Around the World in Eighty Days / The Silver

Around the World in Eighty Days / The Silver

2015–2016

Maktabe Tehran Theatre

These two productions were developed and performed concurrently, running from the beginning of autumn 2015 through the end of spring 2016. Both projects were created with students of Maktabe Tehran, and unlike conventional productions, the rehearsal process continued throughout the entire performance run, extending until the final day of the productions. The performances were presented without any publicity or marketing campaign, and no official photography or video documentation was permitted. Their principal audience consisted of spectators who had followed the projects since the rehearsal process, witnessing the productions as they evolved rather than encountering them only in their final form. This mode of theatrical practice forms part of what Jalal Tehrani refers to as “amateur theatre” at Maktabe Tehran—a distinctive artistic and pedagogical approach whose principles require a more extensive discussion than can be offered here.