Nefertiti

Nefertiti

Premiere: 20th Fajr International Theatre Festival, Qashqai Hall (2001)

Public Run: Hall No. 2, Theatre City, Tehran (2002)

The play is based on a synthesis of Iranian popular comic performance traditions and Ja’far Khan Returns from Europe, widely regarded as the first modern Iranian play, written by Hassan Moghadam. As a young man, Moghadam visited the ancient Egyptian tombs, where he contracted tuberculosis after being exposed to bacteria believed to have remained within the burial chambers. He later died of the disease in Switzerland in 1928 and was buried there.

Nefertiti is set inside the tomb of Akhenaten. The encounter between Hassan Moghadam, Akhenaten, and the characters of Ja’far Khan Returns from Europe gives rise to a lively and inventive comedy that was warmly received by a broad spectrum of audiences. Following more than a year of rehearsals and a month-long, highly attended public run, the production became Jalal Tehrani’s first major work as a stage director and laid the foundation for the loyal audience that would continue to follow his theatrical career. Notably, the average age of the cast was under twenty years old, making the production an early showcase for a remarkably young ensemble.