Fourteenth International Conference on the Arts in Society

Abstract

The world is witnessing the greatest refugee crisis since World War II. Many theatre practitioners around the world are responding to this humanitarian crisis in different ways. Young Turkish playwrights are also grappling with this issue but in a more unique perspective as Turkey is a country of both emigration and immigration. One of the interesting aspects of contemporary Turkish plays is that they interrogate the concept of “home” differently than foreign playwrights. Like many playwrights, Turkish plays also reflect the lives of refugees who have no hope of returning to their homes that were destroyed by war. But they also put forth the futile search of home in one’s own country which is physically there but is nonexistent to a segment of the Turkish society. As the plays show, the escalating polarization and the repressive policies of the government are not the “only” reasons that brought about this situation. Accordingly, this paper examines the plays of young Turkish playwrights, puts forth their understanding of home and identity through interviews and questions the role of theatre in times of such great crisis.