Language: no broblem

We follow a protagonist on her train journey through Belgium, having intriguing encounters along the way. Her personal story is interwoven with that of her relatives, living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Their voices recount how they relate to Palestinian Arabic, their mother tongue, in connection to Hebrew, the official state language. Their story lays bare one of the more insidious aims of colonizers: to actively establish the dominance of their language over those of the original inhabitants. This mechanism is subtle and gradual, unfolding over several generations.

Language: no broblem addresses the pressure, violence and control one language can exert over the other, forcing it into a perpetual state of transformation and change. With humor, anger, love and absurdity the performance embraces the boundaries of the translatability of language, making us reflect on processes of resistance.

Marah Haj Hussein is a dancer, actress and creator from Kofor Yassif in occupied Palestine. She currently lives in Antwerp, where she graduated from the Royal Conservatoire in 2021.

Credits

concept and performance Marah Haj Hussein ⎸ sound Anton Lambert ⎸ projection mapping Koen de Saeger and Hussein Shikha ⎸ dramaturgy Krystel Khoury ⎸ scenography Agnese Forlani ⎸ light design Pol Seif ⎸ engineering Koen de Saeger ⎸ co-production Monty, Moussem and KANAL-Centre Pompidou ⎸ with the support of Het TheaterFestival & Fonds voor Nieuwe Makers van Stad Antwerpen ⎸ thanks to Kaaitheater, Toneelhuis, Kunstcentrum BUDA, A Two Dogs Company, DeSingel, hetpaleis, Thomas Bellinck, Barakat Haj, Lubna Haj, Luna Haj, Hala Haj, Sari Haj, Moanes Fahoum, Anan Saadi, Fadia Shehadeh and Hashem Shehadeh