News
Through the Wire
Sydney Opera House 13 - 23 October
Media Release
Tuesday, 17 August 2004
The Studio at Sydney Opera House presents a
Racing Pulse Production produced by Performing Lines
Through the Wire
13-23 October 2004
Written & Directed by Ros Horin
With Ali Ammouchi, Lucy Bell, Wadih Dona, Heather Mitchell, Deidre Rubenstein, Shahin Shafaei, Hazem Shammas
Music by Gamal Rekabi;
Set Installations Feruu Seljuk;
Film Projections Heidi Riederer
"Through the Wire is brilliant theatre. It cuts to the marrow of our humanity." Anne Deveson
In 1999, a young Iranian bought a passage to England. He was without passport or visa, and on arrival presented himself as a refugee. He then learned that he was, in fact, in Perth, Australia, and was put into detention for the next 4 years.
So begins Mohsen Soltany Zand's story of his escape from Iran, and his 4-year detention in Perth and Port Hedland Immigration Detention Centres, and Roebourne Prison in WA. His is just one of four refugees' stories in Through the Wire--stories of the persecution in their homelands that lead them to seek better lives in a new country.
A sell-out hit at the 2004 Sydney Festival, Through the Wire is a play about ordinary people thrown into extraordinary situations halfway round the world from their homes. Through the Wire is a story of people wanting a new life, but first having to endure restraint, persecution and long amounts of time simply not knowing what will happen next. Through the Wire is also the stories of just a few Australians who took steps to develop life-changing relationships with the detainees.
The power of Through the Wire is its simplicity in allowing people to tell their own stories, most often with the characters speaking directly to the audience. Through the Wire also features live music by Iranian Gamal Rekabi, and imagery drawn from work by a number of Australian artists including Hossein Valmanesh and Guan Wei.
Devised by Writer/Director/Producer Ros Horin, Through the Wire is an attempt to get behind the prejudices, clichés and fear-tactics surrounding the refugee issue, to reveal the human faces and stories obscured by invectives like 'illegal' and 'queue-jumper', and to re-activate our capacity for empathy and compassion.
Season Details: Through the Wire
Venue: The Studio, Sydney Opera House
Dates: 13 - 23 October
Bookings: (02) 9250 7777 or online at sydneyoperahouse.com
Information: sydneyoperahouse.com/thestudio
For further media information contact:
Sarah Wilson (02) 8302 2922 / 0405 364 643 / sarah.w@mollison.com
Christopher Wynton (02) 9250 7836 / 0403 461 005 / cwynton@sydneyoperahouse.com
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