Riham Isaac
Three years ago, Riham Isaac embarked on a journey to explore what it means to love: what ideas do we have about it and what is holding her back from it? She mashes up interviews with friends, family, and strangers, combining video, music, performance, and original film to explore the complexity of love and relationships. This inventive new multimedia performance by one of Palestine’s most exciting contemporary artists invites us to think differently about love, shake off stereotypes, free ourselves from old traditions, and think about what we actually want.
Another Lover’s Discourse ليه خلّتني أحبك is Riham’s first solo performance, created and performed by her. This irreverent look at romance will resonate with anyone who has ever wondered: Is this really all there is?
Riham is a theater maker and performance artist who brings together a range of practices, including acting, singing, dancing, and video, and explores new mediums of live performance and multidisciplinary arts. Riham’s work is a playful and profound commentary on a wide range of pressing issues related to gender, politics, and arts. Her practice reflects on what it means to be producing innovative artistic work in Palestine at the moment, exploring themes such as love, women and resistance, public space, multiple selves, and collective imagination from the perspective of a woman and a citizen in occupied Palestine.
Riham has extensive experience leading and creating artistic projects. In 2017, she co-directed The Alternativity with Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle and Banksy, which was featured as a program on BBC2. In 2016, she directed and produced I Am You, a multidisciplinary performance that toured Palestine, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2014, she performed Stone on Road during Qalandiya International Biennale. An MA graduate from Goldsmiths (University of London) in performance, she lectures at Birzeit University and Bard College and is the founder of Art Salon صالون فني, an independent art space in the old city of Beit Sahour.
Another Lover’s Discourse ليه خلّتني أحبك will premiere in Ramallah, Palestine, at Al-Kasaba Theatre and Cinematheque on March 24 and 26, 2022. The show was commissioned by Belfast International Arts Festival and will be part of its main festival’s 60th anniversary program in October 2022. Riham is planning to tour with Another Lover’s Discourse across the United Kingdom and potentially participate in festivals or platforms around the world which can be a great home for a new female Palestinian-led artwork that combines theater, dance, video, and music!
“Isaac’s theatrical work is entertaining and humorous and takes audiences on a journey. Her work raises awareness, encourages debate, and tackles issues of social injustice.” Aser Elsaqqa, artistic director, AWAN Festival.
To follow her work, please visit her Instagram page @rihamisaac or her website at www.rihamisaac.com.
