In less volatile times, the memory of the Arab spring would be fresh in our minds. However, with the Iran war already diverting attention from Gaza and Ukraine, the intensity of the revolutionary wave across north Africa and the Middle East 15 years ago may be forgotten. Social media played a crucial role in building solidarity as people took to the streets in pro-democracy protests: in Tunisia, where fruit seller Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire; in Libya, where the people rose up against Colonel Gaddafi; and in Egypt, where protests across the country and especially in Cairo's Tahrir Square led to the ousting of President Mubarak. At the time, it felt like things were changing for the better.
Play Based on Real Experiences
Mariem Omari witnessed these events firsthand, first as an observer for the UN relief and works agency, then compiling human rights reports for Medecins du Monde. An Arabic speaker from a Lebanese-Scottish family, she arrived in Jordan a few months before receiving reports of unrest in Tunisia. Her play, Revolution Days, is based on those experiences.
Plot and Character
Samira, an idealistic young aid worker full of gung-ho spirit, observes the aftermath of settler violence in the West Bank and the effects of American white phosphorus gas in Iraq. She then encounters rebels and refugees displaced by government forces. Played by Olivia Hemmati in Shilpa T-Hyland's production for the Citizens and Omari's Bijli company, Samira is a dispassionate observer, a champion of change, and a psychologically vulnerable young woman. She believes she can catalogue evidence of rape, injury, and hunger without consequence, but her hair falling out tells a different story. Her fury at the world's inaction further damages her mental health, leading to a diagnosis of secondary traumatic stress.
Thematic Focus
The play is less about the politics behind the days of revolution, captured in photographs projected behind Hemmati, and more about the humanitarian impact of civil unrest. While the abuses are generalised, the sense of the observer's helpless outrage is true. Revolution Days runs at Citizens theatre, Glasgow, until 23 May, and tours until 20 June.
