Fariborz Karimi (Master of theatre, DAS Theatre, DAS Graduate School) graduated with the performance 'Oh, Wild Gazelle, Where Are You?'

Fariborz: "The crux of our project revolves around an exploration of the multifaceted concept of 'Censorship' across diverse contexts. We endeavor to weave together the threads of 'Friendship' and 'Intimacy' in order to dissect the significance of the discerning Western gaze and the constraints imposed by Islamic authorities. We find ourselves positioned as artists who have transitioned from a society characterized by limitations and strict controls to what is often heralded as a 'democratic' milieu. In this transformative journey, we grapple with the expectations and preconceptions of Western audiences. 'Oh, Wild Gazelle, Where Are You?' serves as a bridge between the two realms of Tehran and Amsterdam, where we delve into the intersecting political inquiries."

Ingrid Vrankek, Artistic director: "Fariborz very intelligently uses translation and the dream as dramaturgical processes in this performance. The constant translation in different directions and ways touches on deeper layers of what it means to navigate between different cultures, and that which remains untranslatable. It is in the dream that those who are absent can occupy the very center of the stage; it is in the dream that a freedom of speech and movement can be found that is not possible in reality. The use of live video mixing gives the whole thing a unique visual poetry."

Lara Staal, Tutor DAS Theatre: "A beautiful final work that poetically, with humour, charm, and lightness, thematizes the heaviness surrounding the theme of censorship and the many barriers between Europe and Iran. A layered mix of different cultural influences creates a signature of its own in which Karimi challenges the viewer's judgment with lightness. In addition, not without risk, he has made it possible to work very closely with a choreographer who can no longer perform her work in Iran."

Keerthi Basavarajaiah, multidisciplinary performance maker: "From autobiographical research on embodied censorship and felt expectations from a Western gaze, Fariborz proposes theatre as a space for collective resistance and reflection through this work. He has managed to create an ecosystem of overlapping realities between Tehran-Amsterdam, private-public, and dream-reality to investigate the shapes of surveillance we embody across lived realities. Each performer present in the work, either in person or from a distance brought forward their own ground from which they are censored and haunted by."

Concept and Direction: Fariborz Karimi
Creation process and performers: Fariborz Karimi, Negar Esmaeili, Saman Mahdavi, Amin Banitaba
Text: Fariborz Karimi, Negar Esmaeili
Video performance: Amin Banitaba
Composer and sound designer: Amirhossein Sadeghzadeh
Scenographer and Costume Designer: Jan Tomsza
Lights: Fariborz Karimi
Advisors: Lara Staal, Nienke Scholts, Keerthi Basavarajaiah, Mehraneh Atashi

Produced at DAS Theatre Amsterdam, 2022-2023
Studio Support by Workspacebrussels.