The Islamic Drama

by Jamshid Malekpour

Described by the distinguished theatre director Peter Brook as 'a very powerful form of theatre', the Ta'ziyeh is the Islamic drama of Iran. This work examines the evolution of the Ta'ziyeh, which involved elements drawn from Zoroastrianaism, Mithraism, mythology, folklore and traditional forms of Iranian entertainment. In its final form, most of its elements - plot, character, thought, spectacle and song - derive from the Shi'a branch of Islam. Its main plot concerns the suffering and death of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet of Islam.

A special issue of the journal Israel Affairs .

204 pages, Paperback

First published February 5, 2004

Reviews

[Amirsaman]

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[Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting history and description of the Ta'ziyeh plays of Iran, a form that has evolved from ancient roots to the only indigenous Islamic religious drama. Basically, the Ta'ziyeh are passion plays commemorating the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, killed by the forces of Yazid. This is an important event in Shia history because Hussein was regarded by the branch of Islam that would become the Shia as the true heir to the leadership of Islam following the prophet Muhammad's death. The faction that would become the Sunnis, on the other hand, favored a different successor. The area that's now Iran (which went though many different empires prior to the formation of Iran as a nation state) was conquered by the Arabs and had Islam slowly imposed on the population, but during that imposition process, Iranians adopted Shia Islam rather than Sunni Islam, which is more common among Arabs. Because Hussein is such a significant figure in Shia Islam, the existing dramatic forms from Persian religion were adopted to tell the martyrdom of Hussein. These performances became an important cultural form for both Iranian national identity and for expressing Shia religious identity and solidarity.