Idlib – Storyhouse Chester

Written and directed by Kevin Dyer, and produced by Laura Duncalf, Idlib started as a piece of prose as a prelude for a play that morphed into a short story before becoming the script for a monologue first performed online in 2021.

Based on the story of a Syrian baker who wanted to return home, and real interviews with Syrian refugees and escapees across Europe, it tells the story of a woman (Anoush Kendrick) who has hope, but it is both the prelude to this tale and what follows afterwards as well that make this such a special experience, one that is a mix of conversation, an uplifting story of kindness, making bread on stage, drawing, and sharing personal memories of food and family, eating together and socialising.

The making of bread itself is an act so simple and pure that it is a mainstay around the world with its rich metaphors resonating throughout religious communities from Christianity to Islam to Judaism, and hinting strongly towards the communion that will close the event yet perhaps mark the start of something new, something good.

As Dyer mixed the essential ingredients, with a glug of oil and yoghurt reminiscent of the Levant, the usual reticence of the audience quickly fell away with three coming forward to assist him. As he spoke, we were drawn into the troubled story of the city of Idlib in North-West Syria, a place much plagued by the tragedies that we are all aware of yet often choose to turn away from: the failure of its wheat harvest in 2006 through to a full-blown civil war; the destabilising interventions from East and West; and the competing interests of its geographical neighbours.

A pause for the dough to rest saw a seated Kendrick take centre stage with a beautifully touching performance that drew us deeper into this troubled world of suspicion and despair, and at whose heart are real people – just like you and me – brought to life tonight and given a voice, a face even, with the arrival of a baker whose selfless act of salvation offers respite and hope from the horrors that surround their every day.

And as this event shows, it is something as simple as the making and breaking of bread with those around us that provides a moment of commonality. A moment we can share. A moment we can remember. A moment to reflect. A moment of hope. A moment of new beginnings. When there is no need for barriers, and we move freely with trust.

Tonight, when the performance finished, we – the audience – stayed, as one, and made and broke bread together, with the wonderful additions of a beetroot dip, baba ghanoush, and a sweeter concoction, prepared earlier by Duncalf. We engaged, shared stories and experiences. And smiled. And laughed. Small moments that hint at a better future we can all enjoy together.

This was more than theatre. It was an experience. One that resonates so strongly that I’m still smiling as I write about it several hours on.

Idlib was possible due to a commission from Farnham Maltings and Dyer’s full-length play, The Syrian Baker, with which the material of the monologue overlaps, and is touring the UK.

Storm in the North seeks to energise, beguile, and to tell the truth through making irresistible theatre for curious people. Further details https://www.storminthenorth.com/

Storyhouse is a charity and its home in Chester incorporates a library, theatres, an independent cinema, a restaurant, and is a community and creative social space. Further details https://www.storyhouse.com/

Reviewer: Mark Davoren

Reviewed: 10^th May 2024

North West End UK Rating: