Ghalia’s Miles
Synopsis and Significance:
Fleeing her family in Lebanon in the hope of building a new life in Europe, Ghalia, a pregnant teenager, makes an extraordinary journey through the Arab World. On her way, she encounters several women who guide her, and she sacrifices almost everything she has to make the crossing. Borrowing elements from mythological characters and archetypal figures of women warriors and nurturers, in addition to stories inspired from real women who were active in the upheavals of the Arab World, the play attempts to draw the changing map of our region through the innocent and feisty eyes of Ghalia and the strong women she meets. Ghalia slowly becomes the representation of the youth’s ability to adapt to the changing and harsh environments of our world today.
Playwright’s Country of Origin:
LEBANON
Production History
Ghalia’s Miles was written by Maya Zbib and first developed on a “New Writing for Theatre” Project with the Royal Court Theatre and the British Council between 2014-2016. It was given a staged reading as part of ‘Told From The Inside: New Plays from Lebanon and Syria’ at the Royal Court’s Jerwood Theatre Downstairs in June 2016 and at the Edinburgh International Festival’s ‘New and Now’ in August 2017 translated by Katharine Halls and directed by Lucy Morrison.
It was produced in 2019 by Zoukak Theatre Company, within the frame of the project “Cursed to Live in Interesting Times“, in cooperation with suite42 and Deutsches Schauspielhaus Hamburg. Funded by the Doppelpass Fund of the Kulturstiftung Des Bundes. Co-produced by Drosos Foundation and Théâtre des 13 vents Centre Dramatique National Montpellier.
Name of the Playwright(s)/Creator(s) in English
Year of Writing
Year of the First Staging (if applicable)
