An ancient Iranian epic play, ‘The Sun’s Secret, the Sky’s Secret’ will be staged at the 34th Fajr International Theater Festival next year.
Directed and written by Shokrekhoda Goudarzi, the story casts a different look at the battle between two ancient Iranian mythological figures, Rostam and Esfandiyar, heroes of the epic Shahnameh written by the highly revered Persian poet Ferdowsi (935–1025 AD), Mehr News Agency reports.
Esfandiyar, a crown prince and a divine warrior, is best known from the tragic story of the battle with Rostam. The play is focused on three important aspects of the original story, said Goudarzi, who is also a theater director.
The first is Esfandiyar’s succession. Although Goshtasp (Esfandiyar father) is aware of a prediction that foretells the death of his son at the hands of Rostam, he compels the young hero to go and bring the aging Rostam in chains, promising that he would certainly give the throne to Esfandiyar this time and himself retire.
Another aspect is Esfandiyar’s support to the Prophet Zoroaster(Zarathustra), to spread the religion of Zoroastrianism.
The vulnerability of Esfandiyar’s eyes is also focused by Goudarzi. “He closed his eyes when he bathed in Zoroaster’s miraculous pool of invincibility.” Esfandiyar is blinded by a shot through the eye. According to the book ‘The Red Intellect’ by Persian philosopher Yahya ibn Habash Suhrawardi, Esfandiyar’s blindness metaphorically implies his ignorance and pride. “He always thinks he is right. He even asks Rostam to believe in his righteousness.”
“Esfandiyar is a symbol for egocentric people found in today’s world, who cause irreparable damage to humanity,” Goudarzi added.
The rehearsal sessions have begun for the show. Mohammad Sadeqi, Kazem Hajir-Azad, Majid Jafari, Saghar Azizi, Navid Goudarzi, Maneli Hossseinpour, Reza Jafari, Mehdi Alinejad, and Yaser Khaseb are the actors and the performance will have live music.
The 34th edition of FITF will be held from January 21 to February 1, 2016 in Tehran.
