Why Am I In Your Country?

The audio recording of the extraordinary Trojans: Why Am I In Your Country? production, at Hounslow Arts Centre, which we produced in April 2025, with a cast of Syrian, Palestinian, Ukrainian, Afghan, Iranian, Saudi and other refugees. It was the result of a year long psycho-social support drama and oral heritage project, backed by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. We ran around 40 workshops, over 11 months for a total of 120 refugees and asylum seekers, most of whom were Iranians. The Iranians were a mixture of political refugees from the Women! Life! Freedom! movement and a large number of Christians who had converted INSIDE in Iran, where Christianity is punishable by death: it turns out there seems to be a grassroots wave of Evangelical Christianity sweeping Iran. But if the Religious Police catch you, the punishments are brutal, including death. We then built this new version of the play, with those workshop participants who wanted to go on stage. The play was directed by Luna Laurenti and William Stirling, and adapted from Euripides' Trojan Women by Charlotte Eagar, Luna Laurenti, William Stirling, Amanda Waggot, Olha Shvets, Alina Vinnachuk, Arwa Omaren and the cast, who worked their own stories of exile and loss into the play. Featuring the poetry of Olha Shvets. Produced by Trojan Women Project. copyright 2025/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Mina, a 30-something Iranian photographer, tells how her disgust at the Iranian Regime - its treatment of women and its manipulation of Islam to control the population - inspired her to look for spiritual salvation elsewhere Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

11 years ago the Tallberg Foundation invited Syria: The Trojan Women to Geneva. Over a decade later, we catch up on where the project has gone since and why Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mina was a professional photographer working in Iran, but the Regime spied on her with drones at private parties, and photogaphed her in her car to check she was wearing a hijab. Then Mahsa Amini was killed and Mina's family were swept up into the violence. Through all this, she started to look for other ways of finding spiritual meaning in life.In this episode of 'Why Am I In Your Country?', hosts Charlotte Eagar interviews Mina, a refugee from Iran. Mina shares her harrowing journey of fleeing Iran due to the oppressive regime, particularly focusing on the challenges and dangers she faced as a female photographer. She discusses the moral policing, the stringent hijab laws, and the punishing consequences of involvement in the Mahsa Amini movement. Mina recounts the traumatic experience of witnessing her nephew's arrest during a protest, the subsequent search for him, and her enduring mental and emotional struggles. The episode also touches on Mina's eventual turn to Christianity as a source of hope and strength in a time of profound despair. This podcast is part of an oral heritage archive funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Hounslow Council, to be lodged at Gunnersbury Park Museum.This episode is Hosted by Charlotte EagarTranslation by Nikoo KhakpourEditing by Luna Laurenti SellersThank you to the National Lottery Heritage Fund  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why a girl who loved her family and wanted to rebuild her country had to come here in fear of her life Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

 In this episode of the 'Why Am I in Your Country' podcast, we continue Neda's harrowing story of fleeing Iran with her young daughter after her involvement in the women life freedom movement. After the death of Mahsa Amini, Neda became an active protester against the morality police. Forced to escape after her husband was detained, she recounts their dangerous journey to the UK, the hardships they faced, and her ongoing struggles as a new asylum seeker. This episode provides a stark look at the real-life impacts of political unrest and the difficult asylum process in the UK.Thank you to the National Lottery Heritage fund for making this series possible. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bonus Episode - Hush Unheard Voices Festival Chelsea Theatre Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neda seemingly had everything—a thriving career, a beautiful home, a loving husband, and a precious baby girl. Her life in Iran seemed secure, even enviable. But beneath those superficial comforts, she had always known the weight of living under a regime that criminalizes womanhood. When Mahsa Amini died at the hands of the morality police, Neda could no longer stay silent. She took to the streets, fighting for the rights of women whose freedom and safety were being stripped away. What she didn’t know was that this act of courage would cost her everything. Branded as a threat, hunted by the authorities, and forced into hiding with her infant daughter, she had no choice but to flee. In this episode, hear Neda’s harrowing journey—from fearless protester to refugee.This is Neda's journey... part one. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What could possibly go wrong? Tall Afghan poppy syndrome and the loneliness of the long distance asylum seeker Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An extraordinary adaption of Euripides' Trojan Women performed by a cast of refugees Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Samira Kitman, one of the most talented young artists in Afghanistan and former Afghan Businesswoman of the Year - who had to escape to the UK in 2016 after receiving death threats - talks about how she rescued some of Afghanistan's top artists' work from the Taliban - Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ukrainian Eurovision song contender and award-winning pastry chef shares her marmalade secrets Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Homeless...but Jacko plays Cupid... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trojan Women Project presents - Why Am I In Your Country? - telling the stories behind the refugees and asylum seekers driven from their homes and building new lives in the UK. In Episode 3 of Arwa's story, the Syrian Palestinian actor tells how she finally made to the UK, was eventually re-united with her beloved dog Jacko, only to be evicted from her flat and forced to choose between giving Jacko up or sleeping on the streets. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why Am I In Your Country tells the stories behind the refugees and asylum seekers driven from their homes and building new lives in the UK. In Episode 2 of Arwa's story, the Syrian Palestinian actor, tells how she was forced to leave her home, her family, her career, and her beloved dog, Jacko - and risk her life to try and make it to Britain. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why Am I In Your Country tells the extraordinary stories of the refugees and asylum seekers we keep hearing about on the news - what horrific events have driven them from their homes, why have they come to Britain, what are their dreams, and how do they cope when they get here? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.