Persian play wins three top prizes at Italy’s Sele Teatero Fest
Iranian playwright and director Jafar Mahyari took home three major prizes at the 27th Sele Teatero Fest in southern Italy, with his performance piece ‘The Love’ sweeping best play, best direction and best stage design.
The festival, part of the larger 41st Sele d’Oro cultural gathering in Campania, draws international theater troupes each September, ILNA reported.
Mahyari’s Tehran-based company represented Iran this year with a work described by the jury as a daring mix of body movement, live music and narrative form.
The international jury – Joeke Albers of the Netherlands, Quinto Romagnoli of Italy, Jonas Bucevicius of Lithuania and Slovakia’s Silvia Bartáková Komaromiová – awarded the production.
The organizers hailed the piece’s “transformative” treatment of routine, taboo and love.
‘The Love’ tells the story of a man worn down by the emptiness of his daily routine, caught in the grip of hidden taboos, until an unexpected encounter with love steers him toward transformation. The play, carried by Mahyari’s own performance, unfolds through physical movement rather than dialogue, accompanied by live Santur (hammered dulcimer) and Daf (Persian frame drum).
Other contributors included assistant and international coordinator Hamideh Barmakshad, poster designer Mehdi Raygani and media adviser Mahmoud Nouraei. The project was staged under the patronage of Barmak Cultural and Artistic Institute, directed by Mahshid Barmakshad.
‘The Love’ has previously been staged in Europe, including Würzburg Neunerplatz Theater in 2017 and Lyon’s Théâter Les Carbones in 2019, before a run in Tehran in mid-2022.