Suppliants of Syria - Review

Review by Jess

Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review.

At a time where the Overton window has shifted so far to the right, and the topic of migration and immigration is one that both the most, and the least political people are openly grappling with, this play offers a space in which to explore more facets of the argument than seems possible in its mere 1 hour 40 act. Part documentary, part play, part spoken word, this newest work from multimedia theatre company Border Crossings, offers a window into the lives of a collective of Syrian women, now settled as asylum seekers in Turkey, shrewdly intertwined with one of the earliest plays in recorded history; Aeschylus’ Suppliants.

Photo by John Cobb

Over a month long collaboration with a group of Syrian women*, they are filmed telling their personal stories of the displacement, fear and sexual violence that women are so commonly victim to during war. These are projected onto the back of the stage, whilst on stage and reacting live to the pre-recordings were the three actor-creators (Tobi King Bakare, Vlad Gurdis, and Albie Marber). They represent the Greek chorus of Aeschylus’ play, constructing the narrative around the videoed women, subverting the traditional configuration of Greek theatre (men as the main actors, whilst women/marginalised groups play the chorus). Throughout the act, the men don the masks (a few times quite literally) of countless roles; their own selves in the audition room, Greek Gods, teenage video gamers.

Their observations are quite harrowing in parts, one woman describing hospital doctors having to evacuate midway through her c-section, returning later to finish her surgery with no anaesthetic. 

Accounts such as this are tragically common amongst women in war torn environments, but the human to human telling of this story managed to reach beyond our western desensitisation to such tales. Other women spoke so eloquently and casually of their fears, lack of hope and even their own rapes, that the audience could not help but understand how much a part of their psyche these experiences had become. It was a powerful reminder that leaving an active war zone does not mean that a person is in any way safe.

Photo by John Cobb.

After an hour of the performance, the actors opened a debate up to the audience, culminating in a democratic vote. Centring on the concept of democracy, and mirroring the fundamental plotline of the original Suppliants, we were able to discuss, after bearing witness to their change of circumstance, their total lack of control, and their yearning for safety, whether we should allow these women to enter our metaphorical land.

Almost necropolitical in nature, this powerful piece of theatre contends with an enormous number of topics; racism, feminism, war, migration, asylum, democracy, colonialism, violence against women and girls across cultures and continents, and even western waste. Where in many plays, some of these issues can feel tokenistic or underdeveloped, each theme was constructed with knowledge and sensitivity so that it was both distinguishable and meaningful, even if only briefly touched upon.

The framing of these complex subjects is purposefully disorienting, almost manipulating audiences to circumnavigate their own biases to arrive at unexpected conclusions. In one scene the audience laugh in support of an almost overbearingly patriotic Irish man as he dissects the heritage of another, before discovering that he himself is more Moldovan than Irish. We see two teenagers playing a sniper video game, the projected footage of which we learn is actual footage of a sniper attack in Aleppo. A wholesome narrative about a trip to see Blood Brothers in the West End winds its way into a confronting comparison of the Palmyra theatre massacre. There are scenes in which the creators peer around the fourth wall to demand the audience consider our own role in the interaction. Are we audience members or are we bystanders to grief and atrocity? What benefit to the women does our observation bring them? Does their happiness at having a vessel to put their stories into equate to morality on our part, or does it veer into the realms of poverty pornography? This however, is the point on which is falls down. The whole room is cognisant of the fact that the women are not in the room with us, but still in fact, in their Asylum camp in Turkey, their depiction and representation in the hands of Western men. The creators being self-aware of this flaw and addressing it within the script, doesn’t in fact, make it right.

I imagine that the scale of the effect this play could have, would very much depend on the audience, namely the viewer’s own knowledge level of the addressed issues. I could see many moments in the script that could equally be lightbulb moments as they might feel almost patronising. Sadly, I think entertainment of an empathy led, political nature such as this, will always attract somewhat of an echo-chamber audience; a problem of society, not the play itself. A shame though, as I think with some changes, this play could hold power to change minds. It strikes me that to really make impact, the piece could be adapted as a really wonderful learning resource for school pupils, the debate section lending itself naturally to an educational setting.

Photo by John Cobb.

I would absolutely recommend this play to anyone who has an interest in West Asia and North Africa (the colonial Middle East) and I commend the creators for their attempts to empower women of war. Whilst the information won’t be new to many, it’s an honour to be the recipient of these women’s chronicles and the format creates a stimulating, confronting and eye-opening piece of theatre. It was a long overdue reminder for me, that politics and art are not only the perfect pairing, but that theatre isn’t always created to be enjoyed, but experienced.

*The women of Syria: Nima Abdo, Beyda Abbud, Huriye Acuri, Fatima Akesh, Amani Albado, Rawa Alhasan, Amal Alkditanio, Bayan Amin, Iman Anes, Umaya Así, Iman Dabagh, Rim Dabbag, Abeer Dada, Maryan Debo, Hemse Fehd, Noor Alhuda, Hajali Emen, Ikerzon Hourey, Joury Malak, Osman Baraa, Babi Masri, Beyan Muhammed, Murah Muso, Anonymous

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Suppliants of Syria runs at Hoxton Hall in London until Sunday 8th March 2026. Tickets are available from https://hoxtonhall.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173671430

You can find out more about the work of Border Crossings by visiting https://www.bordercrossings.org.uk/