Traverse Theatre Company in Iran

In a bold move by the programmers of the International Fadjr Theatre Festival in Iran, the Traverse Theatre Company performed its award-winning production of the pro-Palestinian play When the Bulbul Stopped Singing at Tehran's Dramatic Arts Center in January.

Written by Palestinian author and human rights activist Raja Shehadeh and adapted by Scottish playwright David Greig, the play recounts Shehadeh’s experience of the 2002 Israeli occupation of Ramallah. The concept of taking a British pro-Palestinian play to Iran was initially met with resistance, but once the Iranian authorities understood that the purpose of the Traverse Theatre Company’s visit was to strengthen cultural links and promote peace, their reaction changed.

The Traverse Theatre’s artistic director Philip Howard commented that ‘the fact this play speaks from a Palestinian point of view is hugely important in this context. It’s very meaningful to them, in understanding that this range of views can be heard in Britain, and that the Palestinian perspective is understood by many people in the West.’