Madhi Mohammadi trained as a director at Kabul University. He co-founded Papyrus Theatre, which was awarded first prize at the Afghan National Theatre Festival, as well as touring to India and Sweden. In Australia, Mahdi has performed with the PYT Fairfield Ensemble and was a co-devisor/performer in PYT’s Tribunal. Madhi is my guest after 8am this morning.
“Dorr-e Dari literally means ‘The Pearl of Dari’ which is the form of Persian that we grew up speaking as Afghan people. Our language and culture is like this expensive, hidden, precious stone that has survived for thousands of years because it has to be kept in the heart.”
Recognise the butterflies and tune in to a thousand-year strong tradition of courtly Persian love poetry from Western Sydney’s leading theatre company for young professional artists, PYT Fairfield. Through intimate storytelling and epic ballads from the streets of Kabul, Tehran and Quetta, via Western Sydney, your Afghan-Australian hosts will guide you on the path to love – from getting caught in school writing love letters to the art of flirting, romance and forming relationships.
Inspired by the tradition of private recitals and ‘curtain shows’ performed throughout the Persian-speaking world, this rich and tender theatre work demonstrates there’s a verse for every condition of the heart.
Exploring Persian-language cultural traditions in a contemporary Australian context, the work is theatrical, conversational and spiritual – audiences will experience heavenly singing, joyous dancing, personal storytelling and sumptuous video imagery.
Dorr-e Dari not only invites audiences to experience the culturally diverse and rich cultures on their doorstep but also to consider how translation and interpretation of universal themes of love and relationships are celebrated and experienced across cultures over time.
Join our Afghan-Australian artists on stage, with guests appearing on video phone calls from Afghanistan, Iran and Canada, as they invite the audience into the charmed space of a poetry circle where, at least for a moment, any problem might be solved with a couplet.