REVIEW: Anahita’s Republic at Bustle & Beast
iPhoto caption: Photo by Taylor Long
Even in the aftermath of a revolution, it can feel like nothing’s changing.
Fighting words from Bustle and Beast’s biting and brave new play, Anahita’s Republic, playing in the well-dressed Factory Theatre Studio through the end of the month. Penned anonymously by a duo of playwrights, known together by their nom de plume Hengameh E. Rice, the ninety-minute drama packs a mighty punch, spanning the gamut of attitudes towards (and embodied by) women in post-Revolution Iran.
In an hour and a half, Rice covers the recent history of Iranian women’s rights, the secret life of high-rolling smugglers in capital city Tehran, and the fact that a risky move westward might not afford the uninhibited freedom Iranian women and girls have dreamed of. Freedom and power are subjective notions, warns Rice, and escape from the regime to more socially liberal countries like England and Canada can bring unexpected consequences.
We meet Anahita (in a lovely performance by Sama Mousavi) within the walls of her luxurious compound overlooking Tehran. She wears a classy poolside ensemble of leopard print sarong and bathing suit with a plunging neckline, her hair loose and well-styled. Immediately we sense this carefree life is both taboo and much more high-stakes than it might seem — if Anahita were to wear this ensemble past the threshold of her impressive home, she’d be imprisoned for immodesty.
We soon meet her brother, Cyrus (Fuad Ahmed, showing impressive range), a member of parliament engaged in the smuggling business. He defers to Anahita in all things — at first — and lets us know almost immediately that the life he craves is that of poet, not politician. Cyrus plays the part of double agent well, encouraging Anahita’s push for women’s rights in Iran while maintaining the esteem of the Iranian government.
When a delivery of smuggled treasures — pills, poems, and bottles of alcohol — arrives at Anahita’s compound, something’s off. The delivery’s in the hands of a woman, rather than her usual father. This woman, Omid (a sweet Mahsa Ershadifar), wears the chador, as well as the less restrictive hijab, and from her first moment onstage she doesn’t seem to trust Anahita or the subversive, feminist republic she’s so intent on bringing to the surface. She wears the chador for herself, Omid says, holding the garment closed tightly. It’s only when Cyrus leaves that we’re able to see the secrets she’s keeping underneath it.
Anahita’s Republic has many of the hallmarks of a great play — tension, social message, an attractive set by Sim Suzer. But it also shows the signs of a play in progress. While the text is often affecting, funny, and poignant, it can feel a little long as it searches for its climax. Is it when Omid’s father, Masood (Omar Alex Khan) arrives? Or when he leaves? Or is it Cyrus’ outburst towards Omid, then Omid and Anahita, then just Anahita? Rice leaves us with much to ponder in this story of broken families and a struggling populace, but sometimes it arguably feels like too much, a blizzard of arguments and narratives in a cramped narrative frame.
Still, director Brenley Charkow has milked a cogent story from this chaotic world, and with four capable, compelling actors in tow, Anahita’s Republic comes to life beautifully. It’s a powerful follow to Soulpepper’s English last month, another play about Iran, its migrants, and most specifically its women — and its message is ever-timely as conflict continues to mount across Iran’s cities and towns.
Anahita’s Republic runs at Factory Theatre March 17 though April 2, 2023.
Aisling Murphy
Aisling is Intermission's senior editor and an award-winning arts journalist with bylines including the Toronto Star, Globe & Mail, CBC Arts, CTV News Toronto, and Maclean's. She likes British playwright Sarah Kane, most songs by Taylor Swift, and her cats, Fig and June. She was a 2024 fellow at the National Critics Institute in Waterford, CT.
LEARN MORE
iPhoto caption: The Lehman Trilogy production still by Trudie Lee.
REVIEW: Canadian theatre has a thing for The Lehman Trilogy. Does it work at Theatre Calgary?
The real drivers of Theatre Calgary’s production are its three performers. And boy, do they ever drive. Each performance pulses with unmatched and unrelenting vivacity, made all the more impressive by the stamina required from the ambitious three-and-a-half-hour runtime.
iPhoto caption: Production stills from Faust and Nabucco courtesy of the Canadian Opera Company.
