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Berlin Artist Challenges Gender Norms with Feminist Meddah Performances

Meet Neslihan Arol, the Berlin artist redefining tradition. Her feminist Meddah performances blend comedy, languages, and cultures to challenge gender norms and liberate women.

,   and  ASMedia
1 min read
This picture is clicked inside a musical concert. Here, we see three women standing and holding...
This picture is clicked inside a musical concert. Here, we see three women standing and holding violin in their hands and playing it. Here is three stands on which book is placed on it and on the right bottom of this picture, we see women sitting and listening to that music. Behind them, we see white wall on which watch is placed on it. In the left corner of this picture, we see white curtain.

Berlin Artist Challenges Gender Norms with Feminist Meddah Performances

Berlin-Kreuzberg is witnessing a unique blend of tradition and feminism, as a local artist challenges gender norms through her innovative Meddah performances. Neslihan Arol, a skilled actor, is reviving the ancient Ottoman storytelling theater, traditionally reserved for men, with a twist.

Arol, who studied chemical engineering, secretly nurtured her passion for acting. She financed a master's degree in acting and began her promotion in Berlin in 2014. Her performances, which took eight years to refine, focus on comedy, clowns, stand-up, and Meddah. Arol's work is a lively, multilingual, funny, and political feminist experiment in the heart of Berlin.

Arol's Meddah performances blend languages, cultures, and traditions, using humor as a liberating tool. She employs a tealight or candle as a symbol of the humanity of Meddahs during her shows. The clown figure, according to Arol, liberates women, allowing them to be loud, grotesque, imperfect, and funny. This breaks conventions and exposes power relations. Her performances serve as a feminist exploration of traditional narratives and gender roles.

Neslihan Arol's Meddah performances in Berlin-Kreuzberg are more than just entertainment; they are a form of artistic activism. By reclaiming and reimagining this traditional male space, Arol is challenging gender norms and sparking conversations about feminism in a unique and engaging way.

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