The play “Barcode Prison”… a creative vision of issues of bullying and violence
05-11-2023 09:16 PM
*For the first time on the stage of the Sharjah International Book Theater 2023
Ammon – The audience of the Sharjah International Book Fair in its 42nd session, which was launched under the slogan “We Talk Books,” was on a date with the largest Emirati theatrical production of the year 2023, on the exhibition stage.
The play, which extended over three continuous hours, had a questionable title, “Barcode Prison,” which will make the audience aware throughout the duration of the show the story of this strange prison.
The play is directed by Marwan Abdullah Saleh, in cooperation with Emirati author Mira Al Muhairi, and starring a group of brilliant Emirati actors: Musa Al Buqaishi, Abdullah Al Bahti, Sultan Bin Dafoun, Haifa Al Ali, Haya Al Qaidi, Reem Al Faisal, Sarah Al Saadi, and other actors with great potential. The great cast, who gave a distinguished performance, made the large theater audience not stop following every moment and scene of the show.
*Attract everyone’s attention from the first seconds
In an impressive and astonishing way, the show “Barcode Prison” was able to captivate the audience from the first second. When the time for the show came, the hall became dark, and the scenography began to play its tricks on the audience. Lights flashed and went out, a thick human voice spoke about an island, calling it: a place for human isolation. While he is speaking, the silhouettes of four people appear in the darkness. We know that they are on a remote island called “Barcode” and they are imprisoned in a prison named after the island. Their accusation is bullying. Each one of them bullies in a certain way. There is the one who bullies on social networking sites, and there is the bully on… Famous personalities, and there is a woman who bullies her colleagues who disagree with her convictions. They are all serial bullies, and the authorities must keep them away from normal people, as there is no hope for them.
*A bold theatrical experience
What is most distinctive about the play “Barcode Prison” is not its story, which was without a central plot, as if we were watching a work of absurd theatre, reminiscent of the plays of Samuel Beckett, but what is beautiful are the dialogues written for the actors, which are full of black, sarcastic comedy, and despite the fact that the primary purpose of satire is to make people happy, However, its hidden intention is to create and form awareness regarding sensitive societal issues, such as those addressed in the play, such as the issue of bullying and its danger when it is widespread in society, and violence against women.
The performance of actor Marwan Saleh in the role of the prison warden was distinguished. The viewer does not know from his performance whether he is a real character in the play, or an imaginary character, written by someone inside the play, or is he an accused like them and a bully imprisoned like them, or is he all of these complex characters, and indeed he was able to professionally portray He performs all these characters and convinces the viewer that he is all three in one, and leaves the audience at the end of the show amazed by his performance.
