Gathering memories with my eyelashes

Nanda Mohammad

Live performance

maison Folie Wazemmes, Lille
Pass Latitudes
1h15

Is it possible to build a future while erasing the past? Nanda Mohammad, a major figure in contemporary Syrian theatre, presents the first work she has written, seeking faded and erased memories.

Born in Syria, but living in Egypt since 2012, Nanda Mohammad explores her complex, layered relationship with memories from her native country – heavy duty ones she has fought against for years. Gathering Memories with my Eyelashes is an attempt to recapture a personal and political memory. Reaching into personal and family archives, but also finding the stories and experiences of the women of her family, she rediscovers new truths about her own history and that of Syria itself. Between two worlds, connected to a country she may perhaps never see again, she asks an essential question: how to avoid letting the past become too greedy when just living in the present is already such a battle?

Accessibility disclaimer :

→ dialogs are in arabic with french subtitles

With the support of Lieux Culturels Pluridisciplinaires de la ville de Lille

Biography(s)

A distinguished Syrian actress and graduate of the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts in Syria 2001. She has played a pivotal role in the Syrian & Egyptian contemporary theatre scene, worked with renowned regional & international directors including Ariane Mnouchkine (France), Pascal Rambert (France), Tim Supple (UK), Omar Abu Saada, (Syria), Nullo Facchini (Danmark), Khaled Al-Tarefi (Jordan/Palestine), Daniel San Pedro (France), Laila Soliman (Egypt) Henri Jules Julien (France) Ahmed El Attar (Egypt) among others.

She has been a theatre pedagogue since 2004 in Syria and later in Egypt since she moved to it in 2012 and also in Switzerland, Italy and UAE.

Nanda has performed in prestigious theaters & festivals globally such as: Festival d’Automne

Lincolin Center, kennedy Center, Festival d’Avignon, Edinburgh international festival, festival d’Automne, LIFT festival, MC93 Bobigny, World Theater Festival Shizuoka, Onassis Culutre center, Zurich Theater Spektakel, Festival Les rencontres à l’échelle, Theater de Vidy, Kunstenfestivaldearts, La batie, Schaubuehne Theatre, Napoli Teatro festival, Bozar, Ozasia festival, DCAF, Dramaten, Hong Kong Arts Festival, Adelaide Festival, Schlachthaus Theater, Singapore international Festival of Arts, Wiener Festwochen, Festival Les Vagamonde, among many others.

In 2020, Nanda was honored with the French National Order of Merit for Arts & Letters.
She co-authored theatrical texts such as “Whims of Freedom” and wrote her first play “Gathering Memories With My Eyelashes” after a research residency she held in La Cité des Arts in Paris 2024.

Nanda also directed her first performance “On Cherche L’amour” produced by the French Institute and was performed in D-CAF in Cairo 2024 and in 2025 she directed her second performance “Home and beyond” .

Credits

Distribution : Bouchra Hajo & Nanda Mohammad

Text & staging: Nanda Mohammad –

Scénography : Bissane Al Charif

Dramaturgy : Omar Abu Saada

Music composition and live performance : Mohammed Sami

light design : Thomas Cottereau

Outside view: Ahmed El Attar

General management : Mram Abdel Maqsoud Avec Bouchra Hajo & Nanda Mohammad

Production Orient Productions avec le soutien de l’association Arab Arts Focus (AAAF) & le Fonds de soutien aux Arts Arabes (FSAA)

Ce spectacle fait partie du programme « Premières II x 2B Contin-ued » coopération franco-égyptienne pour les arts de la scène indépendante par l’ambassade de France en Égypte et avec le soutien du Fonds d’Appui l’Entrepreneuriat Culturel (FEF-Création)

Ce projet a été créé dans le cadre de la Saison Méditerranée 2026.

Avec le soutien de La RÉGION NORMANDIE et La Compagnie des Petits Champs.