Preface
Religion and art coalesce. Religion conveys a universal message of Knowledge. Art conveys the same message in divert forms, one of which is theatre. Through religion, theatre can be understood and practiced (Norman Bert) since religion and theatre exist to teach and trigger thinking. The rendition of religious messages into artistic performance is concomitant as long as Man is after his quest for knowledge. What makes of a religious message more preponderated is the fact that it contains aesthetic faculties that may defy Man’s perception and understanding of beauty.
Theatre has always been inspired by religious themes. The examples are in plentiful supply, starting with Gurdjieff (1888-1949), the spectacular dramatization of Hindu Epic poem “The Mahabharata” in 1985, the Dzieci Troupe of 1997, “Caiaphas” by Mike Sparks in 2009, “Anna of Nazareth” by Sue Gordon in 2010 and “A 21st Century Nativity” by Peter van der Sluijs in 2010, and others.
Religious theatre moves beyond the simple role of entertainment to compass the human transcendent awareness and essence. In “The Prophet Yusuf in Opera” by Rab’i Al Idrissi, the aesthetic message is communicated on stage. The Opera displays the story of the Prophet Yusuf as it is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an. The purpose behind such artistic work is to bring the issue of religion, art, knowledge, human achievement and every debateable matter into a discussion of favourable results.
Fayssal Chafaki
فيصل الشفاقي
“If We had sent down this Qur'an upon a mountain, ye would have seen it humbled and coming apart from fear of Allah. And these examples We present to the people that perhaps they will give thought.” Yusuf Ali (59:21)
The Prophet Yusuf in Opera
Why such creative work?
This artistic project, “The Prophet Yusuf in Opera”, which abides by the conventions of theatre and art in general and which is subject to the humanitarian and tolerant Law of Islam, has come as a creative work that aims to build bridges of dialogue across cultures, using semiotics or sign language, either on stage or on the screen. Non-Arab Artists have also taken the stories of prophets (particularly the story of the Prophet Yusuf) into consideration when they attempted to render such religious stories into artistic works, each artist according to his or her perspective.
In our professional artistic workshop we decided to present the story of the Prophet Yusuf in terms of opera. The opera follows the Arabic and Islamic inherent heritage which confirms the existing events of the story and differs with other versions. For this reason, the Holy Qur’an, which is distinguishable by the ability of conveying the main events of the story of the Prophet Yusuf without any flaw or endurance, is the basis upon which this project operates.
In order to be open to non-Arab cultures, we have also decided to include the translation of the meanings of the Holy Qur’an into the major world mass communication languages, such as English, French and Spanish, jointly with the performance of the opera and with each translation accompanying the sequence of the events of the story.
Brief Profile of the Artistic Workshop
The artistic and theatrical workshop of ‘Abbas Ibrahim was first known as “The Mask 21 for Artistic Theatre”. Before this, the workshop was called “The Little Mask”, the idea from which “The Mask 21” was born and so later was “The Artistic Workshop of ‘Abbas Ibrahim”.
These three main stages in the development of the workshop have enriched the theatrical movement in Morocco and ‘Abbass Ibrahim has revived this movement by following theatrical and artistic conventions. Thus, and since the 1970s, “The Little Mask” has been able to reach the level of proficiency, both in Morocco and abroad, as this workshop consisted of the best graduates from Rabat National Institution of Theatre. Among the works that have caught the attention of Moroccan spectators during that period are: Al-Babu Al-Masdud (The Closed Door), Al-Qonbula (The Bomb) and Al-Qadi fi Lhalqa (The Judge in the Circle).
By the late 1980s, a member of “The Little Mask”, namely ‘Abbas Ibrahim, has travelled to France to accomplish his training in the field of drama and theatre. After few years, ‘Abbas Ibrahim came back to Morocco and established a centre for cultural theatre. The main goal of this centre was to train young actors so that they would fill the vacancy in Rabati theatre and provide the national theatrical arena with professional training.
In four years ‘Abbas Ibrahim has been able to establish “The Artistic and Theatrical Workshop of 1986” beside other young artists who performed series of plays that have gained the public satisfaction, such as Afrika Muhajir (Afrika Migrant), Snadek L’jeb (The Boxes of Wonder), Sdaft Hemmadi (Hemmadi’s Button), Mihrajan Lmhabit (The Festival of Mhabit) and Hikaiat bila Hudud (Tales without Frontiers).
