The Beekeeper of Aleppo, an adaptation of Christy Lefteri’s best-selling novel, is the story of beekeeper Nuri and his artist wife Afra who have to leave Syria when war breaks out and set out on a perilous journey to seek asylum in the UK.
The play is an emotionally charged production that powerfully portrays the desperation, trauma and grief of people who are forced to abandon their homeland for an uncertain new life overseas.
Adam Sina and Farah Saffari are superb as Nuri and Afra, and the rest of the cast, who play characters including other refugees, immigration officials and NHS staff, are fantastic too. Special mention goes to Dona Atallah who is impressive as young boys Sami and Mohammed.
The set is also a star of the show. Through clever use of sound and projection, we are transported around the world including to refugee camps during Nuri and Afra’s journey and their new existence in the UK as well as real footage of the war in Syria. The staging is so evocative that you can almost smell and taste the aromas from the different towns and cities, while a particularly memorable scene is a dangerous and crowded boat journey from Turkey to Greece arranged by exploitative people traffickers.
There are some confusing moments in the first act as the action moves between flashbacks but this doesn’t take away from the intense impact of the brilliantly staged production. It’s a play that challenges the audience to think beyond the angry headlines about immigration into the UK and understand the immense hardships faced by refugees whose lives are upturned due to no fault of their own.
Ultimately, this is a story of humanity’s ability to stay resilient and overcome the most challenging of circumstances. As the recurring line in the play says: “Where there are bees there are flowers, and wherever there are flowers there is new life and hope”.
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The Beekeeper of Aleppo is at Theatre Royal Bath until 4 April.
Images by Manuel Harlan
