{"id":55130,"date":"2019-01-12T23:10:19","date_gmt":"2019-01-12T21:10:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/?p=55130"},"modified":"2026-01-18T15:36:38","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T15:36:38","slug":"us-too-women-of-palestine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/2019\/01\/us-too-women-of-palestine\/","title":{"rendered":"Us Too &#8211; Women of Palestine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>The Freedom Theatre Production 2018<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>In partnership with Interpeace\u2019s Mustakbalna Programme | Supported by the Folke Bernadotte Academy (FBA)<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Inspired by Aeschylus\u2019 The Suppliant Women<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/_Mo7ZXrJ3n0\">https:\/\/youtu.be\/_Mo7ZXrJ3n0<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>About<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Us Too \u2013 Women of Palestine<\/strong> is a bold, site-specific feminist production inspired by Aeschylus\u2019 <em>The Suppliant Women<\/em>. The work deliberately departs from the original myth, re-imagining its central themes through the lived realities of young Palestinian women. Rather than ancient refugees seeking sanctuary, the performers embody contemporary Palestinian women taking refuge in a sacred space, demanding protection not from war, poverty, or occupation\u2014but from patriarchal violence, social restrictions, and gendered oppression.<\/p>\n<p>Developed in collaboration with <strong>Interpeace \/ Mustakbalna<\/strong>, the production merges classical dramaturgical inspiration with urgent personal narratives that confront harassment, barriers to education, forced marriage, and the struggle for self-determination.<\/p>\n<p>Through an unapologetic performance style, the women claim visibility in a society where their civic and political voices are often sidelined, making the play both a theatrical protest and a collective act of empowerment.<\/p>\n<p>For further reference on the project:<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.interpeace.org\/2019\/07\/strengthening-the-role-of-young-women-in-palestine\/\">Interpeace \u2013 Strengthening the Role of Young Women in Palestine<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Artistic Statement<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The performance blends text, physical theatre, choral movement, multilingual storytelling, and devised scenes. It explores:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gender-based violence<\/li>\n<li>Bodily autonomy<\/li>\n<li>Political and civic agency<\/li>\n<li>Educational access<\/li>\n<li>Social constraints<\/li>\n<li>Resistance and feminist empowerment<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The ensemble transforms classical supplicant narratives into contemporary political documents, foregrounding agency, resilience, and collective dissent.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Directors<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Zoe Delemere Lafferty &amp; Ahmed Tobasi<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cast<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>(All-female ensemble, developed through Mustakbalna \/ UNSCR 1325 programme, supported by FBA)<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Amina Abu Zahou<\/li>\n<li>Areej Haseeb<\/li>\n<li>Ayat Nazzal<\/li>\n<li>Razan Jaaysa<\/li>\n<li>Ros Bibilos<\/li>\n<li>Saja Mary<\/li>\n<li>Shatha Yasin<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Creative &amp; Technical Team<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Dramaturgy &amp; Devised Material:<\/strong> Ensemble, in collaboration with Mustakbalna programme, inspired by <em>The Suppliant Women<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>Producer:<\/strong> Mustafa Sheta<\/li>\n<li><strong>Production Manager:<\/strong> Ranin Odeh<\/li>\n<li><strong>Programme Coordinator:<\/strong> Rania Wasfi<\/li>\n<li><strong>Administrative Assistance &amp; Finance:<\/strong> Isra Awartani<\/li>\n<li><strong>Lighting Design &amp; Sinography:<\/strong> Ahmed Matahen<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sound Design &amp; Music:<\/strong> Sami Al-Sadi<\/li>\n<li><strong>Technician:<\/strong> Adnan Naghnaghiye<\/li>\n<li><strong>Costume Design:<\/strong> Fazeh Bni Gharra<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Tour &amp; Performance History (2018\u20132019)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>World Premiere:<\/strong> Jenin Refugee Camp \u2013 December 2018<\/li>\n<li><strong>Subsequent Performances:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Ya\u2019abad<\/li>\n<li>Tubas: Al-Fara\u2019a<\/li>\n<li>Nablus<\/li>\n<li><strong>Hebron:<\/strong> YES Theatre<\/li>\n<li><strong>Tulkarem:<\/strong> Rameen Village<\/li>\n<li><strong>Ramallah:<\/strong> ASHTAR Theatre<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Each performance was accompanied by post-show discussions to engage local communities, particularly women and youth, in reflection and dialogue.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Political &amp; Social Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Palestinian women, particularly young women, remain structurally excluded from political and security decision-making. Social norms, conservative attitudes, gender stereotyping, and economic hardship limit their access to influence and restrict knowledge of civic rights.<\/p>\n<p>Through the <strong>Mustakbalna programme<\/strong>, Interpeace and The Freedom Theatre empowered young women as agents of change, combining training on UNSCR 1325, human rights, gender, and political literacy with creative advocacy tools\u2014photography, videography, and theatre.<\/p>\n<p><em>Us Too<\/em> is therefore more than a performance\u2014it is a public intervention, a protest, and a collective demand for gender justice.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Aesthetic Choices<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Minimalist scenography emphasizing performers\u2019 bodies and voices<\/li>\n<li>Neutral, earth-toned costumes symbolizing collective identity<\/li>\n<li>Percussive movement and ensemble breathing inspired by Greek chorus<\/li>\n<li>Integration of projected text, direct address, and intimate confessions<\/li>\n<li>Use of community and public spaces to reinforce the work\u2019s protest dimension<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Partners &amp; Support<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Interpeace \/ Mustakbalna Programme<\/strong> \u2013 principal partner<\/li>\n<li><strong>Folke Bernadotte Academy (FBA)<\/strong> \u2013 project funder<\/li>\n<li>Local host venues: Hebron, Ramallah, Nablus, Tulkarem and Jenin\u2019s community hosts across Jenin Camp, and Ya\u2019abad.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Archival &amp; Academic Note<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This publication serves as official documentation for <em>Us Too \u2013 Women of Palestine<\/em>, consolidating artistic, political, and logistical records for research, institutional archiving, and future reference in gender-focused and participatory theatre studies.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Freedom Theatre Production 2018 In partnership with Interpeace\u2019s Mustakbalna Programme | Supported by the Folke Bernadotte Academy (FBA) Inspired by Aeschylus\u2019 The Suppliant Women https:\/\/youtu.be\/_Mo7ZXrJ3n0 About Us Too \u2013 Women of Palestine is a bold, site-specific feminist production inspired by Aeschylus\u2019 The Suppliant Women. The work deliberately departs from the original myth, re-imagining its [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":57334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-theatre-productions","category-theatre-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55130"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57335,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55130\/revisions\/57335"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefreedomtheatre.org\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}