Intrepid Theatre

What is more difficult, to stay in danger with your loved ones or to live alone in safety? Adrenaline follows one man for one night, getting ready to celebrate his first New Years Eve in Canada after leaving his war-torn home in Syria. Using objects he has around the house, he unpacks memories of war, and tries to understand the price he has had to pay for his safety in Canada.

أدرينالين تروي حكاية جابر الشاب السوري الذي اضطرته ظروف الحرب في سوريا للّجوء إلى كندا. جابر يحاول الاحتفال بأول ليلة رأس السنة له في كندا بعيداً عن عائلته. كيف يحتفل جابر في الوقت الذي أهله وأقاربه ما زالوا في سوريا؟ ما هو الثمن الذي دفعه جابر مقابل الأمان الذي قدمه له وطنه الجديد كندا؟

Adrenaline is performed in Arabic with English subtitles.

“This piece of work is stunning in every single way—from the gripping writing to the inventive direction of Majdi Bou-Matar to the arresting acting of Ahmad Meree (who also wrote it).” Lynn Slotkin- The Slotkin Letter 2018.

 

“I know that Meree was speaking Arabic and that I was reading the English on the screen behind him but in my mind, it was seamless as if I could understand Arabic or he was speaking English.” Sam Mooney-Mooney on Theatre 2018.

Accessibility:

This show is performed in Arabic with English captions.

Trigger Warning: This show contains stories of war + loss. It includes explosion sound effects. Audiences may exit and enter the theatre as needed.

Credits:
Directed by Majdi Bou-Matar; Set Design by Majdi Bou-Matar; Sound Design by Colin Labadie; Original music by Colin Labadie; Song of Halab by Samih Shkeir; Traditional Music from Aleppo city; Lighting Design by Laura Johnson-Sherratt; Stage Managed by Nivan elSeweify.

About the artists:
Theatre Mada is a collective of Arab artists living in the Waterloo Region.

Ahmad Meree is an actor and playwright, born in Aleppo, Syria, a graduate from the Higher Institute of Theatre Arts in Cairo. He has performed in Syria winning the Best Actor Award in the Central Theatre Festival in Syria (2008). In Egypt, he directed Ionesco’s The Lesson and won Best Director Award for directing Chekhov’s The Bear at Cairo’s Festival of International Theatre (2013). Ahmad continued his journey as a refugee when he moved to Canada in 2016. He now lives in Kitchener, ON, where he works with MT Space as artistic associate, facilitator and co-director of their Young Company. Ahmad has written three plays, Suitcase (2019), Adrenaline (2017) which he toured to the Ryga Festival in Summerland, BC and Summerworks Performance Festival in Toronto; and Underground (2014) (Best Original Script in the University competition). Ahmad is the current Artist-in-Residence at The Registry Theatre in Kitchener.