for the game of Polo, I highly recommend you go if you ever get an invite. Just dress your best and take your camera. You never know which royal you might bump into.

The Arab British Centre, Artistic Cultural Notions of The Arab

Whenever mention is made of the Arab, we immediately associate him with his predominantly conservative Muslim religion and the sordid complicated politics of his region. Rarely do we take the time and space to explore his rich and diversified cultural history or go as far back as to celebrate his unique personal experience as may be created, documented and found through the arts, the different forms of media and philosophic literature.

Naturally, a person’s identity is influenced by his faith and the background politics that undoubtedly clouds his works, opinions and vision; but, it is a fact that the notion and concept of the Arab to the rest of the world has in more recent times lost this differentiation. Due to this confusion, the Arab has sadly lost much of his artistic and intellectual credibility that does not exclusively depend on his religion or politics.

This is of course alarming for such a wide region, but it is the stark seeming reality sensed not just by the outsider; but, also, very often, felt by the Arab himself. It is difficult for him to find a little room to openly express his views without the fear of censure or reprisal. The way I see it, the fear is more from within our psyche than from any external force threatening our personal safety.

There really is no ghost – if you look behind you – to stop us from taking and reclaiming our artistic freedom and to create new interpretations to make sense of our lives as Arabs; and, more importantly, as separate individuals. Better still, this territory comes with an utter joy and thrill – when you know you are making, possibly mixing, swapping and changing things to go beyond the older set boundaries and the illusively imposed limits.

This is where my day at the Arab British Centre comes in.

A Day At The Arab-British Centre (The ABC)

The ABC has a wonderful website that gives a better idea and detailed information about its day-to-day work. I came across it when Noreen Abu Oun, the administrator, contacted me through Nahla Ink and I was curious to find out more. A date was set to visit its offices and for Noreen to give me a quick tour.

Noreen was truly welcoming and seemed ever so resourceful. Proudly, she showed me the different rooms in the building and told me about the ABC’s latest projects. She pointed to the large pile of books and material on her desk and explained that they are this year’s nominated works for the Annual Arab-British Culture and Society Award – worth £5,000 – for which she was very excited. (The short list for this coveted prize was announced today – 2010 Nominations).

Next, we went inside the exhibition room where the work of the British-Yemeni artist, Sousan Luqman, was on display. Exotic Transfigurations shows the prints of old European Orientalist paintings depicting the Arab woman as exotic, smooth, naked and sexy. But she transposes on them a light screen and veil to represent the Arab male re-interpretation of the same. It was enlightening.

Still looking around, Luquman herself appeared. She was in to collect a cheque for some bouhgt pieces and she didn’t mind sitting for a chat with Noreen and me. We talked for an hour. Funnily enough, we shared our thoughts, hopes, ambitions and dreams for the Arab; and, especially, for the Arab woman in today’s world and the challenges she faces in a closed society.

It was uplifting to learn that the ABC is genuinely open to support and encourage individual artistic and intellectual efforts and that this is not just an advertorial. Also, there is an urgency for the Arab to discuss, debate and educate others what we hold dear; and, to engage in, as wide as we can, an honest and creative dialogue and monologue first as obviously needs be.

After this, I felt the day was done and it was time to leave and allow Noreen to get back to her very important work. But before leaving, I did join up to the ABC’s ever-expanding library and borrowed some works to read for future inspiration on the Arab. I took with me Nawal El-Saadawi’s Woman at Point Zero and The Hidden Face of Eve.

If you would like to find out more about the ABC, go to: https://www.arabbritishcentre.org.uk/

The ABC also houses and subsidises these organisations that are all worth a peak: The Council for Arab-British Understanding at CAABU, Friends of Birzeit University at Friends of Birzeit University, Offscreen Education Programme at Offscreen, and Banipal at Bani

Note: This article was first published circa March 2010

Dana Awartani: Transforming Faith Into Sacred Islamic Art

In sunny Jeddah, Saudi Arabia a young Arab woman is usually tucked away in a top-floor studio at her parents’ house in a peaceful residential area. Spending over twelve hours a day with a sharp 9am start to midnight, she is focused on creating an interpretation of Islamic art that of its nature carries a heavenly dimension and astral references. In this super tidy space, she must centre herself for the precision and skill required to make her divine paintings, drawings, woodwork and ceramics.

Dana Awartani is the 27-year-old Saudi-Palestinian artist who has already attracted international recognition for her artwork, exhibited in several group shows and is represented by the prestigious Athr Gallery in Jeddah; where she is currently taking part in the ‘Language of Human Consciousness: Arts Inspired by Geometry’ exhibition and where she will also have her first solo during Ramadan 1436 AH. Aside from her immersion in this spiritual discipline, she is a modern girl in every way, with an Instagram account with over 5,700 followers to date!

