“Queens of Syria”

Last Friday the Lower Sixth gathered together for the final lecture of this year’s inspiring series. The lecture was about the lives of Syrian women who had been forced to flee Syria to Jordan where they received therapy in the form of acting. This involved them combining Euripides’ tragedy , “The Trojan Women”, written in 415BC, with their personal stories to express what they had been through.

Miss Webb introduced the evening by successfully summing up the complicated history and politics behind the conflict in Syria and this was followed by Dr Hogg giving a brief background to the original play and how it was relevant to the Ancient Greeks and also to the lives of these Syrian women. The powerful and moving documentary, the “Queens of Syria”, told the story of  the six weeks leading up to the play and illustrated the relevance and significance the play holds for them. As the audience heard about what these women went through it shocked us all. We were also surprised to hear that even though they had fled Syria and gained more freedom, some husbands would not let their wives perform in the play, even though they had wanted to. We also saw how little they have and yet how optimistic they are about being able to return to Syria. Ultimately, their main purpose was clear and achieved: to share the stories of the Syrian people with the world.

We were then incredibly fortunate to be able to Skype two of the women currently in Jordan and we were able to ask questions and hear more about their stories and what the future holds for them. We were all moved about how excited they were about the project and the reaction it has generated.

If you wish to find out more about it you can watch the trailer for this documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqYaJRH6irw

It was an incredible evening and a rare opportunity. One of the things we took from it was that we may not be able to help with the fighting but we can at least help by raising awareness.

Abby Frett and Jemima Young (L6th).