Writer: Nemo Martin
Director: Jo Tyabji
The best theatre challenges stereotypes and asks questions that society often ignores. [The Streets of
Geneva] achieves both of those things with a beautifully tender tale of love and friendship set against
a backdrop of secrecy and confusion.
When Adham receives unwanted advances from his female boss he panics and tells her he’s
married. As far as lies go that’s pretty mild, but he takes it one step further by revealing that he’s not
only married but married to a man. Fortunately for us, she duly invites Adham and his husband to an
all-expenses paid tour of Switzerland.
Keen to keep his job and obliged to continue the pretence, he invites a friend, his only friend, to join
him. His local Imam, Raushan. Fortunately for Adham, he’s is about as progressive as an Imam can be
and is only too happy to help.
From there we follow the two friends as they travel through the hills and valleys of Switzerland, their
relationships (both the fake and the real) emulating the undulating landscape until they eventually
merge to become two and the same.
On the surface, Adham is a simple, reticent, security guard with little room for emotional
attachment. Beneath it though, the truth is far from the façade. Raushan on the other hand is an
Imam who encourages his gay daughter to deliver Dhikr (sermons) – he is as open and forgiving as
they come, and yet as the play continues, he has even more to reveal.
Ashley Alymann plays Adham with all the nuance and care the character deserves, while Shiraz Khan
as Raushan is open and generous throughout. The two of them together are wonderful to
watch, and they share some genuinely beautiful moments.
At the heart of this show is a deftly sculpted script by Nemo Martin, which delivers a sensitive take
on a story as old as time, set in a modern and often controversial context.
It’s a show that will leave you with a smile on your face and a skip in your step.
Runs until 18th February 2020
The Reviews Hub Score
Joyous
