Egyptian Stories of Sexual Violence to be Performed on Cairo Goethe Institute's Stage

Marking 10 years since their initiation, the BuSSy Project, which is a performance and storytelling platform for women and men to share their experiences with violence and discrimination, has partnered with Nazra for Feminist Studies to put on a performance that is inspired by the very real stories and testimonies of victims of sexual violence. The performance will be taking place on November 26th at Cairo's Goethe Institute.

The stories and testimonies were collected from the project's own archive, as well as that of El Nadim Rehabilitation Centre, with all personal details changed to protect people's identities. This initiative, which is part of the It Happens campaign to combat rape, is one of BuSSy Project's many outreaches of showcasing and reflecting on issues such as sexual harassment, rape, gender-based discrimination, and oppression that take place within Egyptian society.

Through the current performance, Forced, they hope to channel the psychological and social trauma of rape and sexual violence. Much like their previous performances, such as Mademoiselle or Madame, 500yat, and A Well-Behaved Girl, it is expected that it will produce a bold and unique side of the victims' narratives.

Kicking off at AUC in 2006, the project's plays are produced and directed by Egyptian actor Khaled Aboulnaga, and their success has reached to the extent of performing the once-untold and unspoken stories on national and international stages.