This book discusses what it means to “perform the State,” what this action means in relation to the country of Iran and how these various performances are represented. The concept of the “State” as a modern phenomenon has had a powerful impact on the formation of the individual and collective, as well as on determining how political entities are perceived in their interactions with one another in the current global arena.

The result of collaborative research from noteworthy dramatists and scholars, this volume investigates the dynamic relationship between culture, performance and theatre in Iran. The studies gathered here examine how various forms of performances, especially theatre, have and continue to undergo change in response to shifting political and social settings from the antiquity to the present day. The analysis in this book focuses on performance practices, examining drama, texts, rituals, plays, music, cinema and drama technologies. This is done in order to show how Iran has been imagined through enactments and representations, and reproduced through these performative actions. The book uses a wider definition of the concept of 'performance', offering analysis of a wide range of phenomena, including indigenous rituals – such as the naqqali and taziyeh – and online performances by diaspora communities.

These beautiful performance traditions have continued down to the present. They are aesthetically complex, subtle and uniquely reflective of Iranian culture and though enriching all Iranian cultural expression, including literature, art, architecture and film. --

The articles in this volume collectively present a picture of Iran under Riza Shah in all its complexity, in darker as well as lighter shades, highlighting the era's debt to the past as well as its legacy to the future.

In this unprecedented book, Hamid Dabashi provides a provocative account of Iran in its current resurrection as a mighty regional power. Through a careful study of contemporary Iranian history in its political, literary, and artistic dimensions, Dabashi decouples the idea of Iran from its colonial linkage to the cliché notion of “the nation-state,” and then demonstrates how an “aesthetic intuition of transcendence” has enabled it to be re-conceived as a powerful nation. This rebirth has allowed for repressed political and cultural forces to surface, redefining the nation’s future beyond its fictive postcolonial borders and autonomous from the state apparatus that wishes but fails to rule it. Iran’s sovereignty, Dabashi argues, is inaugurated through an active and open-ended self-awareness of the nation’s history and recent political and aesthetic instantiations, as it has been sustained by successive waves of revolutionary prose, poetry, and visual and performing arts performed categorically against the censorial will of the state.

An exploration of the future geopolitical landscape of the Middle East in postnuclear Iran and what that means for US foreign policy in the region. In an age of nuclear experimentation, military conflicts, and ISIS, the Middle East is unstable, and the Iranian nuclear deal is shrouded in controversy and mistrust. How will this agreement impact US relations and strengths, not only in the region, but around the world? Will the United States be challenged for world leadership? In Volatile State: Iran in the Nuclear Age, global affairs analyst David Oualaalou explores the new geopolitical landscape and how it will allow a nuclear Iran to flex its military, economic, and ideological muscles with the assistance of Russia and China. Taking under consideration how other governments have reacted to the agreement, Oualaalou provides a fresh perspective on current and future relations among the United States. and its current allies and provides a compelling path forward for future strategies in the Middle East. Volatile State is a “must read” to help understand the implications and future with a nuclear deal with Iran. “David Oualaalou, a geopolitical analyst, writer, speaker, teacher, military veteran, Middle East specialist and linguist with unique first-hand experiences and knowledge gained from personal field intelligence in Middle East wars—combined with his fresh and unique writing style—has produced a challenging perspective and a thought-provoking book. David’s unembellished bold critiques, with credible analytical interpretation of geopolitical implications and national security challenges, for not only the USA but for the Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia, China and others in the new Middle East region (and world), will be much discussed in this impressive approach to eye-opening questions with credible rival answers. I believe this book is crucial reading for any person interested in the future nuclear Middle East.” —William A. Mitchell, author of Baylor in Northern Iraq During Operation Iraqi Freedom “Once again Dr. Oualaalou has brought to life a complex current topic. His balanced and in-depth investigation of the topic allows the reader to not only learn the history of the parties involved, but also to follow the historic threads that have led to today’s geopolitical situation. Dr. Oualaalou has the experience and expertise to give a clear picture of the region’s issues today and projection of possible scenarios in the future.” —Mortada Mohamed, President, World Affairs Council of Austin

The Iranian city experienced a major transformation when the Pahlavi Dynasty initiated a project of modernization in the 1920s. The Rite of Urban Passage investigates this process by focusing on the spatial dynamics of Muharram processions, a ritual that commemorates the tragic massacre of Hussein and his companions in 680 CE. In doing so, this volume offers not only an alternative approach to understanding the process of urban transformation, but also a spatial genealogy of Muharram rituals that provides a platform for developing a fresh spatial approach to ritual studies.