National Theatre of Parramatta and Third Space Productions will present the world-premiere of The Cartographer’s Curse, an eclectic imagining of history, from October 5th to 8th at Riverside Theatres.
One hundred years ago, with red and blue pencils in hand, British diplomat Mark Sykes and French counterpart François Georges-Picot met over a map and set about drawing borders in very straight lines, dividing the Middle East to suit their respective interests. The effects of the colonial carve up resonate into the present as history finds meaning with a new theatrical work where history is imagined through spoken word poetry and prose, parkour movement and qanunic music.
Into this world of ever-shifting borders and alliances, the audience will enter into the allegory of the Cartographer and his family. The chaos in which these imposed boundaries was forged speaks to layers of complexity. The stage is set for a battle of ideals against a backdrop of resistance, duplicity and disaster. Here we witness the effects of power and greed, on not only maps and borders, but also on families and freedom.
The Cartographer’s Curse features Ludwig El Haddad as the Cartographer, Ghassan Hage (an actual Future Generation Professor of global stature) as the Wandering Professor, Sara Saleh as the Poet, Ali Kadhim as the Resistance, Alissar Gazal as the Merchant, and Mohamed Lelo as Master of the Qanun.
“This ensemble captures the very best of Arab Australian artistry in all its different expression,” said Director Paula Abood. “Each performer in The Cartographer’s Curse brings a particular prowess and this makes for an exciting performance.” Abood illustrates this very point in the coupling of the melodic quality of the qanun with the edginess of Parkour movement, as “artistically very exhilarating.”
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