Taking a bold risk, the director, trainer, and researcher Fadil Jaf translated the play Romeo and Juliet – as adapted by the Swedish writer Thomas Melgren from William Shakespeare’s masterpiece – into Kurdish. He also directed it for the Ararat Theater Troupe, collaborating with professors and students from the Institute of Fine Arts in Sulaymaniyah.
Funded by Karim Ala Ka and the Charitable Cultural Foundation in Erbil, the play was performed at the Culture Hall in Sulaymaniyah. It received significant public interest, running for 11 consecutive days, although it could have extended for a full month.
The audience was remarkably engaged, quiet, and respectful. On the tenth day of performance, I attended and did not hear a whisper throughout the one hour and 40 minute-show. The adaptation condensed Shakespeare’s original text and reduced the number of characters without compromising its central events or theme. Moreover, it retained the classic traditions of Shakespearean theater.
A timeliness tale
The story of Romeo and Juliet is well known to anyone interested in theater. The sheer number of adaptations – over 100 films, 24 operas, and over 10 ballets (most notably by the Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev) – reflects its cultural magnitude on a global scale and speaks to the timelessness of the play’s themes of romantic love, familial conflict, and social division. Tchaikovsky’s symphonic work relating to the play and other musical references, including Mozart and Shostakovich, were effectively incorporated by Jaf into the dance and fencing scenes of the performance.
Set in Renaissance-era Verona, Italy, the play revolves around the bitter feud between two noble families, the Montagues and the Capulets. Romeo (Rawand Ahmed), a 16-year-old Montague, crashes a Capulet party with his friend Benvolio, both wearing masks. There, he meets Juliet (Teshu Namiq), the 13-year-old daughter of Lord Capulet (Kamal Ali), and they instantly fall in love. Juliet, however, is betrothed to Count Paris (Shanyar Hama Hoshman). Despite the feud, Romeo and Juliet secretly marry with the help of Friar Lorenzo (Hunar Hassan).
Conflict escalates when Tybalt (Shafan Kheder), Juliet’s cousin, kills Romeo’s friend Mercutio (Mohammed Hoshyar). In retaliation, Romeo kills Tybalt and is banished from Verona. The priest devises a desperate plan for Juliet to feign death, but miscommunication causes Romeo to believe she has truly died. He returns, kills Count Paris at her tomb, and takes his own life. Juliet awakens, finds Romeo dead, and kills herself. In the aftermath, the families reconcile, vowing to honor the lovers with golden statues – finally acknowledging their shared guilt in the tragedy.
The story’s themes can, of course, find relevance today, echoing many of the political, socio-economic, and sectarian divisions that plague our world today. My critical reading, from a cultural perspective, is that Jaf’s choice of Romeo and Juliet is an implicit message that calls for rejecting these divisions in Kurdish society and seeking reconciliation and harmony.
Design elements enhanced the plays themes of revenge versus reconciliation. For instance, a striking moment in the performance features a statue of Romeo and Juliet bathed in blue, reminiscent of the famous scene between the main protagonists Jack and Rose in the movie Titanic. The symbolic blue lighting, used in all romantic scenes, evoked open horizons and love, contrasting with the red tones used for scenes of violence that connote blood. Lighting designers Shwan Mohammed Sa’id and Fidar Sa’id effectively conveyed these thematic contrasts, despite the hall’s limited technical facilities.
Theatricalization and metatheatre
Jaf approached his production of Romeo and Juliet through the context of “theatricalization” and the framework of “metatheater” or “reflexive theater.” The former creates an infrastructure for great acting, while the latter provides the audience with many scenes and elements that are best described as “theater within theater.”
From the opening – where actors announce they will perform the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet – to fight scenes and abstract movement choreographed by Goran Sargaluyi, the production embraced stylized performance – theatricality – over realism. These techniques, rooted in Vsevolod Meyerhold’s biomechanical theater, on which Jaf completed his doctoral thesis, were used to great effect. His book, Physics of the Body: Meyerhold, Theater of Movement and Rhythm, explores these principles further.
Meanwhile, Shiraz Aziz’s minimal but effective set design placed Lord Capulet’s palace on stage right, including Juliet’s iconic balcony, while stage left housed Friar Lorenzo’s cell. Costumes by Avin Gharib reflected the period and setting. Scene transitions were made visible to the audience, reinforcing the metatheatrical tone. Central stage areas served as streets or graveyards, depending on the scene.
The show concluded with the actors reemphasizing the metatheatrical frame, playfully acknowledging the performative nature of theater and breaking the illusion one final time.
The cast delivered nuanced and engaging performances. Rawand Ahmed embodied Romeo’s romantic vulnerability, while Teshu Namiq portrayed Juliet with bold passion. Kamal Ali was both strict and composed as Lord Capulet, and Hero Sabah brought elegance and dignity to Juliet’s mother. Shanaz Muhammad added depth and humor as the nurse, while Hunar Hassan’s Friar Lorenzo was measured and wise. Supporting cast members, including Shafan Kheder (Tybalt), Guly Hassan (The Governor), Zhilwan Luqman (Benvolio), Mohammed Hoshyar (Mercutio), and others, demonstrated strong ensemble work and commitment.
The 22 actors and actresses, along with a large technical team, underwent three months of rehearsals under challenging conditions. Yet, the outcome was a dazzling production rich in aesthetic and emotional power. Jaf’s directorial vision, supported by his deep knowledge and creativity, resulted in a performance that stands out as a landmark in Kurdish theater.
Awwad Ali is a novelist, critic, and theater researcher originally from Kirkuk. He has penned 12 books on theater criticism and published eight novels.