Using only the most delicate of paintbrushes, rich paint colours made only from natural pigments so they don’t’ ever fade, special thick paper that is eventually burnished and mathematical instruments, she toils in a passionate quest to reclaim, revive and share in the beauty and intelligence behind a sacred Islamic Art based on the careful study of mathematics and Geometry.

Awartani: “Islamic art is firstly not made for the sake of making art. It is a sacred spiritual practice that is used as a way to worship God and for God. It teaches one sabr (patience) and respect and as an Islamic artist, my work is a form of prayer and dhikr (remembrance). I need to be 100% focused and in a good mood to be able to do it, otherwise it doesn’t’ work.”

When we met in London recently, I first noticed her modest feminine grace and how quiet but very determined this young woman is. She also has the inner light of knowing that her passion and purpose is to advance this rich but rather neglected and abandoned art form. I asked about her artistic journey and how she came to Islamic Art.

Awartani: “From the age of 14 I knew. During my Art GSCEs at the British International School in Jeddah, I was subconsciously drawn to a tapestry project with a patchwork of flowers, because of the patterns and colours. Later I realised that I have this special thing for geometry. My teacher at the time recognised a talent and advised my parents that I must go to Central St Martins.”

Central St Martins, London: Orientalism Project

Awartani did go to Central St Martins and completed a Foundation course and Bachelors degree. However, she said: “I felt struggling a bit and they don’t give you a lot of direction. Although it was amazing to be with very talented creative people, I didn’t’ really learn the technical skills. I was taught to think conceptually and to critique a contemporary art piece, but not so much on how to paint or draw.

“I also felt they would push me towards things that I really didn’t want to talk about as an Arab, like suppression or exile. I wasn’t fond of talking about our Arab culture in a negative way because then you just reinforce those stereotypes. I am not in exile and I don’t at all feel suppressed as an Arab woman.”

Dana’s final year project at Central St Martins was a strong indication of the future direction in Islamic Art and also in her bold challenge against any Western or other misconceptions that as Arabs or Muslims that we don’t have a unique and very rich artistic heritage to draw upon and rival all the others.

She said: “A lot of people, when they create art, they abide by Western rules. Even the popular artists, even when they take Oriental themes, they use Western forms. Why should they have to follow that? They should be more original and unique. The Arab world should make art as much as the Western world.”

Inspired by Edward Said’s writings on Orientalism and working with the Saudi charity of ‘Mansoojat’ that preserves the dying art-craft of making traditional Saudi costumes, she created a provocative installation piece representing the Arab feminine space and covered it from the inside with colourful square and rectangular patterns as those stitched onto the textiles.

The room however was also sealed off by hundreds of black strings so that from a distance, it just looks like a black wall. It is only when one enters that they discovers the loveliness inside. She said: “I wished to create a place where people are not allowed to enter. It is kind of like if you don’t understand what our culture is about, then do not enter this space! It is also a nomadic temporary piece, showing our Arab background of not ever staying in one place.”

The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts

In 2009, Awartani enrolled on a two-year Masters course at The Prince’s School in Shoreditch, London where they specialise in the Traditional Arts. It is here she found a niche and felt more content, as she learnt of Islamic Art techniques and how to apply them to painting, woodwork, ceramics, miniature painting, mosaics, parquetry and stain glass, specialising in Geometry in her second year.

Under the guidance of Paul Merchant and Simon Trethewey, she more than found her niche but fell in love with the philosophy behind it and the foundation in how the infinite shapes, proportions, structures and numbers – found in both theory and in Nature – can inform her work. It is also with the firm belief that the physical is but a reflection of the spiritual and that nothing on this Earth has been created in a random vein.

 

It was not just the Arabs who pondered on the connection between Geometry and the divine, but also the Ancient Greeks. Aristotle, for example, drew a diagram of how the four classical elements of Air, Water, Earth and Fire create balance in the world; and, that above this, was the ‘Aether’ describing the heavenly bodies of the Moon, Planets, the Sun and Stars of a circular shape and motion. Different numbers can also be used as some kind of secret code or a language.

She explained: “Every number has a meaning but none of it is set in stone either and my favourite has to be the number Eight which is so beautiful mathematically, in numerology and geometry. The mystic Ibn ‘Arabi said that the eight-point star is a representation of the eight angels that bear the throne of God on the day of judgement and seen as a re-birth on a higher level.

“The Sufis also believe in the eight qualities of Prophet-hood that one must aspire to and it seems to be the same in Judaism, Buddhism and Christianity; where one must follow an eight-fold pattern of enlightenment or when baptism is done in an Octagon. The Rock of the Dome also was built on an 8-figure base.”

