Cutting the Tightrope: The Divorce of Politics from Art

10th – 18th May 2024

In whatever weird and wonderful form it takes, art has and always will be reflective of the world around it – whether we’re living through good times or bad.

During the bad times, art becomes more important than ever. Not just as a form of escapism, but also as a way to hold ourselves and society accountable. So the Art Council’s recent announcement warning individuals and organisations against making “political statements”, for risk of both reputation and potential funding agreements for example, is alarming.

As alarm bells began to ring, the team who created Walking The Tightrope: The Tension between Art and Politics, put their heads together to bring us Cutting The Tightrope: The Divorce of Politics from Art which is running at the Arcola Theatre in Dalston until 18 May.

“Cutting The Tightrope is one of the most powerful things I have ever watched.”

The writers, who have decided not to be credited for the plays they have written in this collection, put pen to paper just six weeks ago. Two weeks later, the team of exceptionally talented actors: Salman Akhtar, Issam Al Ghussain, Waleed Elgadi, Ruth Lass, Jessica Murrain, Sara Masry, Mark Oosterveen, and Joel Samuels, got involved. Finally, it all came together one week ago, when leading voices in the world of art, academia, activism, and journalism agreed to form part of a post-show panel.

Despite a limited budget, and limited rehearsal time, Cutting The Tightrope is one of the most powerful things I have ever watched. The show is made up of 13 short plays which are presented in the style of engaging and thought-provoking vignettes, transporting the audience through uncomfortable conversations, emotive and powerful monologues, and a particularly entertaining game of cat and mouth which involves a watermelon.

Take Suitable Subjects for example – a young man takes his girlfriend to his parents’ house for dinner. As she begins to explain her work as an artist and a gallery assistant, his parents are perplexed to find out she has been collaging the effects of climate change. Because, the “mild weather” and the climate emergency are totally unrelated, right? As she explains that she cries almost every day, overwhelmed by the current state of the world, his parents suggest she stop looking at the news. That’s what they do anyway, because there are far more “pleasant” things to be enjoyed.

While Suitable Subjects is just one example, what each and every play encourages the audience to do, is to confront the truth. While it may make us feel uncomfortable, we are incredibly lucky that we can switch off from it. But that doesn’t mean we should, because thousands of people are being brutally murdered every day, and genocide is being allowed to happen.

This idea of discomfort is something which was reiterated in the post-show panel, comprising of Amber Massie-Bloomfield, a freelance producer and consultant, Ahmed Masoud, a Palestinian writer and academic, Zena Agha, a Palestinian-Iraqi writer, and Barnaby Raine, an academic and journalist who is currently doing his PHD at Columbia.

While confronting the reality of what is happening and challenging yourself to have those uncomfortable conversations is of course part of it, the panel also urged the audience to read the books, listen to music and indulge in the cuisine of Palestine.

Most importantly however, they urged the audience to keep showing up. Ultimately, they need bums in seats to prove that their work is vital, and that theatre is a platform from which their voices must be heard. So, if you do one thing this week, I urge you to get down to Dalston in support of a very crucial and necessary play – although remember, “it’s not a f**king pantomime”.

Maggie John