The Play

"This theatre never ends. We have suffered it. This will not happen to our children," is the positive statement by nine Turkish countrywomen at the end of the play "The Outcry of Woman". The performance is the result of intensive preparations, transforming their personal tragic stories into a play under the local schoolmaster's supervision. This is the first time they share these stories. One of the women tells how she was taken out of school and given away to make amends for her brother's eloping with a 13-year-old. In The Play, director Pelin Esmer shows with contagious joy how the women find support in each other thanks to the play, overcome their fears and develop confidence. The rehearsals are alternated with scenes from everyday life, in which drama and humour fight for priority. And there is a lot of chatting and bickering. On the eve of the performance, for example, a quarrel about who will give the opening speech and who can claim direction credit threatens to throw a wrench in the works after all. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)