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Ostan dives into the hidden world of undocumented Kurdish migrants to tell a captivating story about life on the margins and wider politics, through engrossing character drama.Summary
Rating
Excellent
Ostan begins with an everyday location. The lights go up to reveal a car wash in London and a young man living out his Call of Duty fantasies with spray guns. However, this is the setting for a drama about a strange hidden world that is all around us in London: the world of undocumented migrants.
The play follows Rebin (Ojan Genc), a Kurdish migrant from Iraq, who is trapped in legal limbo while waiting for his permanent leave to remain. Through Rebin’s struggle for a response from the faceless bureaucracy of the legal system, the pain the hostile environment causes is made apparent.
Genc delivers an energetic performance as Rebin, but the whole cast are excellent and quickly establish their characters’ relationships through their performances. Moshen Ghafari is moving as Destan, the car wash manager trapped between his greedy boss and his unruly staff. He conveys a life of sadness and suffering through his subtle performance.
Human lives are worth little in this legal twilight, as dramatised through car wash owner Shapur’s (Dana Haqjoo) plans to make money from human trafficking. This uncovers another tragedy of British immigration law, where migrants are forced to resort to desperate means, and wealthy businesspeople prey on them.
Arzhang Pezhman’s writing is enthralling as it dives into a world that is all around us, in car washes, construction sites, shops and factories. There’s an unseen world of undocumented migrants, working manual jobs, cash-in-hand, whilst waiting for official recognition. The characters’ lives play out through days at work and online gaming. Tension rises as the stress of running the car wash mounts and Shapur’s criminal activity increases.
Wider politics are explored in the backstory of Rebin and other Kurdish characters. Their conflicts reveal the history of the Kurdish people and the turbulent politics of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey. These stories take place in the wake of British foreign policy, the invasion of Iraq and the hostile environment. Momentous global decisions cause shockwaves to pass through these men’s lives.
The wider political and historic conflicts play out through the characters. Görkem (Serkan Avlik), a new hothead employee who has arrived recently from Kurdistan, wants a state for his people and antagonises Rebin who is cold to Kurdish nationalism. Customer Noah (El Anthony) lives his life through video games, playing online with Rebin, and he wants money. Shapur is looking to exploit the needy and greedy, whilst Destan is trying to build a safe life for his family in London. Politics is never far away, but the drama remains electric because the big issues filter through their domestic lives.
A range of settings are vividly portrayed through considered use of set, lighting and sound effects, from the car wash, to the back of trucks, to the virtual spaces where Rebin and Noah game. Screen projections of Middle Eastern-set first-person shooters are a reminder that this region’s conflicts are affecting the characters’ lives and show the connection to wider politics. The ending is cathartic and delivers a surprising final twist.
Ostan demonstrates how to make a captivating show about politics, by keeping the drama focused on the characters and their interactions and using this to reveal larger conflicts. The everyday lives of people in the hidden world of undocumented migrants contain the great political conflicts of recent history, which are present in this powerful play.
Written by: Arzhang Pezhman
Directed by: Gaby Dellal
Ostan plays at Park Theatre until Wednesday 2nd October. Further information and booking details can be found here.
