MY ENGLISH PERSIAN KITCHEN Opens at Edinburgh Fringe in August

Soho Theatre and Traverse Theatre will present the World Premiere of My English Persian Kitchen, Hannah Khalil’s life-affirming new play, directed by Chris White opening at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival from 1 – 25 August before transferring to London for a three-week run from 16 September to 5 October. 

This is a drama about one woman’s quest to start again. Forced to flee with no hope of ever returning home, our heroine finds herself in an unfamiliar place. Longing for the tastes and aromas of her mother’s kitchen she starts to lovingly recreate the dishes of her childhood and homeland, and in doing so builds a welcoming community around food and discovers a new recipe for life.

Inspired by the true story of best-selling cookery book author Atoosa Sepehr, My English Persian Kitchen is a timely play which places community, identity and belonging and its very heart - all marinated in the fabulous flavours of Persia. 

Isabella Nefar (Salomé, National Theatre; Tehran, Apple+; Reading Lolita In Tehran, forthcoming feature film) stars in this solo show which involves live cooking on stage of a much loved Persian dish Ash-E Reshteh, and communal sharing with the audience of Persian food.

Playwright Hannah Khalil (National Theatre of Scotland, RSC, The Globe Theatre) says: “At first, I wasn’t sure I was the right person to turn this story into a play, but after talking to Atoosa I realised it’s not a story about Iran, but one about what it is to start again. What it is to try and build a community in a new place from scratch. And that’s the story of my mum and me. That’s a story I understand. And I love cooking the food of my Palestinian heritage as a way of connecting to my roots in the same way Atoosa does. We have that in common too. I can’t wait for audiences to taste Atoosa’s story too.”

Atoosa Sepehr adds: “I didn’t realise how much I love cooking and how much I love food until I came to this country. The way that smell and taste can simply transport you to a different time and place. An important theme in the play for me is the idea that even in our lowest moments life sometimes offers a way out, an opportunity to learn and grow and ultimately to redefine who we are as individuals. Culture truly has no borders and when we migrate to a new country, we take with us aspects of our homeland that can contribute to a wonderfully rich multi-cultural society. I hope audiences will find this story an uplifting and empowering one.”

Director Chris White comments: “Hannah has created a play that not only captures Atoosa's story, but her voice; sometimes verbatim and at other times the essence and spirit of it. To direct a play with such variety of language, and which touches different theatrical styles, is particularly appealing to me. Most of all though, My English Persian Kitchen is a chance to renew an ancient and timely ritual of one person telling a story to a group of people who all share food together.”

My English Persian Kitchen is a co-production between Soho Theatre and Traverse Theatre. The production is supported by the institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities at the University of Edinburgh. The play will transfer to London and will run for 3 weeks in Soho Theatre Upstairs from 16 September to 5 October 2024. Soho Theatre Press Night (18 Sept, 6.45PM)

 

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