EDINBURGH 2025: Saria Callas Guest Blog

Despite Saria Callas being a play about aspiring to be a singer while growing up in a place where it is forbidden for women to sing - Saria Callas was a celebration for me -  a chance I gave myself to finally do the things I love: to sing, dance, laugh, and tell stories.

Since childhood, I have had a deep love for singing. I learned with passion over many years, but the opportunity to share it was always very limited. In Saria Callas, I wanted to honour that long-held desire, to offer myself a moment I had been denied -  and I’m truly happy I found the courage to do it. I’m also grateful for the trust Camden People’s Theatre placed in me, making it possible to bring this work to life.

One of the biggest challenges was this: I didn’t want pity. Not for myself, nor for other women who, like me, grow up under restrictions and have to fight for their dreams. I want to celebrate our courage  -  and invite everyone to reflect on the meaning of freedom. How easily, and how quickly, we might find ourselves in a position to deny someone else’s dreams.

Saria Callas begins with the true story of my life  -  a child who loved to sing and dance, but had no outlet for expression in a society ruled by a religious government, where many basic rights of women are restricted and suppressed. In facing that challenge, I made the decision to provoke and nudge my Western audience a little -  to bring the story closer to them. That’s when the idea of the imagined child was born. With the support of two brilliant dramaturgs, Charli Cowgill and Laurie Ward from PissCarnation, I was able to develop the character and deepen the emotional layers of the story. As we weaved the narratives together, other women’s stories - shared with me by friends - naturally found their way into the show. Saria Callas became a container for these real and imagined voices, blending fiction and truth in a way I can’t always separate -  because all of them are rooted in the real pain and resistance of people fighting for freedom.

I was also lucky to have the support of my fellow artists from Seemia Theatre. As the company’s artistic director, I was especially happy that we could switch roles in this project -  and that I could invite ensemble artist Manuel Lavandera, to co-direct. His presence was vital. With his deep understanding of acting, his softness, inner sensitivity, and most of all, his powerful sense of humour, he helped shape the soul of the piece. Robin Paley Yorke, another Seemia artist, joined us as associate director. With his experience in musical theatre, he played a major role in developing the show’s musical moments, and his creative input throughout the process was invaluable.

It was also important to me to involve other migrant artists -  particularly Iranians  -  in shaping the piece. They helped ground the show in a culturally specific atmosphere. I think the creative team -  with their precision and care -  brought this work to its best possible form. Despite being highly skilled in their fields, it was the first time our video and sound designers  worked on a theatre production -  and I’m deeply proud of the mutual trust that made this collaboration possible. In the end, I believe having a top-level team made it possible for us to create something meaningful in a short amount of time. That was only possible because of the trust and belief we shared.

I think Saria Callas offers the audience a chance to travel into a world that might feel distant -  only to land somewhere surprisingly close. A space that gently asks one fundamental question:
What is freedom?

place.

Saria Callas will be at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival from the 12th-24th August. For tickets and more information, visit: https://underbellyedinburgh.co.uk/event/saria-callas 

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