Currently inspiring her work are the ‘Platonic Solids’ based on the most ancient form of three-dimensional geometry. Named after Plato who studied them, they are the five perfect shapes that fit harmoniously within a circle and that all classical elements are made from them.

She said: “I love studying these and want to incorporate them in my work, because they are an expression of the creation on Earth and everything to be found in nature. They reflect how the world is proportionately and mathematically in harmony. Already, I have done five paintings for the Dubai Art Fair on the Platonic Solids and I am hoping to do much more, including sculpture.”

The Art of Illumination

Another aspect to Awartani’s work is the meticulous art of Illumination that originally developed to adorn Arabic calligraphy and Koranic inscriptions. Although very time-consuming with strict rules that cannot be manipulated, it gives her pieces that something extra by bringing in the illusion of more light, movement and colour.

Currently, she is working towards an ‘Ijaza’ certificate – the highest form of recognition and authorisation to eventually transmit the skill – in this highly disciplined subject; where one must first put on the gold, then the background colours and only after this, can you do the outline and finally the rendering. Visiting Turkey from time to time, she is set to complete the challenge.

Awartani: “It is only once I become an expert in traditional pattern and receive my Ijaza in Illumination that I will feel qualified to experiment; but I don’t think one should be changing the forms, because then it is not really Islamic Art, it is just inspired by Islamic Art. Maybe one can simplify it or take a certain motif and use that, but I don’t’ believe in changing the design completely.”

Although there are some keen collectors and centres dotted around the world that attempt to preserve the old mosques and palaces and some of the traditional Islamic Arts, like in Turkey, Spain, Iran and Morocco – this is still not enough as during the heyday of Islamic culture and the centuries worth of output.

She said: “We need to be very careful or this beautiful art craft is going to disappear. There are not many traditional craftsmen left; and even so, everything is mass produced, manufactured and industrial. In Morocco, for example, I know they don’t use natural pigments for their glazes but synthetic, which is horrible in comparison to the natural stuff. That is just an example of how it is deteriorating.”

Islamic Architecture And Building A Mosque

Awartani’s is also fascinated by the design and aesthetics of Islamic Architecture that is reflected in the iconic buildings to be found in Turkey, Iran, India, Spain and the Arab world. She has travelled extensively and been to the Alhambra in Andalusia, the Blue Mosque in Istanbul and the buildings in Isfahan, Yazd and Qom, as well as the Taj Mahal. Her next stop is Morocco.

She said: “I love the Persian architecture with its blues and turquoise colours, it is extremely feminine, whereas the Turkish is more masculine. The Alhambra for me is the most beautiful as well as the Taj Mahal. Although this latter is not a mosque, there are Koranic verses inside and the vision of angels to protect the lady buried there. Based on the eight-fold, its gardens represent paradise.”

One of her dreams is to design a mosque mixing the different Islamic traditions and to ensure there is no distinction between Sunni and Shia or other inner divisions. She said: “I hate how there is discrimination depending on which part of the Arab world you come from. We are disunited and need to unify. So I want to build a place where someone can enter and recognises that it is a mosque for everyone. It will happen but am not ready yet.”

It is time for us to part and she is returning to Jeddah to prepare for her next group show at the Athr Gallery and for the grand solo next year for which she has a few planned surprises that she wouldn’t divulge. So, I asked if she takes any breaks from the studio and what it is like to live in the conservative Saudi.

She said: “I just go up to the rooftop garden with my pet dog and muse Lady who is always with me or I take her out for a walk. Yes, the local traditions dictate that I wear the Abaya and veil to go out and be driven by a male chauffeur, but in Jeddah, I feel empowered as a woman and proud to be an Arab. I will continue to make art and Inshallah I will die with a paint brush in my hand!”

Awartani’s work has so far been exhibited in London (UK), Jeddah (Saudi), Abu Dhabi and Dubai (UAE), Venice (Italy) and Doha (Qatar). She also works with the Prince’s School’s International Outreach Programme where they train and teach the Traditiaonl Arts to schools and communities. Four of her pieces are also at the ‘Farjam Collection’ in Dubai.

Awartanis’ pieces can range from £500 to £8,000 – depending on the effort, time and cost of materials used – and be viewed via her personal website or Instagram or through the Athr Gallery. Rarely but possible, she can also take commissions.

For more on Dana Awartani: http://www.danaawartani.com/

For more on The Prince’s School of Traditional Artss: https://www.psta.org.uk/

For more on The Athr Gallery, Jeddah: https://www.athrart.com/gallery