In the director’s notes for The Conference of the Birds, Aaron Posner describes his latest production at the Folger Elizabethean Theatre and his expectation for audience members: “It is an astonishing work, and, hopefully, unlike anything you have likely ever seen before.”
Running until Nov. 25, Birds achieves this aim and then some in its creative representation of the 12th century Persian epic poem by Farid Uddi Attar of the same name, originally adapted by Jean-Claude Carrière and Peter Brook. While Birds’ unusual storyline intrigues and sometimes confounds in this work based on Sufi mystic poetry, Birds’ true merit lies not in the plot but in the cast’s dynamic performance and the musical elements that make this narrative come alive.
Birds depicts the journey of an assortment of birds who realize they lack a supreme ruler, though they believe one exists in the mysterious kingdom known as the Simorgh. With the hoopoe, a spiritually astute bird dynamically played by Patty Gallagher, elected to lead this group on a journey in search of wisdom and higher truths, the narrative is structured as a collection of smaller stories which interweave fragmented tales of individual struggle and folly in the material world into a larger spiritual journey.
A simple story on the surface, Birds impresses in its ability to illuminate what Posner describes in the director’s notes as “‘the real stuff’—the big, complex core questions of our lives.” Drawing on many layers of symbolism and larger themes of humanity, from the intoxicating feelings of love to the poisoning nature of power, each miniature story provides a window into these universal questions, allowing audience members countless interpretations of the play’s many messages.
Music resounding throughout the play, in both instrumentals by the immensely talented Tom Teasley and vocals by the cast, adds to the play’s accessibility and theme development. The unique mix of Persian-inspired melodies and modern sounds, including Jessica Frances Dukes’ riffs about her peacock feathers and Britt Duff’s Ingrid Michaelson-inspired ukulele love songs, bring this 12th-century poem into 21st- century theater.
The importance of music in the play is clear from the start, as Birds begins with birdcalls echoing throughout the Folger Theater, while the 11-person ensemble struts and squawks on to stage.
The stage has been cleverly revamped in a minimalistic set design of sandy brown panels and hanging lanterns to disguise its traditional English appearance and create a 12th-century Persian landscape.
From the opening scene, the talent of the cast is made clear, as subtle movements reveal the horde as a group of birds in one scene and a king’s court in the next. Each transformation is total and exact in the actors’ portrayals, as the smaller stories within the play have each actor playing his or her bird persona alongside a myriad of different characters throughout the work.
Tiffany Stewart stands out in this regard, in her uncanny ability to give her heron as much emotion as that of the princess she plays who is enraptured by a slave. The characters’ journey through the seven valleys of emotion in the second act, from love to unity to annihilation, further capitalizes on the cast’s dynamism and malleability as the characters are plunged into the ardor of love one minute and tested through the reality of nothingness the next.
Though complicated plot turns intertwined with layers of religious symbolism have the potential to convolute Birds, the cast’s ability to disentangle these scenes and let the emotion ring through, renders the play a both honest and reflective experience.
Further, with action packed into every scene—whether in actors rolling and dancing across the stage, or audible breathing to capture the mood of the scene, or the sounds of the desert—Posner assures audiences that metaphysical undertones remain real and present on stage. He explains of Birds, “I didn’t fully understand it when I first read it, and I still don’t…but at the same time, it continues to grow and evolve for me.”
This sentiment sums up the enduring quality of the play. And though the narrative slips away, Birds leaves individual performances and melodies to touch the audience and remind them of art’s power to make meaning of our humanity.
