Suppliants of Syria: Syrian Women’s Stories on London Stage

Border Crossings returns to the stage this spring with SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA,a dynamic multimedia performance, in which Syrian women on screen interact with live performers. The company’s latest work presents an urgent and topical look at displacement, created in collaboration with the refugees themselves. Audiences will not only hear these important testimonies: they will also have the opportunity to talk through their significance in a live debate at the centre of the performance.

Greek playwright Aeschylus wrote Suppliants (meaning ‘Asylum Seekers’) in 463 BC. It’s a story of women fleeing their home in search of safety. In 2023, Border Crossings travelled to Turkey to develop a contemporary version of this ancient piece in dialogue with a group of Syrian women, who shared their own stories, and performed the Choruses from the original play. 

SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA focuses on the stark contrast between the popular perception of refugees and the harsh realities they face in everyday life. The show combines Aeschylus’ 2,500-year-old play with these modern-day filmed testimonies presented in a live on-stage dialogue with European actors while the venue’s walls will be adorned with artworks by local refugees. The production seeks to reshape how we understand discussions in the news around the ‘refugee crisis’ by foregrounding the voices of women who continue to seek safety and dignity.

SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA use the Greek model of Theatre as Democracy to incite a live debate about admitting and accommodating refugees. All performances will be preceded by a short talk by a refugee or NGO worker and be followed by music and dance from local refugees. Border Crossings will also host a pre-show dinner so that refugees and young people can engage directly with civic dignitaries, police, health and social workers, journalists and politicians. 

Artistic Director Michael Walling commentsWe first worked in Adana in 2018, as part of an EU-funded project calledTHE PROMISED LAND, which was in turn a response to a policy consultation on the role of culture in the so-called “refugee crisis”. Already the city had grown massively as people rushed north to escape the violence in Syria, and the EU-Turkey deal prevented them from going any further.

Seven years later, and words like “asylum seeker”, “refugee” and “migrant” have become terms of abuse and hatred. There is a crisis – but it’s to do with the reception of refugees, not the people themselves. In our public debates, the one voice that is never heard is that of the refugee. So SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA is an attempt to set that straight, and to question our own role as a host society. It reconsiders our democracy, our theatre, and our humanity.

Border Crossings worked in partnership with refugee charity, Meryem Kadın Kooperatifi and Çukurova University’s Film Department to bring the voices of people who cannot travel into the London theatre. By working with Turkish creatives, video artist Kıvanç Türkgeldі and producer Ilke Sanlier, and offering solidarity tickets that help pay for a refugee or migrant to attend this performance,SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA commits to ensuring those with experience of asylum seeking are at the forefront of the conversation.

SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA was supported in development by the British Council Creative Collaborations Grant Programme, the Anna Lindh Foundation, and Arts Council England, with the premiere supported by Arts Council England. The outreach project is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and the Hellenic Society.

Featured Image: Credit to Kıvanç Türkgeldі

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