Theatre review: ZÉRO oscillates between monologue and stand-up comedy in a quest for identity
Iranian-born Montreal-based playwright Mani Soleymanlou shares his experiences of racism with equal parts rage and humour
Mani Soleymanlou.
Théâtre la Seizième presents ZÉRO by Mani Soleymanlou to February 12 at the Scotiabank Dance Centre.
A FEVERISH PRODUCTION that balances humour, anxiety, and loss, ZÉRO tells the story of Iranian-Canadian playwright Mani Soleymanlou as he grapples with his cultural identity. He weaves together pieces of his life, including his childhood during the Iran-Iraq war and the difficulties of being an immigrant in Quebec, with desperate attempts to shield his young son from the identity struggles he experiences.
ZÉRO is presented in Farsi (the playwright’s native tongue) and French (with English surtitles). The production wildly oscillates between monologue and stand-up comedy, taking the viewer on a journey within the anxieties of the artist’s mind as he attempts to make sense of his family’s history.
The artist recounts an experience that changed his life forever: the night his father decided to leave Iran. It is a story only recently revealed to him, one of war and terror, which has disrupted his ego. The newly uncovered pieces of his father’s life force him to come to terms with his past without shattering the narrative of identity he has constructed around himself.
Soleymanlou reveals that he has never felt quite at home in the country he now calls home, sharing his experiences of racism in Quebec with rage and humour. The adversity he endures makes him yearn for cultural assimilation and normalcy, but this longing is accompanied by a sense of profound loss of his culture. Through these struggles, Soleymanlou is raising a son, whom he hopes to raise as a Québécois, protected from the strife of the immigrant experience. At the same time, the little boy is desperate to understand his ancestry despite his disconnection from it. While Soleymanlou tries to simplify his story for his son, he concedes that he also resents having to revive his own connection to his culture.
ZÉRO is frantic, bordering on obsessive, as if the viewer is watching the artist write the piece; it feels as if Soleymanlou can never quite grasp the right words to effectively convey the complexity of emotions into a singular narrative arc. The performance carries the viewer from the performer’s childhood memories to bedtime stories with his son and to his dreams, ultimately to a point where Soleymanlou can come to peace and understanding. It’s through his son’s innocent curiosity, amid the losses of assimilation, that he begins to discover the beauty of cultural perseverance.
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