“You all know something weird’s going on”
In a small town in Syria, soldiers are celebrated as heroes and grieving families are nourished on propaganda.
As the coffins pile up, the local party leader decides on a radical compensation scheme: a goat for each son martyred.
“Has anyone ever told the truth? Has anyone ever demanded it? Does anyone want it? Does anyone even need it?”
Goats is a major new work by Syrian playwright and documentary filmmaker Liwaa Yazji exploring the lies we choose to believe as a society, and the rippling effect when one man questions the ‘truth’.
It has been developed as part of the Royal Court’s long term project with writers from Syria and Lebanon. Royal Court Associate Director Hamish Pirie (Violence & Son, Who Cares, Teh Internet is Serious Business) directs.
Find out more about our work with Syrian writers here.
Big Idea: Liwaa Yazji in Conversation
Wed 13 Dec, post-show
Writer Liwaa Yazji in conversation with the Royal Court Young Agitators.
The event is free with a ticket to that evening’s performance.
"Disturbing and bitterly funny... It’s a painful and original piece about the terrible price of conflict and oppression"
Sarah Hemming | Financial Times
“Fascinating and illuminating …The goats are a potent metaphor, an adorable disruptive force"
Natasha Tripney | The Stage
“Goats is a richly anecdotal account of a conflict with no obvious solution… The human cost is harrowingly demonstrated in Hamish Pirie’s production”
Claire Armistead | The Observer
“Hamish Pirie’s production boasts some fine performances, most notably from Isabella Nefar as a gleaming-eyed young idealist”
Fiona Mountford | Evening Standard
“Yazji is excellent at conveying the out-and-out bizarreness of everyday life in Syria and its seemingly endless war”
Andrzej Lukowski | Time Out
“The writing is shrewd and impassioned”
Paul Taylor | The Independent
“A moving and powerful play”
Philip Fisher | British Theatre Guide
Jerwood Theatre Downstairs
Mon – Sat: 7.30pm (except 30 Nov & 1 Dec 7pm)
Thu & Sat mats: 2.30pm (from 2 Dec)
Captioned: Tue 19 Dec 7.30pm
Audio Described: Sat 23 Dec 2.30pm
Running Time: 2hrs 30mins (approx.)
Trigger warnings for productions
Age Guidance: 14+
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