About this Event
"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main".
Thus said John Donne, the English seventeenth century poet and dean of Saint Paul's cathedral.
Throughout times, trade and cultural exchanges have been bringing together the peoples of Asia, Europe and North Africa.
The earliest known poetry in Asia and the whole world originated in Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq). From there, it expanded East and West.
This event is organised jointly by Goat Star Books, Tamarind Theatre, London Rose, Bangladeshi musician and singer Pritom Ahmed and British-Iranian poet Mariam Saidan.
Through readings, music and performances, we will travel across time and space flying on the wings of words and tunes.
Goat Star Books aims to act as a cultural bridge, treating poetry translation as a medium to connect different voices from the present and past. In this event, we will read a selection of poems from our Crimson Pashmina, an English/Spanish edition of the work of Pakistani poet Danial Danish.
Tamarind Theatre Company is a London-based, non-profit arts organization hat promotes Indian sub-continent arts, including drama, music, and storytelling. Rez Kabir will be performing some folk stories from the South Asian tradition.
London Rose is an arts and literature project inspired by sufi mysticism. Poet and artist Shaila Simi will be singing and reading some of her Sufi-inspired poetry.
British-Iranian poet Mariam Saidan is a special advocate for women's rights. Her poetry has been featured in many major UK literary publications championed for her unique style and her defence of liberty and beauty in times of violence. She will be presenting her book God Made me Promises.
Pritom Ahmed is a Bangladeshi-British singer-songwriter, actor and music composer. In Bangladesh he is the only singer with 13 solo albums of his own lyrics and composition. His music focuses on class stratification, contemporary urban life, and human rights of Bangladesh.
Snacks and drinks included in the ticket price
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sQIxBjiOIxI
In Mariam Saidan God Makes Me Promises, the boundaries between home and exile, body and memory, are constantly unsettled. Moving between Tehran and London, these poems hold violence, tenderness, and defiance in the same breath. They trace the weight of womanhood, the persistence of memory, and the quiet power of survival. What is silenced does not disappear—it shifts, persists, and finds new ways to speak, demanding to be seen, felt, and remembered long after the page is closed.
دستهایم را در باغچه میکارم
سبز خواهم شد، میدانم، میدانم، میدانم
و پرستوها در گودی انگشتان جوهریم
تخم خواهند گذاشت
-فروغ فرخزاد
Tamarind produce and deliver theatre and storytelling projects. We also partner with other organisations and groups. It's exciting to see a project develop and grow from page to stage. We like working with artists who bring the best of themselves; and we also like meeting our audiences and hearing their stories too.
Stories come from within us. From everywhere. They live in our imaginations, and are shaped by histories, and a myriad of different cultures and traditions. They have a huge impact on our lives, from childhood to our adult years. They can also influence how we see ourselves and view of the world around us.^
Reading and sharing stories can help improve our imagination and well-being. Stories help us to understand ourselves sharing them creates artistic and social relationships and bonding. Within each of us, there is a wonderful story waiting to be told.
https://www.tamarindtheatre.co.uk/our-work
Pritom Ahmed is a Bangladeshi-British singer-songwriter, actor and music composer. In Bangladesh he is the only singer with 13 solo albums of his own lyrics and composition.
He has had several acting roles in British and Hollywood productions, including featured roles in The Crown and A Very British Scandal.
He recently developed a project for university students exploring the similarities between Eastern and Western literature across centuries. it included related Western poems written over different historical periods alongside songs by Rabindranath Tagore, which were written and composed much later.
He will be singing some songs and readings poems from this project
a research project I developed for university students, exploring the similarities between Eastern and Western literature across centuries.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
St Mary's Church, Islington, Upper Street, London, United Kingdom
GBP 13.70
