Performed and co-created by Hamzeh Al Hussien, directed and co-created by Amy Golding. Presented in Cambridge as part of the Platforma Festival (October 2025), produced by Counterpoints Arts.
See also: Displaced, Disabled & Dynamic – an online discussion featuring Hamzeh Al Hussien and Amy Golding discussing the experiences, triumphs and challenges touring Penguin
Here’s what you need to know..
I am Hamzeh. My favourite shisha flavour is double apple. I love dancing.
Here’s what’s going to happen…
There will be loud music. A wedding. My first time on a plane. A lot of moonlight. This is the story of my life (so far). People have a lot of questions. The answer is,
“Yes.
I can do anything.”
Full of humour and beauty, Hamzeh Al-Hussien’s extraordinary story takes you on a personal tour of the places he knows best: his village in the Syrian mountains, Za’atari camp in Jordan, Gateshead and inside his mind, a place full of music, dancing, fantasies and marbles. Hamzeh invites the audience to be his childhood friends, to hold up the moon to light his way into his dreams, brushing the dust from his clothes…and taking the stage.
“From dodging bombs to dancing in nightclubs, Syrian theatre-maker Hamzeh Al Hussien enacts the story of his life.”
★★★★ The Guardian
Creative Team
Performed and co-created by Hamzeh Al Hussien
Directed and co-created by Amy Golding
Dramaturg : Lindsay Rodden
Movement Director : Nadia Iftkhar
Lighting and Creative Caption Designer : Simon Cole
Stage Manager : Andrea Scrimshaw
Assistant Director/Translator : Olivia Furber /Yasmeen Ghawri
Sound design : Hamza Arnaout
Set and costume design : Jida Akil
Costume Superviser : Lou Duffy
Access
The show is captioned in both English and Arabic.
The set has 2 screens on stage – the English subtitles are on the left (as you look at the stage) the Arabic on the right.
Reviews and Feedback
The Scotsman **** “An extraordinary solo show”
The Observer **** “A genuine encounter”
The Guardian ****
The Stage **** “Uplifting tale of finding self-acceptance and joy” “Golding directs with a lightness of touch that never allows the piece to feel voyeuristic”
I Love Manchester **** “It is truly charming and an extremely wonderful reflection of a life touched and changed but not entirely uprooted by war.”
West End Best Friend **** “A joyous and uplifting story of hope in the face of adversity, and of celebrating the individual”.
The Reviews Hub **** “A born storyteller, Hamzeh effortlessly performs..the show brilliantly directed by Amy Golding combines moments of delightful comedy.. alongside chilling and harrowing moments”.
Theatre and Tonic **** “Hamzeh is a charismatic and engaging performer…The piece moved with pure ease on stage due to the capable direction of Amy Golding.”
Disability Arts Online “an extraordinary tale, told with beautiful simplicity”
North East Theatre Guide “A wonderful piece of storytelling”.
North East Bylines “Hamzeh in Arabic means lion, steadfast, strong – and so he is.”
NARC Magazine “Hamzeh is charismatic and compelling, and his enduring sense of optimism is so present in the writing and in his performance”
Live Theatre Young Reviewer “a triumph for modern theatre… This show leaves you feeling immensely privileged for having seen it. It’s radical, it’s heart breaking, it’s Penguin.”
Awards
Hamzeh Al Hussien – North East Culture Awards 2023 , Best Newcomer for PENGUIN
