Review: The Calligrapher

Based on the rumour of a Quran written in Saddam Hussein’s blood, The Calligrapher provides a morbid and morally uneasy exploration of the interplay between artist and art & religion and self. Tantalisingly macabre, The Calligrapher deftly examines the ethically impossible: what to do with something that shouldn’t exist but cannot be destroyed.

Lise Delamarre’s production – set on an almost bare stage with walls wrapped in sanguine Arabic script and a focal point of Caravaggio’s ‘Judith Beheading Holofernes’ – tells the story of the calligrapher commissioned to create the Blood Quran. Yet The Calligrapher does not provide the expected narrative on the two-year period of construction. Instead, the play adopts a reflective lens, positioning itself nearly two decades after the end of the Hussein regime and exploring far more than the Blood Quran itself, grappling with issues of sin, grief and remorse as well as love, fatherhood and American understandings of Iraq.

Image credit: Maddie Angwin 

The lead performances by Dounia El Barhdadi as tormented artist Haytham and Vidya Divakaran as Q, Haytham’s greatest sin and most beautiful creation, intrigue the audience. Operating in a manner similar to that of Jekyll and Hyde, the jarring switches between emulation and confrontation skilfully embody the moral dilemma at the core of The Calligrapher: whether one can take pride in a creation that is forbidden.

The bold directorial decision by Lise Delamarre to cast Dounia El Barhdadi into the role of male protagonist Haytham disturbs normative understandings of gender dynamics and the role of women within both Iraqi and American society. A potentially risky move, considering the importance of masculinity and fatherhood to Haytham. But it is a credit to El Barhadadi’s talent that she so deftly captured the power and sensitivity of Haytham’s masculine ego.

The most fascinating performance, however, belongs to Anjeli Chapman for her portrayal of neurotic art collector Kim Kansas. Her devilish demeanour, similar to the snake in Eden, invites the audience to question the moral line between whether preserving war relics serves as a reminder of tragedy or veneration of cruelty. Chapman’s performance was truly exemplary – an enticing and captivating actress worthy of high praise.

Though opening night jitters were evident through some hasty deliverances, the entire cast should be commended on their performance of such complex and beguiling material. While prolonged at points, the script, written by Abraham Alsalihi, skilfully and powerfully explores the vilification of Suddam Hussein in an unexpected manner. Alsalihi presents a rich and bountiful script with ideas on sex, sin and the rejection of paradise promising to play on the minds of the audience for weeks to come. A refreshingly unique voice in Cambridge theatre, I await with high hopes for the next script penned by Abraham Alsalihi.

Emerging from slightly shaky beginnings, The Calligrapher blossomed into an enticing performance as compelling as the story that inspired it.

4/5

The Calligrapher will be running at the Corpus Playroom at 7.00 pm from Tuesday 15^th to Saturday 19^thFebruary. Tickets can be purchased here.

 Feature image credit: Anna Piper-Thompson