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Sunday, 19 May 2024

Enter ghost

 by Isabella Hammad


A timely read !

It narrates the story of how a cast of actors from mixed nationalities is going to put on Shakespeare’s play  «  Hamlet »,  in classic Arabic,  in Ramallah.

This production has to face enormous challenges : the Palestinians’ poor living conditions in the West Bank, the checkpoints, the uncertainty as to when protests might erupt …

With references to the past History of Israël and Palestine,  «  Hamlet’s » story is transposed in our 21st century in the West Bank.

The questions are  :

What is the point of playing » Hamlet » in the West Bank ?

What is the role of theatre  ( and Art in general) ?

The book answers : «  we can do resistance without going full-on political, without slogans ».

If only it were that simple … 

                                                                                       Anne Van Calster , Mai 2024


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