Memory of a Phoenix Feather: Iranian Storytelling Traditions and Contemporary Theater, by Niloufar Talebi in the July/August 2009 issue of World Literature Today.
Watch footage of ICARUS/RISE, a theatrical piece inspired by Iranian oral storytelling traditions, but based on new Iranian poetry.
Read an excerpt from the Introduction
Edited and translated by Niloufar Talebi (North Atlantic Books, July 2008)
Event can include:
-Presentation by Ms. Talebi, with and without poets (4 live in the US, and 13 outside)
-Screening of Midnight Approaches, DVD of short films based on poetry featured in BELONGING
-Panel of scholars/writers/poets/artists contextualizing this literature, etc.
ICARUS/RISE is a provocative and emotional multimedia theatrical performance of new Iranian poetry, translated, created, directed and performed by Niloufar Talebi, with original score by Bobak Salehi, and choreography and video by Alex Ketley, featuring Chloe Felesina as Icarus. The 10 artists on stage tell a story, woven of poems featured in BELONGING, connecting the myth of Icarus with the migration of Iranians, and the solitary journey of the artist/immigrant in the quest for freedom. ICARUS/RISE begins after the fall and is the journey to self-possession, featuring the emerging voices of Iranian poetry, including Ziba Karbassi, Granaz Moussavi, Maryam Huleh, Abbas Saffari, Jamshid Moshkani and Shahrouz Rashid, the poet of “Icarus”, as well as the poetry of Mina Assadi, and Yadollah Royaii.
ICARUS/RISE draws on the Iranian tradition of “Naghali” (dramatic story-telling) to present new Iranian literature in original Persian, as well as in translation, to broader audiences. This allows not only new literature to act as the inspiring source for theater, but also puts forth a new theatrical tradition into the American artistic landscape. Naghali is an age old art form practiced in Iran (in the streets, cafe’s, private gatherings, public rituals, and on the “art music” stage, whose components are music, classical poetry, and narration). Click here for more info about traditional story-telling in Asia and the Middle East.
By giving this theater new content (contemporary, rather than classical Iranian poetry), and fusing it with Western dramatic influences, this project pushes the limits of its traditions, giving voice to a synthesis of cultures in the hybrid-Iranian, reflecting their experience in contemporary society. It imports artistic traditions into the immigrants’ new host cultures, rather than perpetuate the linguistic and artistic divide between them.In the same way Ezra Pound’s translations of Chinese poetry revolutionized American poetics in the early to middle part of the 20th century, we hope to introduces new and vital literary content into English via translation, as well as through a new, hybrid art form.
Workshops offered by composer, Bobak Salehi:
-Middle-Eastern music and its fusion with other musical traditions, including western, flamenco, etc.
-Variety of musical instruments, including Târ, Daf, Tonbak, Violin, Guitar and others.
Workshops offered by choreographer and video artist, Alex Ketley of the Foundry Project:
-Contemporary Ballet
-Choreography
-Collaborative integration of dance within theater
Workshops offered by editor, translator, filmmaker, director, and performer, Niloufar Talebi:
-Multimedia expression
-Literary translation and advocacy
-Contemporary poetry outside Iran
Contact us for information and bookings