This group of young artists has been open to the experiences of other young film directors, such as Jamal Din Dakhissi and ‘Abdulwahid ‘Azzuzi who found the necessary artistic elements that would meet their perceptions in film directing and would provide them with what an academic film director requires. ‘Abbas Ibrabhim, therefore, handled the torch of artistic theatrical training just like did ‘Abd Allah ben Chaqrun and Farid bn Mbark before.
Now Rab’i Al Idrissi follows the path of ‘Abbas Ibrahim in order to discover new talented actors, theatrical composers, directors and technicians and contribute to the progress of national theatre in Morocco. The artistic works of the late ‘Abbas Ibrahim are characterized by ardour towards the Moroccan Theatre and pure national conviction.
The actors who have received their training under the supervision of the late ‘Abbas Ibrahim are now honorary members of “The Artistic Workshop of ‘Abbas Ibrahim”. These actors are Rasheed Al Wali, Muhammad Khoii, Muna Fattu, Hassan Mkiat, ‘Abd Lkabir Rgagna, ‘Azeez Al ‘Alawy, ‘Azeez Al Fathi, ‘Azeez Al Khallufi, Muhammad Al Ja’ii, Qaiima Bel ‘Ushi, ‘Abd Raheem ‘Allam, Mustafa Mazwar and Munia Al Harti, among others.
“The Artistic Workshop of ‘Abbas Ibrahim” has trained a second generation of young Moroccan actors. These new actors have been able to produce a series of theatrical pieces, such as La Hna La Lhih (Neither Here, Nor There), HanZala Gate, Lkunji (The Vacation) and Atakrim (The Ceremony of Honour), which is considered as the last artistic work ‘Abbas Ibrahim organized and directed. Some of his students have participated into Atkrim, among whom were Mustafa Mizwar, ‘Abd Raheem ‘Allam, Ghizlan Mttghari, Rab’I Al Idrissi, Shiraf and ‘Afrae Al Hadri, Sa’id Al Khalfi, Shakir Lkhelfi, Muhammad Al Iazidi and Maryam Zwin.
“The Artistic Workshop of ‘Abbas Ibrahim” has also produced a play covering the subject of house maids, entitled Huruf mina Lbidaia (Words from the Beginning). This work came during the period of ‘Abbas Ibrahim’s sickness and was directed by Rab’i Al Idrissi. Actually, “The Artistic Workshop” is dedicated to the production of “The Prophet Yusuf in Opera” with an innovative style and fertile imagination.
A Religious Opera
This type of creativity comes within the artistic and technical employment of the Holy Qur’an into theatrical pieces. The idea of artistic employment of the Holy Qur’an is part of a research project I have conducted on the relationship between religion and theatre since 2006.
Before presenting “The Prophet Yusuf in Opera”, I would like to refer to some technical and theatrical terms used in this piece of work so as to familiarize those who do not appertain to the milieu of theatre with some particular concepts.[1]
Ceremony:
A formal act or set of acts performed as prescribed by rituals, customs, or etiquette, ME cerimonie, Lat. Caerimonia, meaning religious rite
Declamation:
The fact of delivering an elocutionary recitation; to utter and recite with rhetorical effects, ME declamacioun, Lat. Declamation, meaning recitation
Opera:
A form of theatrical presentation in which a dramatic performance is set to music; a work of opera; a theatre designed primarily for operas, Lat. Opus, meaning work
These three short definitions have been presented in order to make the project clear for the reader of this work.
In “The Prophet Yusuf in Opera”, I have decided to rely upon the Surah of Yusuf as a text without interfering with the holy verses of the Qur’an. Considerably, I apply this procedure to all my artistic works. Within the holy verses of the Surah of Yusuf, one may find implications, directional indications and settings that would bring the whole picture of the story to steal the focus of the audience. These characteristics would also make the viewer more likely able to admire the Surah of Yusuf.
The aim of this artistic project is to add visual aspects to the reading of the Surah of Yusuf. Since Muslims are commonly known to listen to the Holy Qur’an and as the world has recently turned into a digital and audio-visual place (metaphorically speaking), we are presenting this opera with the attempt to show the artistic aspects of the Holy Qur’an.
During my work on this project I encountered indications and references in the Holy Qur’an that urge the reader to consider the visual aspects of life, as well as its aesthetic side, in verses where expressions such as “See” and “Hast thou not seen” are abundant.
[1] The definitions of these terms are taken from The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, 1985.
Written (in Arabic) by Rabii Al-Idrissi
Written into English by Fayssal Chafaki
No comments:
Post a Comment