REVIEW: Excellent singing elevates lacklustre productions in Faust and Nabucco
Both operas in the Canadian Opera Company’s current fall repertoire, Faust and Nabucco, include stellar performances from world-class singers in productions featuring directorial and design choices that abandon historical accuracy and realistic mise-en-scène to varying degrees of success.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Ian Jackson
REVIEW: In Ronnie Burkett’s darkly intelligent Wonderful Joe, gentrification hits like a meteor
When Siminovitch-winning puppet virtuoso Ronnie Burkett chose the focus of his latest play, was he thinking of TO Live’s $421-million plan to redevelop its St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts?
iPhoto caption: 13 Plays About ADHD All At The Same Time graphic courtesy of Circlesnake Productions.
REVIEW: 13 Plays About ADHD All At The Same Time is true to its title
While the play’s structure may occasionally leave you feeling as scattered as its protagonists, its heart, humour, and raw honesty will keep your thoughts churning well into the night.
iPhoto caption: Goblin:Macbeth production still by Jae Yang.
REVIEW: Goblin:Macbeth might just leave you gobsmacked
While most of the entertainment comes from the goblins’ antics whenever the Shakespearean text is paused or subverted for comic effect, the secret sauce to this whole endeavour is that it really is an honest-to-goodness staging of that text, designed to showcase the performers’ near-virtuosic mastery of the material.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Dahlia Katz.
REVIEW: The Thanksgiving Play wriggles in performative wokeness
In 2024, is there a way to produce an engaging, culturally sensitive play about the first American Thanksgiving for elementary schoolers? The Thanksgiving Play, penned by Native American playwright Larissa FastHorse and now playing at Mirvish’s CAA Theatre, poses that question in its first five minutes, then throws the query out with the cranberry sauce in its madcap exploration of a devised theatre piece at an unnamed primary school.
UnCovered returns to Musical Stage Company with U2 and the Rolling Stones
“What you see in the audience is really the tip of a very long collaborative iceberg,” says Wong, artistic associate at Musical Stage Company and arranger, orchestrator, and music supervisor for UnCovered. “It’s a really diverse cast of voices and styles, and they’re all bringing their A-game. It’s starting to get really exciting in the room.”
iPhoto caption: Photo by Dahlia Katz.
REVIEW: The Thanksgiving Play wriggles in performative wokeness
In 2024, is there a way to produce an engaging, culturally sensitive play about the first American Thanksgiving for elementary schoolers? The Thanksgiving Play, penned by Native American playwright Larissa FastHorse and now playing at Mirvish’s CAA Theatre, poses that question in its first five minutes, then throws the query out with the cranberry sauce in its madcap exploration of a devised theatre piece at an unnamed primary school.
iPhoto caption: King James production still by Dahlia Katz.
REVIEW: King James interrogates hometown pride and fandom
LeBron James’ checkered legacy looms large over the events of King James, sensitively written by American playwright Rajiv Joseph and now playing in a stylish production at Theatre Aquarius.
iPhoto caption: Come From Away production still by Matthew Murphy.
REVIEW: Welcome home, Come From Away
On the surface, not much has changed in Irene Sankoff and David Hein’s Tony Award-winning masterwork. But in the two and a half years since Come From Away’s last stint on King Street West, the show has continued to mature, and even improve — the production now playing at the Royal Alexandra Theatre is just stunning.
iPhoto caption: King James production still by Dahlia Katz.
King James brings basketball — and bromance — to Theatre Aquarius
“Sports and theatre both hold extraordinary characters in extraordinary circumstances,” says director Haysam Kadri. “That’s what my favourite type of theatre is: Characters placed in such interesting circumstances, and seeing how they navigate the world.”
iPhoto caption: Photo by Dahlia Katz.
REVIEW: 1939 finds tremendous power in the things left unspoken
Jani Lauzon’s production, now playing at Canadian Stage, paints a sharp portrait of a fictional residential school, but uses wide swathes of negative space to its advantage.
Comments