Sahand Sahebdivani
Sahand Sahebdivani | |
|---|---|
 Sahebdivani tells a story at the Jafani Festival 2014 in Rotterdam | |
| Born | 18 May 1980 |
| Occupation(s) | Storyteller musician actor |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Organization | Cultural center the Mezrab |
| Partner | Rasha Hilwi |
| Awards | Storyteller of the Year (2014) Amsterdam Fringe Gold Award (2017) Amsterdam Prize for the Arts (2020) |
| Website | https://sahebdivani.com |
Sahand Sahebdivani (born 18 May 1980 in Tehran) is an Iranian–Dutch storyteller, musician and founder of cultural center the Mezrab.[1][2]
Biography
[edit]After the Iranian Revolution, at the age of three Sahebdivani fled with his parents from Iran to the Netherlands in 1983.[3][4] They were originally headed for Canada, but missed their transfer in Amsterdam, which is why the family ended up in the Netherlands.[5] In his twenties he by chance got the opportunity to become storyteller at the Tropenmuseum, when another Iranian storyteller noticed his hat in the tram.[5] He became motivated to continue his parents' Iranian tradition of storytelling and music making, which is why he founded the Mezrab in 2004.[6] This started as a monthly gathering in a small teahouse, but within ten years grew into an established cultural center with a multidisciplinary programme of five days per week.[2][7][8][9]
As his cultural center grew, so did his career as an artist. Together with various storytellers, actors and musicians he performs at theatres and festivals across the Netherlands and internationally.[10] In 2014 he was chosen as the Netherlands' Best Storyteller of the Year.[11] In 2017 together with storyteller Raphael Rodan he won the Amsterdam Fringe Gold Award for their play My Father Held a Gun.[12] In 2020 Sahebdivani's cultural center won the Amsterdamprijs voor de Kunst (Amsterdam Prize for the Arts) for Best Achievements.[13]
Theatre
[edit]Sahebdivani played in among others the following plays and shows:
- 2012–2015: Kingdom of Fire and Clay[14][15]
- 2016–2017: My Father Held a Gun[16][17]
- 2018: In het Hol van de Leeuw[18]
- 2019: De Ontheemden[19]
- 2020: Sons of Abraham[20]
- 2022: Stories of King Monkey[21][22]
- 2022: Het verre woord[23]
- 2023: Nachtreis[24]
See also
[edit]- Mezrab, the cultural center founded by Sahebdivani
- Storytelling
- Iranians in the Netherlands
External links
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Sahand Sahebdivani: "Mezrab is about storytelling in combination with a very basic and humanistic form of sharing a space"". Movement Exposed. 9 July 2020.
- ^ a b Vidal, Laura (23 November 2015). "Amsterdam's Sahand Sahebdivani and His Storytelling Phenomenon". Global Voices. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
- ^ "Profile Sahand Sahebdivani". Amsterdam High School for the Arts. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ Spreksel, Djuna (12 January 2020). "Dutch Iranians are worried about Iran: 'We feel powerless'". Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ a b "The story of the Mezrab". 2Doc.nl (in Dutch). 15 May 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "If on a spring's night an Iranian plectrum and a bowl of delicious soup". As Soup as Possible. 13 May 2015.
- ^ "MEZRAB | The House of Stories". Mezrab – The House of Stories.
- ^ Burman, Nicholas (20 December 2017). "Telling Stories at Mezrab". Amsterdam Alternative. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
- ^ Martins, Ana (28 October 2022). "Mezrab – storytelling nights". Spotted by Locals. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
- ^ "A Dutchman Making His Persian Debut at Israeli Storytelling Festival". Haaretz.
- ^ "Sahand Sahebdivani storyteller of the year 2014 | Het Verteltheater". Verteltheater (in Dutch). 5 June 2014. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "My Father Held A Gun winner of Amsterdam Fringe Gold Award". Theaterkrant (in Dutch).
- ^ "Winners released of Amsterdam Prize 2020!". Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
- ^ Conor, Ailie (16 March 2015). "The kingdom of fire and clay – seen 7 march 2015 – a review of ailie conor" (PDF).
- ^ "Kingdom of Fire and Clay (Iran vs Israel) – Sahand Sahebdivani & Raphael Rodan". Melkweg.
- ^ "My Father Held a Gun – Theatre National". theatrenational.be. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "My Father Held a Gun". The English Theatre. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ schreef, Lonnie Ostrop. "In het hol van de leeuw (14+) by Dox, Black Sheep Can Fly". Theaterkrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "De ontheemden door Mezrab". Theaterkrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "Sons of Abraham – Theatre National". Theatre National. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "The Stories of Kinge Monkey, Sahand Sahebdivani Theatre Deyssel Frascati". Frascati Theater (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ Sprits, Podium. "Podium Sprits". Podium Sprits. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "Het verre woord by Sahand Sahebdivani". Theaterkrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- ^ "Nachtreis (6+) | Sahand Sahebdivani | Theater Zuidplein". Theater Zuidplein (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 November 2022.