What We Do > Performances > Beyond the Mirror

Beyond the Mirror

“The first collaboration between an Afghan and an American theatre company, [the play] has a quiet authority, even delicacy, that is truly powerful.” 
​- Margo Jefferson, The New York Times, on ​Beyond the Mirror

In the crowded Afghan refugee camps of northern Pakistan, just after the events of September 11, 2001, members of Bond Street Theatre came to bring a little joy to Afghan children and learn more about the conflict. There we met Exile Theatre, a dauntless band of Afghan actors who had formed in exile and dared to present live theatre despite all restrictions. Our groups re-met in Afghanistan the following year as refugees from over 30 years of war began pouring back into the country after the fall of the Taliban.

In 2005, Bond Street Theatre and Exile Theatre of Kabul brought Beyond the Mirror, the first ever US-Afghan theatre collaboration to the USA, created and written by the Bond Street Theatre and Exile Theatre ensembles, and directed by Mahmoud Shah Salimi and Joanna Sherman.

Woven through myths and memories, family histories and first-hand accounts, traditional dances and live music, story-telling and filmed montages, Beyond the Mirror weaves an intricate tapestry of events, both desperate and hopeful.

Donors

• The Mankoff Family Foundation
  
• Many dedicated individuals.
  

Directed by Joanna Sherman & Mahmood Shah Salimi
Devised and Written by the Exile Theatre and Bond Street ensembles
Music composed and performed by Quraishi, with additional music by Andy Teirstein
Lighting Design by Jeanne Koenig and Jesse Belsky
Sound Design and Multi-media by Michael McGuigan

The Story

Beyond the Mirror emanates from the personal stories and first-hand accounts of ordinary Afghans striving to survive during the past three decades of constant warfare. Each story depicts the outside structures that were imposed on the people of Afghanistan and their attempts to adapt, survive, and maintain their cultural identity. The play demonstrates the incredible strength of human persistence during times of adversity.

Our challenge was to present these horrific tales in ways that would be watchable, yet not lose their profundity or power. To give a sense of place, the play is interwoven with filmed images of the sights and sounds of life in Afghanistan. The play employs a variety of physical and visual techniques – traditional dance, shadow puppetry, photo projections – and lighting effects to tell these stories, invigorated by the exquisite live music of the Afghan rebob.

The Collaboration

Beyond the Mirror began to take root in the refugee areas of northern Pakistan in March 2002, shortly after the events of Sept. 11th. Members of Bond Street Theatre, performing for Afghan children in refugee schools in Pakistan, met up with a dauntless group of Afghan actors who dared to present live theatre despite the restrictions and repressions of the times. This group was Exile Theatre.

The two companies were immediately drawn to each other’s theatrical views and techniques, and planned to create a new work together. This plan came to fruition the following year in Kabul and, since that time, has grown into a full length theatre work which received its world premiere at the 2nd International Theatre Festival in Kabul in August of 2005.

The Challenges

Bond Street Theatre and Exile Theatre faced numerous challenges in creating a play that exposed personal and profound tragedies gathered over two years of interviews. Relying on their physical and visual theatre techniques, the two groups struggled to find creative ways to portray horrific events on stage so that they would be watchable yet not lose intensity and impact. The two companies also found few materials to create their play. Just after the war, Afghanistan was rubble; the elements of normal life were a morass of twisted metal and shattered stone. However, there were scraps enough to make puppets, fabric for a shadow screen, a few artifacts of home life, and their ingenuity.

The two companies have been collaborating on projects for adults and children in Afghanistan ever since, and now have traveled together to Japan, the US and India. Through the theatre, the two ensembles hope to bridge the chasm of misinformation that separates countries and cultures.

The groups offer post-performance talk backs and video-lectures on their work in international conflict zones, including the perspectives of Afghan artists who survived over 20 years of war and exile.

Actors: Anisa Wahab, Mahmood Shah Salimi, Jamil Royesh, Najibullah Qiam, Christina Gelsone, Seth Bloom, Matthew Schmidt, Meghan Frank.

Performances

2003: First Prize at the 1st Kabul International Theatre Festival
2005: 2nd International Theatre Festival of Kabul
2005 (October): Japan Tour 
2005 (November-December): US Premiere at Theatre Project, Baltimore, and Theatre for the New City, New York
2009 (May-June): San Francisco International Arts Festival, Fury Factory Festival, University of California – East Bay, California
2011: Featured at the 12th Prague Quadrennial for Performance Design and Space

From the Press

"The first collaboration between an Afghan and an American theatre company, [the play] has a quiet authority, even delicacy, that is truly powerful.” 
​- Margo Jefferson, The New York Times

"The most stirring, affecting and significant event of the theatre season."
– Martin Denton, nytheatre.com

"A sharply observed and heart-wrenching portrayal of Afghanistan’s recent history."
– Josselyn Simpson, Time Out New York

"The collaboration has yielded lyrical imagery of almost aching beauty."
– Jorge Morales, Village Voice

"An inventive piece based on the true stories of Afghans who survived three decades of cruelty and hardship." 
– Vibhuti Patel, Newsweek

"The Best Performance at the Festival, ‘Beyond the Mirror’ utilized a unique, creative and stylistic method." 
– ISAF News – Afghanistan

"That this piece exists at all is a form of triumph and its own best example of international cooperation."
– J.Wynn Rousuck, Baltimore Sun