A new version of the Iranian play "A Comedy Like a Murder" inspired by the assassination of a 19th century king tackles the role of art in Iranian society. The play’s main protagonist hails “This land does not need artists” and continues “Even if it does, it wants them humiliated and laughed at.”
A surge in private theatres marks new era for Iran’s young. Squeezed between a sandwich shop and an electrical devices outlet, Tehran’s Baran Theatre seems an unlikely location for an evening of culture.
But the privately run venue has been staging sellout shows since it opened a year ago, as its predominantly young clientele take advantage of the cultural and social opening since Hassan Rouhani became president in 2013.
Graduates Fahimeh Amanzadeh and Khayyam Vaghar invested their savings to convert a former warehouse into a 121-seat venue and café that aims to become a breeding ground for lesser known playwrights and performers. It and the dozens of other privately funded venues that have sprung up in Tehran contrast with the nearby City Theatre, the prestigious government funded venue for established artists.
“Only professionals have the chance to stage work at the City Theatre. So the large number of young theatre graduates and lack of space to perform led us to establish a private theatre,” says Ms Amanzadeh.
The theatre boom is a small part of wider change in Iran under Mr Rouhani. While focus has tended to be on the president’s economic and foreign policy reforms, notably a groundbreaking nuclear deal with the west, analysts also note a small but significant shift towards the more open society demanded by Iran’s youthful population.
Young people in the Islamic Republic cannot visit bars or nightclubs, the drinking of alcohol is banned and the sexes are sometimes segregated. But they can attend cultural events such as theatre shows, concerts, cinemas and galleries, as well as poetry and literary events held in book shops.
Almost two-thirds of Iran’s 78m population are under 40 years of age. There are also 25 times as many graduates as there were in 1979, including about 1,400 a year with theatre degrees who have often found limited opportunities to use their qualifications.
Many of the estimated 100 plays staged daily in Iran deal with themes that relate to everyday life in the country. For instance, A Comedy Like a Murder, inspired by the assassination of the 19th century king Nassereddin Shah Qajar and combining the traditions of Persian comedy with dance and music, tackles the role of art in Iranian society. “This land does not need artists,” says Haarki Khan, the play’s main protagonist. “Even if it does, it wants them humiliated and laughed at.”
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