What does it mean – and what does it cost – to be a woman in Iran today?
This question lies at the heart of Hengameh E. Rice’s new play Anahita’s Republic, currently receiving its world premiere at Factory Studio Theatre. The themes of the play, which is directed by the award-winning indie Bustle & Beast Theatre’s Artistic Producer Brenley Charkow, with Assistant Director Aylin Oyan Salahshoor, are ripped straight from the headlines. Anahita’s Republic grapples with Iran’s agonizing yet deeply inspiring past and present, and offers an engrossing exploration of women’s rights, freedom, family, and power.
Under the constant threat of harassment and imprisonment, strong and educated Iranian women have placed themselves at the forefront of the movement to advance their own rights and the well-being of their country. The plot centres on one such woman, Anahita, who refuses to wear the hijab and chooses instead to build her own republic. Only there is she free to live, dress, and speak as she pleases. From inside her compound, she controls the family business and the life of her brother Cyrus – but she does so at a profound cost. On the eve of a crucial secret meeting of the leaders of Iran’s women’s movement, a young woman clad in a chador arrives at Anahita’s compound carrying explosive secrets – secrets that might destroy everything Anahita has tried to build.
Just writing the play brings significant risks, given the current political unrest in Iran. And in the light of this reality, Hengameh E. Rice is not one person, but a writing duo using this pseudonym. Hengameh was born in Shiraz, Iran, and Rice was born in Edmonton, Alberta. Hengameh is a strong promoter of inclusion and equity in theatre, and makes cross-cultural awareness a critical part of her life and work. She was a recent participant in the 2023 Stratford Festival Playwright’ Retreat. At present, the writing duo is at work on their second play, The Dance.
The cast features Omar Alex Khan (Masood), Fuad Ahmed (Cyrus), and Mahsa Ershadifar (Omid), and Sama Mousavi, making her Toronto English-language stage debut as Anahita. Mousavi is an accomplished and award-winning actor from Iran who recently moved to Toronto with her husband. English is the multilingual actor’s third language (she is also fluent in Farsi and German). In addition to acting and directing, she is currently completing her PhD remotely from Hamburg University.
SesayArts had the pleasure of speaking with Mousavi about debuting the role of Anahita, her attraction and approach to the role, and the challenge and rigour of performing it in her third language.
SesayArts: Let’s start with you. What would you like us to know about you and your inspiration for pursuing a life in theatre?
Sama M: Theatre is the only thing without which, I can never imagine my life, and I always feel so lucky to have had the chance to grow up with it. At 12 years of age, I was taking piano and painting courses at an art school in Tehran when I accidentally found out that there was an acting class for youth. So I decided to go to that class and after a year, I was sure that I wanted to be an actor.
I studied theatre at the University of Tehran and started my career as a theatre director at 22 years of age. Since then I’ve been working as both actor and director. At 26 years of age, I went to Germany to pursue my education and to get to know the German theatre. I got my Master’s degree in “Theatre in Social Context,” and after two years of working, I started my PhD at Hamburg University. My specialty is documentary theatre, and I work as actress, director and researcher. It’s been almost a year that I’ve lived in Canada while pursuing my PhD in Germany.
SesayArts: Now let’s talk about Hengameh E. Rice’s play. What led you to perform in this play, which examines such themes as toxic masculinity, power dynamics, gender inequality and violence against women? What can audiences expect to experience at this world-premiere work?
Sama M: I believe this play is about women, life and freedom, which ironically is the most popular slogan of the recent revolution in Iran. The fact that Hengameh has written this play years ago shows that these themes are the reality of Iranian male-dominated society.
The story is about women’s life in Iran, the freedom they don’t have and their fight for change. Being born and raised in Iran, I have felt it with all my heart, and it’s obvious I would love to perform and show it to the world. This work will give the audience an introduction to Iranian society and the fight Iranians are going through these days.
SesayArts: What attracted you to the role of Anahita, and what’s your approach to playing her? If you met in real life, would you be friends?
Sama M: Anahita is a real fighter. She was born a fighter and has been one all her life. She has a clear political vision, and that is freedom. Not only for herself but also for every woman in Iran. She is a great leader, always pushing the boundaries but sometimes she goes beyond and gets lost in her greed. I believe she might not be a pleasant and sweet character for some audiences, but if you have the experience of living in a country like Iran, you know that this is the system that shapes people in this way. I have met lots of people like her in my country and with all their weaknesses, I admire them.
SesayArts: Without spoilers, it’s safe to describe the plot as harrowing (to say the least), so I’m wondering what you do to protect your own emotional health as you’re performing the run?
Sama M: Beside all the difficulties of playing such a role, I think it’s the power of sharing and the importance of storytelling that motivate me to perform the character. I myself as an Iranian woman witnessed and experienced a lot of inequalities, injustice and rejection in my life in Iran and having the opportunity to tell people how horrifyingly the Islamic Republic and similar regimes can operate, help me minimize the effect of the rollercoaster of the role.
SesayArts: What’s been the biggest surprise to come out of working on Anahita’s Republic, and also the biggest challenge?
Sama M: The biggest surprise is definitely the openness and trustfulness of the theatre society and the great team of Anahita’s Republic. The whole cast are professionals who do their best to make the process smooth and pleasant.
And the biggest challenge is acting in English for the first time. I have many acting experiences in Farsi and some in German, but this is the first time for me to act in my third language, which requires intensive work and motivation.
SesayArts: Tell us something about you that we will not find on your resumé… anything that might surprise us?
Sama M: On my resumé, you can see my accomplishments and successes in my life, but there is no sign of my failures and the uneven path I have gone through in my life. I, as an Iranian woman, have personally experienced some parts of Anahita’s life, which was hardly believable to the rest of the cast. Anahita and I have different characters; however, we have strong things in common. I think it would be a challenge for the audience to guess that common destiny.
Anahita’s Republic runs at the Factory Studio Theatre from March 17 to April 2, 2023. Reserve tickets on factorytheatre.ca.
© Arpita Ghosal, SesayArts Magazine, 2023
