Sparrow in the Room Collective’s production of the Chalmers Award-winning play Morgan’s Journey returns from a seven-week international tour.
Along the way this Canadian classic became the first foreign theatre presentation to have ever been performed in Iran’s ultra- conservative, holy city of Qom.
The collective welcomes three new international members from Iran, Thailand and Nepal to work on the second stage of its international theatrical collaboration.
For immediate release: January 12, 2009
Toronto, Ontario …
Recently formed theatre collective Sparrow in the Room returned to Toronto from a seven-week tour to Iran, Thailand and Nepal exhausted … and ready to celebrate the New Year in Canada with renewed vitality and optimism. There is good reason to celebrate - the tour, which centred on performances of Canada’s longest-running touring play, Morgan's Journey was a sensation. Sparrow’s Artistic co-Director, Robert Morgan (Founding Artistic Director of the Children’s Peace Theatre) performed the play in a variety of settings, from large, elegant and beautifully equipped halls in Iran to hastily erected platforms in open fields in Nepal with the Himalayas as a backdrop.
During the tour Sparrow took a step closer to realizing its dream of becoming a global collective. Producer Anahita Azrahimi signed three new members and initiated the second stage of an global collaboration with companies from Iran, Thailand and Nepal. Eedeh Theatre Company (formerly Aeen Theatre) from Iran, Moradokmai Theatre Troupe from Thailand and Salil Kanika individual theatre and performance artist from Nepal are the newest members of the Sparrow in the Room Collective.
The Collective is now gathering the means to bring members of the companies together this autumn in Canada to begin a three-year collaborative co-creation. The dream is to create and perform a new theatrical work based on the telling of archetypal stories presently emerging during our era.
Morgan's Journey played to over 6,000 audience members in Iran, Thailand and Nepal and an excerpt of the play performed for a live television broadcast during the closing ceremonies at the International Theatre Festival in Isfahan, Iran reaching an audience of millions.
Television and newspaper interviews in Teheran and Qom, as well as featured articles in national papers in Nepal, Thailand and Iran brought awareness of the Canadian company’s work to millions more.
Based on the extraordinarily positive audience response to the play in Tehran and Isfahan, Morgan's Journey was invited to perform in the ultra- conservative, holy city of Qom (sometimes called ‘The Vatican City of Iran’) the most religious and so-called ‘anti-West’ city in Iran. The 600 seats of the city’s main theatre sold out with only two days notice and Morgan's Journey became the first foreign ‘Western’ theatre performance in the city’s history.
The people of Qom literally thronged to see this offering from the West and the performance created a small media frenzy. Sparrow learned from its hosts that guards had been placed outside the theatre should the protests that they expected, erupt. Thankfully, they did not. Each year the city hosts international conferences and seminars that focus on Islam, but since the Islamic Revolution of 30 years ago, arts and international cultural activities have been rebuked by many as dangerous and unwelcome expressions of Western culture.
Media and organizers heralded the performance of Morgan's Journey as:
“a Cultural Revolution in Qom”
“a unique cultural event” in which
“Taboos and traditions were broken”
Organizers reflections of the performance in Qom:
“Now that the taboo has been broken, it has opened the door for future foreign performances in the city. The performance of Morgan's Journey, its strength and its message wiped out misconceptions and pessimism towards Western culture that was in the mind of the audiences of this city. It proved to them that even a “Western” play can talk about humanity, that it is not all about “sex” and “immorality.” This performance initiated a small dialogue but with a lasting impact between the West and Qom, a real dialogue of humanity and love…”
Sparrow in the Room Collective is proud to have been part of this event and the changes that it will bring to the arts community in Qom.
Robert Morgan’s reflection after the performance in Qom:
“My experience performing Morgan's Journey in Iran ranks high on my ‘all-time highlight’ list. To have been part of such an intimately shared experience with large audiences in a foreign land was unexpected… and unexpectedly moving."
After these performances, particularly the performance in the city of Qom when asked, ‘What is the message of the play?’ I found myself saying, ‘I’m not sure there is one.’ I have been performing Morgan's Journey for more than 25 years and it seems to me now that the play is simply a shared experience of being attentive to the present moment…
…it seems the play is becoming more and more engaging for audiences and some of the moments in the play are becoming infused with a joy that seems to be growing deeper and deeper - perhaps because I’m finally learning how to play them… but it also seems that joy is aroused by the shared recognition of our common humanity… and perhaps with that comes compassion, a sense of hope and well-being and, dare we say it, love.”
Introducing the three new members of the Sparrow in the Room Collective:
Eedeh Theatre Company (formerly known as Aeen) was founded in 1988 at the end of Iran-Iraq war and has become one of the high-profile theatre companies for audiences of all ages in Iran. Eedeh explores themes of war, religion, history, social issues and Iranian folklore and in addition to touring throughout Iran, has presented work in Turkey, Germany, Slovenia, United Arab Emirates, India, Malaysia and Argentina.
Moradokmai Theatre Troupe is one of a kind. It is a professional performance company, a full-time school and a community with 32 members living and working together based on Zen philosophy and sustainable development practices. Together they learn to grow their own food, build their own shelters, make their own clothes while meeting the requirements of government-regulated school curriculum. Everything they learn is reflected through the prism of theatre. Members spend half the year in their community and the other half performing both in Thailand and internationally. Moradokmai is four years young and their reputation is growing as quickly as the international interest in their work.
Salil Kanika is a dazzling performance and theatre artist working and playing in multi mediums of Sound, Performance, Theatre, Music, Video, Photography, Writings and Experiments with/in Raw Nature among children and rural areas in Nepal. He has established art camps for orphans and radio stations for youth and adults in remote rural villages throughout Nepal.
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Media Contact : Anahita Azrahimi
416.559.5923