The Heart of a Hero

http://photos2.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/1/8/c/b/600_442266347.jpeg

Even the greatest of Bedouin warriors has a heart…

A son is banished, a camel causes a war, and a dead prince crosses an ocean of milk and blood. The remarkable Egyptian storyteller, Chirine El Ansary, pulls us beneath the surface of an ancient story-cycle to extract sparkling episodes of love and kinship, betrayal and conquest, and unveil the heart of a great warrior.

1,400 years ago the Hilali tribe made an epic journey into Egypt, giving rise to a story that intertwines myth, fairytale, profound wisdom and enchantment. Usually only performed by men, this rare performance of a story you’re unlikely to ever again encounter on a contemporary stage, will be a night of mystery and beauty.

‘Captivating, enchanting, a joy to witness.’
★★★★ Everything Theatre

‘Like all good storytellers, she lives between reality and the world of story.’
Cairo Times

BOOK TICKETS: http://www.sohotheatre.com/whats-on/crick-crack-club-the-heart-of-a-hero/

CHIRINE EL ANSARY
Cairo born, and Le Coq and Goldsmith’s trained in Paris and London – Chirine El Ansary is a storyteller and physical performer living in Egypt and France, and working in French, English and Arabic. Chirine was one of the first performers to perform in the ancient buildings in the heart of the old city of Cairo, and in the markets and old palaces of Damascus and Aleppo. Today she is an international storyteller and has performed in cities diverse as Sana’a, Nairobi, Zanzibar, Johannesburg, Rome, Naples, Rotterdam and Paris… and made her mark in the UK at the Barbican and Soho theatres.

Her work includes performances of The Arabian Nights; her remarkable adaptation of the Banu Hilal epic (premiered at the Barbican in 2005); experimental movement solos based on Italo Calvino’s prose; Sufi tales and performance poetry. She also works as a radio actress, featuring in productions such as the Naguib Mahfouz trilogy, on BBC Radio 4, and recordings of her own storytelling for Radio Monte Carlo-Moyen Orient.

Running Time: 120mins plus interval
Age Recommendation: 14+