Join us for a conversation with Marina Barham, General Director of Al Harah Theater in Bethlehem Palestine. Marina will be offering a voice from theatre and the performing arts sector in Palestine through the story of Al Harah Theater and its work in the West Bank.

Speaking in venues across the UK, Marina will be sharing about the current situation in Palestine and the role that theatre plays in helping children, young people and the community to overcome trauma. Audiences will be able to hear firsthand from a Palestinian activist in the cultural sector with the hope of establishing new partnerships and collaborations.

This conversation will be facilitated by Arron Singh (Head of Community Engagement at Chapter) and will have inputs from artists Rhiannon White and Sundas Raza.

About the artists...

Marina Barham is co-founder and General Director of Al-Harah Theater and has been an active cultural operator in Palestine, the Middle East and Europe since 1998. She was President of the Palestinian Performing Arts Network from 2019-2021, a board member and Global Connector 2021 of the International Network for Contemporary Performing Arts (IETM) and a Fellow of ISPA & Salzburg Global Seminar.

As a cultural management trainer, since 2006, she has worked with Al Mawred Resource, Tamasi Collective and the Goethe Institute. She also has been speaking at international conferences, festivals and events. Alongside producing theatre productions, for the last 23 years, she has managed international, regional & local tours and Euro Med Projects, and curated Palestine International Theater Festival for Children & Youth, Yalla Yalla Street Festival and Bethlehem Site-Specific Theatre Festival in Palestine.

Al-Harah Theater believes that theatre has the potential to change the lives of those who make it and those who watch it. It creates compelling work for children, young people and adults that is challenging, yet moving, accessible and always honest. It tours locally, regionally and internationally, reaching refugee camps, villages, cities and especially marginalised areas.

Rhiannon White

Rhiannon is co-founder and co-artistic director of Common Wealth a site-specific political theatre company based in Cardiff and Bradford. Between 2009 and 2013 Rhiannon toured the West Bank and Gaza with Circus 2 Palestine, offering psycho-social support to children affected by the conflict & occupation.

Sundas Raza

Sundas Raza is a Poet and Spoken Word Artist. She writes about a bit of everything but l mainly focus on social justice.Her work is heavily inspired by personal experiences and the world around her. Most of her work is very raw and personal and explores poetry is a form of healing.One of their proudest moments is the publication of her first poetry book 'Echoes Among Olive Branches' in January 2024.