Bunker

**A Look at “Bunker,” Written and Directed by Jalal Tehrani at Lebkhand Hall**

**Bunker: The Tale of a Perplexed Human in the Labyrinth of Identity and Technology**

Ali Jafari Foutami – Member of Iran’s National Association of Theatre Critics

Writing about Jalal Tehrani’s “Bunker” is a deceptively simple yet profoundly challenging task. The excitement of watching a play brought to the stage after seven years by a distinguished playwright and director like Jalal Tehrani inevitably imbues any writing about it with specific and evident preconceptions. Therefore, I will strive in what I write to restrain my excitement as much as possible and write about the first part of the *Bunker* trilogy, now on stage at Lebkhand Theatre, without presuppositions.

“Bunker,” utilizing a symbolic language and creating impactful imagery, delves into the depths of the human psyche in the face of technological advancement and social change. It raises fundamental questions about human nature, the complex issue of language, identity, and the place of humans in the modern world.

Jalal Tehrani has dedicated “Bunker” to his own highly renowned play, “The Reservoir” (Makhzan). This dedication speaks to the profound continuity between the two works. Both plays seek to explore the collective and individual unconscious and employ technology as a tool for this exploration. In “The Reservoir,” technology is portrayed as an alien and threatening force, whereas in “Bunker,” this relationship becomes more complex, with technology becoming an inseparable part of human identity.