Guest Blog: Sarah Berger On The Women and War Exodus Festival

The Women and War Festival is something that I am genuinely proud of.

I came up with the idea last year and I was intensely aware of the fact that while there is lot of coverage of war, there is very little exploration of the roles of women in combat and war zones and its impact on them.

Throughout history, women have fought, reported, painted, written novels and poetry, directed films and, of course, suffered as a result of man's thirst for conflict.

Having come from a military background myself - my father was an admiral and served in the Second World War, where he received the Distinguished Service Cross and was eventually knighted for services rendered - it's a world I have grown up in. I was always fascinated by the courage and attitude of that generation and their ability to survive and rebuild their lives without rancour.

At our recent fundraiser, Rula Lenska read from the diaries of her mother - a Polish aristocrat who, as a child was incarcerated, in Ravensbruck concentration camp. The final words of the reading were a quote from her mother: "It is your enemies' duty to destroy you, and it is your duty to survive".

This inspiring quotation sums up the message that we are seeking to convey with this year's Women and War Exodus Festival.

We are living in a time when women's rights are under attack as much - if not more, in some cases - than ever. The world's greatest living diaspora is taking place and it is the women and children who tend to be at the sharp end of the refugee crisis. They make up the majority of those who find themselves displaced, facing unimaginable horrors and trying to rebuild their lives thousands of miles away from home.

Whilst we seek through drama, music, film, documentary, poetry, dance and talks to examine their experiences, we are in no way presenting these courageous women as victims.

We will be celebrating the diversity and richness of the cultures that they bring with them, encouraging the sharing of them, and celebrating their successes as well as hearing of their trials.

We are lucky enough to have people from Asia, Central Asia, the USA, Greece, Colombia, the UK and Africa, of all creeds and faiths, coming together to tell these remarkable stories.

To give a flavour of this year's contributors and the scope of work they bring to the festival... Women At War combines the verbatim interviews with women in the US Army's Female Engagement Team deployed to Afghanistan, with poetry, movement, visual art and music to explore the nature of trauma.

Fermín Cabal's Tejas Verdes is a celebration of human rights, and is a compelling memory piece about the 3,000 who were violently killed during the Pinochet regime that lasted from 1973 to 1990 in Chile.

Flowers that Float (on the Mediterranean Sea) is a production created in direct response to the worldwide refugee crisis. Under The Skin explores the illicit story of the love affair between the Nazi officer Anneliese Kohlmann and one of her female Jewish prisoners in Neuengamme concentration camp.

Orzu Arts - Britain's first Central Asian theatre company - return to the festival this year, with three exhilarating pieces: She - The Shakti, a visceral, bloodstained Medea and a reworking of Shakespeare's classic work in Hamlet Fool. Lucy Sheen's simultaneously bold and sensitive Shofu, Wianbu, Pi explores the controversial issue of Japan's World War Two practice of organised military prostitution through the eyes of a group of surviving 'comfort women'.

International visual arts are represented by Afsoon, an Iranian-born, London-based artist who showcases two prints of War Carpets she has designed. Born in Rotterdam, Holland, Marcelle Hanselaar is one of the most accomplished printmakers working in Britain today who displays three of her exquisite pieces from The Crying Game series. Both artists' work will be on display through the festival.

For more information, dates and ticket prices for all shows please visit www.womenandwar.co.uk

Watch a trailer below

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