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Bakkar, Irfan and Barkat on the stage of the National Theatre

19 February 2012 / 23:02:03  GRReporter
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Six actors, four men and two women and three expatriates - three foreigners, three men ("because men usually immigrate") from Syria, Pakistan and Afghanistan who are not actors – are the characters of the show. With their short personal stories, with their good or bad experiences, with memories of people who have left their city or town to find a better life somewhere else.

Once these were the Greeks, who had gone to Australia, America, Canada, Germany, Belgium, and when they returned home they felt foreigners again. Now others have come to Greece, they have lived and still live hard. Eventually they all meet to show us that emigration and longing for home are universal and timeless concepts.

Michalis Reppas and Thanasis Papathanasiou the writers, who are also directors of the play "Homelands", were aware that three foreigners should not be actors, nor have the same skin colour and religion as the Greeks.

With the help of art historians from the National Theatre they got in touch with people willing to tell their stories.

In the "Workshop" of Yolanda Markopoulou, a place where people from different nationalities meet and interact through theatre plays, they found Bakkar, Irfan and Barkat, all three of them Muslims who already knew Greek.

Each of them told his personal story.

"It wasn’t at all difficult for them to share with us some even very personal things. They had no inhibitions, they were not afraid to reveal. The fact that they would come out on stage and tell what they experienced, seemed to be very important. "

Semi-legal

Bakkar, Irfan and Barkat knew each other before they met at the National Theatre. They exchanged experiences at the "workshop" and during some street performances. They also shared the fear of persecution. And now, when they are on the stage, among the sets depicting a port or station, among piles of suitcases, they share with the Greek actors the experience of the emigrant, who left Greece, an experience which is very similar to theirs, to the experience of those who arrived in Greece.

During rehearsals Bakkar, Irfan and Barkat obey each remark of the directors, each correction.

They notice and pay attention to everything that happens on stage, whether it refers to them or to other members of the troupe.

They are grateful to the fate that led them to the National Theatre, but they feel good about themselves, for having managed, at least for now.

All three are semi-legal, with documents that allow them to live and work in Greece, but without being allowed to travel abroad or return home. Nevertheless, they believe in the country that accepted them.

They have an opinion about the policy on immigration, and they believe they are able to contribute: "Now, however, Greece is also experiencing challenging times," says Bakkar.

Performance based on written documents

Michalis Reppas and Thanassis Papathanasiou called the play "Homelands" a "documentary". "Not one word is invented by us", they highlight and then identify the sources from which they got the information, starting from books - an essential tool in their work. First on the list are the works "Greek workers in Germany" (1974) and "Wherever I am, everywhere I am a foreigner" (2000) by George Matzouranis whose "characters" speak openly without minding the words they use, even if they are somewhat illiterate. The production is also based on materials from documentaries and studies describing the Greek emigration in the past, as well as excerpts from novels and short stories. Finally, a handwritten biography of Dimitrios Papoulias, the grandfather of actress Eleni Kokidou (who is part of the troupe), was also used. It was never published and it tells his story and that of another Greek immigrant George Mandas. As to the modern face of immigration, which Greece has been witnessing in recent decades, the source of information was the autobiographical information provided by the three foreigners, telling their stories in the "Homelands".

Foreigners share their experiences in Greece

Bakkar Hussein Albakar

Syrian, 28 years old, in Greece for seven years

"When you starve, you feel pain»

"I managed to enter in Greece on my second attempt. First my older brother came. I followed him a little later. The first time I was caught in Turkey, I was sent to jail and then I was sent back to Syria. I left again and finally I managed to get to Evros. We used an inflatable boat to enter the river and then we went in the ditch, and walked. It was very difficult. I lived through hunger, and hunger is pain. When you are hungry, you feel pain. I always liked the theatre and I go to see plays here. I want to live here, but I also want to be able to go and see my relatives in Syria. So I went to school and learned Greek. I would like to become an actor. My other qualification is as a plumber and refrigeration equipment technician. I've experienced racism. I see people on the bus move away from me, so as not to touch me. They become stressed when they see us. I had a girlfriend, Catherine, who didn’t want to be seen with me because she was ashamed. We parted. I am a man too, but others do not see it that way."

Arif Muhammad Irfan

Pakistani, 30 years old, in Greece for 6 years

"I am, constantly looking»

Tags: National Theater immigrants Motherlands play Michalis Reppas Thanasis Papathanasiou
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