Tag Archives: Nalân Burgess

Out of Sorts

Out of Sorts

★★★★

Theatre503

Out of Sorts

Out of Sorts

Theatre503

Reviewed – 14th October 2019

★★★★

 

“Samal’s smart, insightful script cares deeply about its characters”

 

Out of Sorts is the winner of Theatre503’s International Playwriting Award 2018. Written by Danusia Samal, it tells the story of Zara, a young woman caught between two cultures. Raised Muslim in London, when Zara got to university she quickly learned to adapt in order to fit in with her overwhelmingly white classmates. Now living with her best friend and flatmate Alice, Zara is the typical millennial: she parties, she drinks, and she wants more from life than marriage to a Muslim man. On the other hand, when she visits her family, she reverts to the good Muslim daughter, wearing her hijab at dinner and saying the prayers. On the surface it may seem that Zara has it all worked out, and it’s simply a matter of code switching. But the truth is that identity is messy, and the stress of being split in two this way, between two worlds, neither of which fully accept her, has its cost.

Directed by Tanuja Amarasuriya, Out of Sorts is a heartfelt story of identity and belonging. Samal’s smart, insightful script cares deeply about its characters, all of whom are layered and complicated. Samal shows impressive skill in her ability to balance lightness in her writing with the heaviness of her subjects. The play, which confronts racism, privilege, mental health, and eating disorders, is also touching, delightful, and laugh out loud funny. And although the script may allow itself a few too many speeches, the show never feels long.

Myriam Acharki (Layla, Zara’s mother), is particularly deft in her grasp of her character’s sadness and pain, but also her quite sly sense of humour. Nayef Rashed (Hussein, Zara’s father), likewise brings much of the comedy to the play. Oznur Cifci nails the part of Zara’s sharp-witted, ‘hood rat’ little sister Fatima. Nalân Burgess (Zara) gives a good portrayal of someone barely holding things together. Emma Denly (Alice) is spot on as Zara’s well-intended but privileged and condescending flatmate. Claudius Peters (Anthony) is earnest and convincing as Alice’s boyfriend, who is unfortunate enough to get caught in the avalanche of the girls’ collapsing relationship.

The show has one set, which is used to portray both Zara and Alice’s upmarket flat, and Zara’s family’s council estate flat. What may seem like not an ideal choice, made to accommodate Theatre503’s small space, works better than you might think. A change in lighting (Ali Hunter) is surprisingly effective in morphing the atmosphere. The characters from Zara’s two worlds often overlap in the room, which suggests that perhaps Zara isn’t doing as well as she thinks at keeping her two identities apart.

Out of Sorts makes a powerful argument for open and truthful communication, no matter how difficult it may be. All of Zara’s secrets that she keeps from her friends and family, and her attempt to handle her problems alone, result in a huge mess, both literally and figuratively. The play is clever in getting us to re-examine our own perspectives, and remember that what we see of someone’s life is never the full story. Samal is loving, perceptive, and precise in her championing of people from two cultures who feel like they don’t belong to either. It’s important now more than ever to centre stories like Zara’s. Don’t miss this hugely enjoyable, eye-opening show.

 

Reviewed by Addison Waite

Photography by Helen Murray

 


Out of Sorts

Theatre503 until 2nd November

 

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:
Isaac Came Home From the Mountain | ★★★★ | May 2018
Caterpillar | ★★★★ | September 2018
The Art of Gaman | ★★★★ | October 2018
Hypocrisy | ★★★½ | November 2018
Cinderella and the Beanstalk | ★★★★ | December 2018
Cuzco | ★★★ | January 2019
Wolfie | ★★★★★ | March 2019
The Amber Trap | ★★★ | April 2019
J’Ouvert | ★★★★ | June 2019
A Partnership | ★★★ | October 2019

 

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Citizen – 4 Stars

Citizen

Citizen

The Space

Reviewed – 25th April 2018

★★★★

“Sepy Baghaei’s unique take on identity is both refreshing and convincing”

 

Dark, grave and full of tension, Citizen is about the struggle for identity and the question of heritage many immigrants face. Focusing on Iranian families, it sheds light onto the reality of being a refugee, whether this be the endless waiting or the difficulty of dealing with a traumatised parent.

The play is largely fragmented, with the single scenes slowly adding up to create a greater picture, a collage of experiences. Despite this, the focus always returns to its two main narratives. In heart-wrenching monologues the actors tell the real stories of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Behrouz Boochani, both Iranian, and both victims of unfounded detainment. In these moments, when politics is condensed into a mother missing her daughter and a man struggling with lack of food, the play is at its most haunting. In its quest for understanding, the fragments circle around the concept of citizenship, trying to get a little bit closer each time around. Although this offers a large number of possible approaches, at times, the collage effect appears to be exhausted for a moment. Especially when the bleak reality of the journalists’ fates is contrasted with idealised childhood scenes, the shifts lack conviction. Citizen’s strength is certainly the weighty, the thoughtful and the quiet and this is also where the actors, including Nalân Burgess and David Djemal, are at their best.

Nevertheless, director Sepy Baghaei’s unique take on identity is both refreshing and convincing. In an ironic moment of self-depreciation, the play undermines all attempts to define citizenship by proclaiming the recipe for “a Persian” in the style of a TV cooking show. These moments of humour allow for a quick relief from the otherwise intense piece but are never too distracting from the serious message the play has.

A small, refurbished church, The Space is a perfect venue for a play as intimate and moving as Citizen. While the high ceiling and darkened walls allow for play with the three-dimensional, the room is compact enough to establish a close rapport between actor and observer. Despite the plain set design, an inspired use of lights helps to transport the audience. Throughout the play, simple but endlessly melancholic Persian singing fills the space, the music connecting us more to the unknown than any facts could. In the end, the room and the remains of the play are left for the audience to explore, consciously not drawing a line between the end of the show and the beginning of reality.

While it has a clear political message, Citizen is certainly also a very rewarding play just in itself. With its minimalistic design and close connection to reality, it manages to raise our awareness to what goes on around us and ultimately, calls for humanity.

“If you have no sympathy for human pain
The name of human you cannot retain.” (by Persian poet Saadi)

 

Reviewed by Laura Thorn

Photography by Sepy Baghaei

 


Citizen

The Space until 5th May

 

Related
Previously at the venue
The White Bike | ★★★★★ | September 2017
One Festival | ★★★ | January 2018
The Sleeper | ★★★ | April 2018

 

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