Javaad Alipoor: The Believers Are But Brothers

This performance will be live streamed from the stage at HOME Manchester.

We live in a time where old orders are collapsing. From the post-colonial nation states of the Middle East, to the EU and the American election. Through it all, tech savvy and bloodthirsty groups run through European drawn border lines. Amidst this, a generation of young men, find themselves burning with resentment; without the money, power and sex they think they deserve and this crisis of masculinity leads them on a journey into an online world of fantasy, violence and reality. Javaad Alipoor spent time exploring how ISIS and the alt-right radicalise online and tells the story through documentary, interactivity and fiction.

The performance will be followed by a Q&A with Javaad Alipoor.

REQUIREMENTS:
You will require an internet connection, a computer/tablet and a smartphone with WhatsApp installed.

CONTENT TO CONSIDER:
Recommended age: 16+
Running time: 60 minutes
Some strong language and violent themes that some viewers may find distressing

ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Javaad’s work as a writer, director, performer and activist sits at the forefront of UK theatre makers who are creating work for diverse audiences and communities, many of whom are experiencing theatre performance for the first time.

His innovative use of form and technology is changing the way people think about the performative aspect of technology and how theatre can appeal to an audience who get most of their storytelling hit through the internet. His work has been nominated for The Stage and Total Theatre innovation awards, and he is a regular collaborator with the National Theatre’s Immersive Story Telling Studio, The Pervasive Media Studio and The Space.

Over the past five years, Javaad’s theatre work has built a strong national and international reputation, winning two Fringe First Awards at The Edinburgh Festival and directing his first mid-scale show as part of the Changemakers Program at Sheffield Theatres. At the same time he is forging a reputation in realm of television and online work. Last year BBC 4 and The Space produced a TV adaptation of The Believers are but Brothers and earlier this year the Company produced an acclaimed online version of Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran.