The Silent House at Brighton Fringe 2018

June 9, 2018

The Silent House, written and directed by Mehdi Mashhour and performed by Shiva Makinian and Benjamin Esbati, was presented at Brighton Fringe 2018 in England.

The production follows Benjamin and Shiva, a married couple living in a refugee home while waiting for their citizenship. Their daily life is shaped by repetition, silence, isolation, and the growing distance between them.

With a minimal set and a carefully constructed soundscape, the performance examines intimacy and communication through the smallest gestures and routines. Benjamin and Shiva occupy the same space while increasingly living in separate worlds. Wagner, headphones, household objects, food, and repeated physical actions become part of a language that gradually replaces spoken communication.

The production was reviewed by Heather Bagnall for FringeReview on May 31, 2018.

Review

There is nothing so painful as a secret hidden in plain sight, and The Silent House holds a mystery which unravels with the constancy and slowly deliberate nature of water through stone.

Bagnall describes the performance as a sensory and psychological exploration of the destructive effects of unspoken words, suspicion, war, and the monotony of an uncertain life.

She particularly notes the performances of Benjamin Esbati and Shiva Makinian, whose physical interactions carry much of the communication between the characters. Small gestures, glances, movements, and interruptions become increasingly important as their ability to communicate verbally breaks down.

The review also draws attention to the production’s use of repetition and symbolism, including the objects consumed by the characters throughout the performance and the gradual transformation of their small refugee home into a space overwhelmed by external forces.

Bagnall describes the production as a slow but deliberate experience in which physical theatre and silence create an intense portrait of a relationship under pressure.

Credits

Written and directed by: Mehdi Mashhour
Performed by: Shiva Makinian, Benjamin Esbati
International Affairs Manager: Sara Rasoulinejad

Presentation

Brighton Fringe 2018
Brighton, England — May/June 2018

Review

Heather Bagnall
FringeReview — May 31, 2018

Source: FringeReview — The Silent House