The Team

Born in the south of Iran, Nasim Khosravi is a Brisbane based writer, director and performance maker investigating the potential for cross-cultural fusion and possible ways for interactive theatre while keeping a poetic tone.

She is specifically interested in using modern techniques to achieve a dialogue between Iranian traditional theatrical elements and contemporary theatre. In this dialogue, the modern reconstruction of classical literary works has had a significant place.

Through a feminist perspective, she has worked on her dramatisation of religious and mythological characters, which resulted in her dramatic works, drawing on characters like Mary and Sarah & Hagar.

As a feminist activist, Nasim cooperated with the One Million Signatures Campaign for the Repeal of Discriminatory Laws in Iran. She organised and offered several workshops for playwriting with feminist approaches and contributed in raising awareness for Women’s Rights by directing several street theatres. At this point, she found a modification of Augusto Boal’s theory of invisible theatre in accordance with the social-political situation in Iran to be an effective way to reach her audience. Nasim’s last stage theatre performance in Iran, was No Swinging Allowed performed in  March 2008 in Tehran and was banned after its first show.

After years of study and practice in contemporary performance in Iran, Nasim founded Baran, an Iranian-Australian theatre group, in Brisbane in 2013. The first project of Baran Theatre, Vis and Ramin developed over two years and premiered in 2016 at Metro Arts, where Nasim also presented Thin Air Brush in 2017. Vis and Ramin has also presented at FCAC Melbourne in 2017. Nasim is currently Assistant Director for Bell Shakespeare’s national tour of Julius Caesar.

Graduating in dance performance from the Centre of Contemporary Arts, Adelaide in the late 1980’s, James Cunningham goes on to perform for three years with Dance North, and for renowned choreographer Nanette Hassell.

In 1997 be co-founds Igneous with Suzon Fuks. Together they co-create and produce stage shows, performance-installations, video-dance works and networked/online performances in festivals and cities around the world, including Nuit Blanche Toronto (Mirage), BIAM Paris (Body in Question), and Theater Der Welt Stuttgart (Liquid Skin).

In 2000, Cunningham performs with DV8 Physical Theater in Sydney (Olympic Cultural Festival), London and Hong Kong.

Since 2007, James' artistic practice centres on durational stillness and conscious walking, in built and unbuilt environments, with and without audience, and with and without the participation of others. He develops the performative possibilities of these elements in live art festivals, installation-performances, conferences and through video artworks. Through interactive and participatory performances and events, he and his collaborators provide participants opportunities to experience presence and embodied connection to environment.

His website documents his live performances, walking arts practice, and video artworks since 2007.

Born in Iran in 1987, Hossein Khosravi later emigrated to Brisbane where he now works as a Designer at specialist design and fabrication company, UAP. Having obtained a Bachelor of Architecture in 2012, his unique approach to design combines cultural and theoretical knowledge with practical experience in design, fabrication and 3D visualisation. Hossein supports Baran’s visual design and technical operations, creating new avenues and contemporary techniques for the theater's dramatic works.

Hiwa was born in 1980 in Tehran, Iran. Hiwa is a writer and a researcher in the field of comparative literature. Since 2012, he has been working on his doctoral dissertation at Freie Universität of Berlin. As a writer his mediums include poetry, drama, and short stories. In drama, he explores situations in which the simplest of events puts one in front of the most important choices that connect one’s subjective world in touch with the realm of intersubjectivity in society. His first collaboration with Nasim Khosravi goes back to 2002 in the "Esc" a play written by Hiwa with Nasim as the leading actor. Their next work was co-writing of the play Solar Eclipse; directed by Nasim in 2004. Their collaboration continued ever since as co-directors and co-writers. Their recent work includes co-writing of a modern dramatization of Vis and Ramin, with Baran Theatre Group in which Hiwa also collaborates as the translator of the work.

Freddy Komp is a multi-disciplinary artist who has worked as AV, Set, and Lighting Designer (nominated for 2 Groundling Awards and 1 Matilda Award), Director, Actor, in video based Visual Arts Installations (including Living Rocks: A Fragment of the Universe at the Venice Biennale 2019), and in technical theatre and event production. He loves a good challenge that demands a variety of skills as well as creative problem solving like the next Renaissance man.
Freddy has worked with accomplished directors including Garry Stewart, Nasim Khosravi, Margi Brown-Ash, Benjamin Knapton, Andy Packer, Daniel Evans, David Fenton, Michael Futcher, Shaun Charles, Eugene Gilfedder, Genevieve Trace. and Benjamin Schostakowski. His latest theatrical credits include SONGS FOR THOSE WHO’VE COME ACROSS THE SEA (Slingsby Theatre Company ’18), BEGINNING OF NATURE (European tour with Australian Dance Theatre ’18), VIS & RAMIN (Melbourne season, Footscray ’17), HE DREAMED A TRAIN / EVE (double-feature at Brisbane Powerhouse ’17), I WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOVE IS and A TRIBUTE OF SORTS (Queensland Theatre Company ’14).
He completed a BA Applied Theatre (Griffith University ’09) gaining the Applied Theatre Medal (best graduating student), as well as three annual awards of excellence

Greg Manning was born in Mackay, in Queensland, and has a background in environmental engineering, public health and human rights. He is a poet and concept artist, who engages in collaborative works, where conflicted and conflicting demographics explore their fragile experience of shared identity. Greg is a bus driver in Brisbane, currently exploring the role of place names in the city's language.

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