TEHRAN-The Iranian play “Macbeth of Zar” written and directed by Ebrahim Poshtkuhi has won the Jury prize of the 4th Baghdad International Theater Festival.

At the closing ceremony of the festival, the jury granted the award for the first time in the history of the event to the play, which was also nominated in the best director, best actor and best actress categories, ISNA reported on Friday.

A production of the Titovak Theater Troupe, “Macbeth of Zar” represented Iran at the festival, which took place in the Iraqi capital from October 10 to 17.

In addition to Iran, the event featured works from 24 countries, including Iraq, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Oman, Italy, France, Belgium, and Germany.

In the play, Poshtkuhi blends Macbeth with Zar, a rite commonplace in southern Iran.

Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's finest plays, and presents a man's conscience and the effect of guilt on his mind. A dark and bloody play, Macbeth explores reality and illusion; witchcraft and the supernatural; ambition and kingship; the natural order; light and life, darkness and death; blood and dead babies.

Zar is a legacy from slavery as it was performed by African slaves who were brought to southern Iran. They performed it on weekends in order to gain energy to enable them to bear the burden of bondage for the rest of the week. Over time, ordinary people also joined in their musical rite comprising ecstatic dance with dammam (tom-tom) playing.

Today, Zar is mostly performed by workers in a group named Ahl-e Hava, which is conducted by a leader called a babazari.

In “Macbeth of Zar” Scottish general Macbeth commits a crime to join Ahl-e Hava to become a babazari.

The cast consists of  Shahrooz Delafkar, Gata Abedi, Yashar Naderi, Shobair Parastar, Saeed Borjali, Fahime Mousavi, Sahar Abdolmaleki, Matin Makari, Ali Dolatyar and Saber Rezaei. 

Having earlier been staged in Tehran, the play was invited to the International Theatre Festival Rainbow in St. Petersburg, Russia in June and received a trophy as well.

SS/