The Mother of Kamal – Upstairs at the Gatehouse, London

Writer: Dina Ibrahim

Director: Stephen Freeman

If there is one thing that weathers the passing of time, it is the endurance and strength of a mother’s love for her children.

Backdropped by a 1948 Baghdad in the throes of religious persecution, The Mother of Kamal is this precise testament to the power of motherhood and the importance of familial ties. Written by Dina Ibrahim as the documentation of her grandmother’s biographical story, The Mother of Kamal unpacks the narrative of a Jewish mother navigating the plights of a divided country as she goes to great lengths to protect her family.

Dina Ibrahim’s acting as Um-Kamal is beautifully executed: from expressions to tone of voice, Ibrahim artistically brings to life an admirable woman willing to risk it all for her sons. The grief that Ibrahim expresses as Um-Kamal, especially as she undergoes the abrupt splitting of her family and the fractured years that follow, is notably palpable and thus unforgettable for the audience.

Mirdrit Zhinipotoku and Jojo Rosales as her two sons similarly show a wide range, effortlessly embodying the roles of Kamal and Sasson and creating a family dynamic that swiftly draws the audience into the rising conflicts of a Jewish family in 1940s Iraq. The youthful and light-hearted companionship of brotherhood paired with the later sombre maturity of two boys forced to grow up conveys a certain complexity that Zhinipotoku and Rosales do not shy from in their performances.

Consisting of a cast of five, the production of The Mother of Kamal mindfully utilises props and character wardrobes to set up a lively and fully dynamic performance. Despite the occasional struggle in differentiating the characters, overall, the cast skillfully distinguishes between the various roles of the story through unique quirks the actors incorporate into their impressive list of characters throughout the play. At times it is incredibly easy to forget that the cast plays multiple roles because of their abilities to make each character stand out– whether that is through personality or even the ways in which the actor carries themself.

The two acts of The Mother of Kamal are similarly and distinctly discernible: just as part one weaves together the beginnings of a decades-long story, the final act of the performance plays with these established strings of conflict, narrative, and history, culminating in the anticipated family reunion and the discovery of what exactly happened the fateful day that the Secret Police arrested Um-Kamal’s two sons.

While there is certainly room for more, particularly at the end, Dina Ibrahim’s The Mother of Kamal is an unforgettable tale of family and perseverance.

Runs until 28 January 2024