JORDAN: A cast of female Syrian refugees perform the Greek tragedy the Trojan Women, modernising the ancient play by drawing on their own experiences of the Syrian conflict

Record ID: 274474

  • Title: JORDAN: A cast of female Syrian refugees perform the Greek tragedy the Trojan Women, modernising the ancient play by drawing on their own experiences of the Syrian conflict
  • Date: 19th December 2013
  • Summary: AMMAN, JORDAN (DECEMBER 18, 2013) (REUTERS) SYRIAN REFUGEE, REEM, ON STAGE, SURROUNDED BY DIM LIGHTS REEM TELLING HER STORY AUDIENCE AT THE PLAY VARIOUS OF REEM TELLING HER STORY
  • Embargoed: 3rd January 2014 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Jordan
  • Country: Jordan
  • Topics: Arts
  • Reuters ID: LVA30KEZ3ZXHC2NY29W7X17A7TC8
  • Story Text: Turning their own tragic tales into theatre, Syrian refugee women perform to an audience in the Jordanian capital Amman.
    The production is a modern adaptation of the Greek tragedy the Trojan Women, written by Euripides in 415 BC.
    The cast is made up of 48 women, all of them have the fled the ongoing bloodshed in their homeland.
    On stage, Reem tells of her shock and anguish of losing three members of her family at the same time and of the women in her family being forced out of their homes and town.
    Another actress Rasha says the content in the classic Greek play mirrors that of what is going on in Syria.

    "This play resembles everything happening in Syria. Syria has suffered destruction and death, many people lost their family, just like I did, I lost my brothers and my father in Syria. Similarly in the play, the Greeks attacked Troy, and they burned it down to the ground. They took women and men as prisoners,'' she said.
    ''It is a lot like Syria, everything that is happening in Syria resembles what happened in Troy. In Syria they have killed the men, raped the women, burned down homes, destroyed buildings with people inside, so there are a lot of factors connecting the play, The Trojan Women, and the state of Syria now," she added.
    Another woman, Amar speaks of armed men entering her home, and taking her brother by force. She was later informed by the Red Cross that he was dead.
    For many of the women their stories are of hardship, loss and ultimately survival.
    The Trojan Women follows the fates of the women of Troy after their city is attacked by Greeks, their husbands killed and their families kidnapped into slavery.
    This new production was the idea of Charlotte Eager, a journalist who had heard a version of the play whilst she covered the Bosnian war in the 90's.
    The women in the play are all amateur actors, who were trained over a series of workshops in six weeks.
    Director Omar Abu Saada agreed to come all the way from Damascus for the play. He says the play is extremely important as it helps immortalise the truth of the tragedies that take place in Syria daily.
    ''The most important thing about this play is that it presents testimonies of what happened in Syria. The stories are very real, testimonials by the people themselves told on stage," said Abu Saada.
    The play was on for two night in Amman, December 17th and 18th, ticket sales and other donations have so far raised around 100,000 U.S dollars and the proceeds will go towards supporting Syrian refugees and their families.
    Organisers now hope to take the play on the road to raise more awareness about the plight of hundreds of thousands of Syrians and the brutal war in their country.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2013. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: Audio restrictions: please see Business Notes for more information.
Register