It’s not so much what she did as why she did it that’s the focus of 21 year old Skins contributor Atiha Sen Gupta’s sparky new play about a previously secular Muslim teenager who starts her final year at school with her head swathed in a hijab. Fatima (whom we never get too see either with or without her headscarf) has suddenly decided to stop partying, cover her hair and ignore her boyfriend (white, Irish) of two years’ standing.
Her westernised mother, who deliberately never took her or her twin brother Mo (excellent Arsher Ali) to the mosque, thinks her daughter looks like a “fundamentalist postbox', and threatens to evict her from the family home the second she turns 18. Her multiracial classmates are equally confused. With Fatima refusing to offer any explanation, their teacher dedicates a Self & Society session to a revealing debate about how they see the significance of her decision, but their animated discussions in the classroom are no more conclusive than their less structured arguments over a pint in the pub.
The subject matter is serious – is the hijab a symbol of control, of defiant autonomy or just a fashion statement? But the treatment is entertainingly fast-paced in a production crammed with witty one-liners and thoughtful, even-handed observation. There’s good work, too, from the predominantly young cast including Bunmi Mojekwu’s ill-informed Stacey (who hopes to surprise everyone by getting four decent A-levels, but forgets that she’s only taking three), Farzana Dua Elahe’s confident Aisha, a Pakistani Muslim who’s angry at her best friend’s new dress code, and Simon Coombs’ cocky but conciliatory Craig who insists that he should be allowed to keep his baseball cap on his head if Fatima is allowed to cover hers.
Hampstead Theatre, Eton Avenue, NW3 3EU (020 7722 9301) Tube: Swiss Cottage. Until Nov 7. £15-£25. Under 26 £10
No comments:
Post a Comment