THE KITE Runner, by Khaled Hosseini and adapted for the stage by Mathew Spangler, opens in colourful and vibrant Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital city in the mid 1970s.
It is a period of rare peace and tranquility in this much occupied but never conquered country.
Amir Pashton, (outstanding performance by Raj Ghatak), the son of one of the country’s wealthy families is acting out a John Wayne cowboy movie with his best friend Hassan (Jo Ben Ayed).
Their friendship is engaging, as is the awe and adulation Hassan bestows on his best chum and class superior.
Hassan is the son of his father’s manservant Ali. They are Mongol descendants, discriminated against minority in Afghanistan.
The boy’s games are broken up by the arrival of sociopath Assef (a menacing Soroosh Lavasini) and his young acolyte thugs.
A scuffle ensues from which the two friends are lucky to escape unhurt.
Kite flying and kite fighting is legendary in most Asian Countries where many children continue the sport into adulthood.
Amir and Hassan are a perfect combination in Kite flying competitions. Amir does the flying and Hassan is the retriever.
When Hassan is retrieving the kite from a desolate part of the city on the day of the big annual tournament he is confronted once again by Assef and his gang and subjected to a horrible ordeal whist Amir cowers unseen behind a wall listening, but too frightened to go to his friends aid.
Amir does all he can to get his father to sack Hassan so he no longer has to look him in the eyes, leading to a haunting story of lost innocence, betrayal, and a search for redemption across two continents, told by Amir as both narrator and participant.
The play is gripping throughout with the live tabla playing by Hanif Khan and the Tibetan singing bowls and wooden tampuras played by the ensemble providing a unique soundtrack to underpin the action.
Directed by Giles Croft The Kite Runner continues at the Birmingham Rep until March 24.
Visit www.birmingham-rep.co.uk for more information and tickets.
