GÜNAY AKSOY

Qamîshlo- The system is in a severe crisis due to the Covid-19 pandemic that has killed billions of people around the world. Cultural and artistic works have also suffered from the crisis. Concert and theater stages have remained empty. And artists have become unemployed… But this process works different in NE Syria. The artists have kept producing their art despite the limited opportunities caused by Turkey’s threats, the regime's attack, and the embargo on NE Syria.

Artists in Rojava overcome all kinds of difficulties thanks to the communes they established. Artists receive economic support through communes and they keep working on their artistic productions. The revolution in Rojava brings a new breath to art and artists beyond the crises and depressions experienced by artists all around the world. Kurdish theater has been developing under the leadership of women in Rojava.

Free stages

Teatra Sarya Baran, the first all-female theater group established within the structure of the Kevana Zerin opened in Qamishlo city of NE Syria-Rojava by women is an important art center that trains actors, directors and screenwriters. Şevîn Xelîl has been working as a theatre performer at the Teatra Sarya Baran since she was 13 years old. Even though she couldn’t perform during the Ba'ath regime due to prohibitions and pressures on the Kurdish theater and women, she began to perform after the revolution in Rojava.

The theater actress Şevîn Xelîl from Rojava performed the character of Meinhof in the theater play called “I'm Ulrike – Screaming” written by the famous Italian theater director Dario Fo. She was screaming;

“And all women, all women who are aware of being oppressed, humiliated, exploited, will understand why I am here and why you want to kill me... Guards, judges, politicians, nothing one of y'all don’t care ... Hundreds of thousands of women will lift this huge mountain and shake the fake throne you sit on your shoulders! and they will all scream together: You will not kill Ulrike Meinhof.

Resisting spirit of Kurdish women and Ulrike

The scream of Şevîn on the white stage, where she appeared alone for the first time, echoed in the ears of hundreds of spectators. It was the scream of being a female theater performer in a free country. German journalist Ulrike Meinhof, the mother of two, was found hanged by a rope in her cell but she had shown all humanity the strength to resist capitalist barbarism as a revolutionary woman. Young theatre performer Şevîn felt the resisting spirit of Kurdish women and Ulrike together while performing the theatre play. Şevîn, who received her first theater education in Kevana Zerin, appeared on the stage for the first time by performing the theatre play called, “Tabloya Hude”.

Her biggest dream...

Şevîn did not face any pressure from her family and society when she started acting at a young age. But when she grew up, her family and society said performing theatre plays is a “shame” for her. Şevîn says that her family didn’t allow her to go to Kevana Zerin to receive her theatre education but she overcame all obstacles by her family and kept performing. Şevîn's biggest dream is to be a good theatre performer and a good director and she follows her dream.

“My scream”

Şevîn performed the character of Meinhof in the theater play called “I'm Ulrike – Screaming” written by the famous Italian theater director Dario Fo and directed by Sarya Golan. She tells us why this theatre play is important for her;

“The scream of Ulrike was my scream. I didn’t want to cover my head on the stage. I was forced to cover my head because I grew up in a conservative family. I had serious problems while persuading my family to uncover my head. But finally, I managed to persuade them. They are proud of me to see me on the stage now. I felt and lived the life of Ulrike while performing because our stories were similar. Ulrike resisted the state and society; I resisted my family and society. The period I performed this play was the most challenging time of my life. I was struggling against my family and society. The life of Ulrike became my life. Her resistance became my resistance. My scream on the stage was the scream of all resisting women.”