Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World
Image: THINGS HIDDEN SINCE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD. Image: Chris Payne
Not to be confused with Rene Girard’s book of the same title, the play Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World by the Manchester based Javaad Alipoor Company is as deep a dive into the complexity of culture as that presented by the French philosopher.
On the surface it is the story of Fereydoun Farrokhzad, a famous Iranian musician of the 70s who fled the new regime for the supposed safe exile of Germany, only to end up being killed there 20 years later by Iranian agents.
That is about as much of a linear narrative as you will get with Alipoor’s final instalment of his trilogy that was preceded by The Believers Are But Brothers (2017) and Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran (2019).
“One of the central elements of the show is the send up of a murder mystery podcast of an unsolved murder,” Javaad Alipoor, director and co-writer said.
“There is a whole investigation of pop culture from the Middle East in the seventies, which had a huge psychedelic, funk and rock scene, so there are a lot of amazing visuals from that time.”
“There is also a documentary element that uses a lot of technology to investigate how the structure of podcasting works.”
Another thread sees the story take a contemporary turn.
“There is a section of the show that is about the real story of a contemporary musician from the Middle East who is living with the threat of his life from a regime like the one that killed Fereydoun Farrakhzad,” Alipoor said.
Alipoor is known around the world for his plays that throw a spotlight on the Middle East, and Iran in particular, along with his embracement of technology and digital innovations.
“Covid in some ways brought about a lot of innovation,” Alipoor said, who during Covid adapted Rich Kids to a digital experience which played at online festivals in 2020, including Sundance.
Things Hidden has been here before, having been developed in 2022 as part of a residency with the Sydney Festival, HOME and the National Theatre of Parramatta.
“We co-produced the show with the National Theatre of Parramatta, and Joanne Kee, the producer there, has built one of the most diverse audiences in Australia, including people with Middle Eastern heritages from the area,” Alipoor said.
Being British-Iranian Alipoor has first-hand experience of how regimes like that of Iran can reach into a community, with the effects being as devastating as those in Germany all those years ago.
“Some BBC Persian language service journalists were being threatened with being killed or raped and when the telephone numbers were traced it was found that the threats originated in the UK,” Alipoor said.
“If you come from a regime you can leave, but the regime doesn’t leave you.”
“One thing about Iran, despite the dictatorship and the brutality of the regime, is that t has a vital opposition inspired by the murder of Mahsa Amini which formed the Women, Life, Freedom, Movement, and it is still a county with a vibrant cinema and a great literary culture,” Alipoor said.
Notwithstanding the use of technology in Things Hidden, Alipoor said “We make theatre, and part of the responsibilities I have is to the nature of theatre, and that it has to be entertaining, have guts and an emotional and intellectual force, and that is how this show connects with the audience.
It is probably the funniest show I have written.”
Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World will see Alipoor being joined on stage with musicians Raam Emami, Me-Lee Hay and actor Asha Reid.
