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Journey of the Simorgh
January 11, 2020 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm PST
$35 – $40
A dance and music concert by the Simorgh Dance Collective, adapted from the Persian epic Conference of the Birds by Farid ud-Din Attar. Featuring Persian sacred, classical, and folkloric dances choreographed by Farima Berenji, Persian music performed by Homeyra Banejad and Ensemble, and expertly narrated by award winning actor and director Sadegh Hatefi.
“It was in China, late one moonless night,
The Simorgh first appeared to mortal sight.
He let a feather float down through the air,
And rumors of its fame spread everywhere.”
~Farid ud-Din Attar
Doors open at 6:30 PM
Journey of the Simorgh
Farid al-Din Attar (c. 1145 – c. 1221) was a Persian poet and one of the greatest Sufi mystical writers and thinkers, composing at least 45,000 couplets and many brilliant prose works.
In Attar’s epic poem, The Conference of the Birds, the birds of the world gather to decide who is to be their king. The Hoopoe, the wisest of them all, suggests that they should find the legendary Simorgh, a mythical Persian bird. The Hoopoe leads the birds, each of whom represent a human fault which prevents one from attaining enlightenment. Of the many birds that begin the journey, only thirty birds survive to reach the dwelling of the Simorgh. There, the birds approach the throne contemplating their reflections in the mirrorlike countenance of the Simorgh, only to realize that they and the Simorgh are one.
Simorgh (SEE-morg) in Persian can also be read as Si (thirty) Morgh (bird).
“If Simorgh unveils its face to you, you will find
that all the birds, be they thirty or forty or more,
are but the shadows cast by that unveiling.
What shadow is ever separated from its maker?
Do you see?
The shadow and its maker are one and the same,
so get over surfaces and delve into mysteries.”—Farid al-Din Attar, The Conference of the Birds (translated by Sholeh Wolpé, W. W. Norton & Co., 2017)
Tickets
Tickets: $35 advance, $40 at the door
We have a special offer for those that love what we do or are ready to love what we do. In addition to a Journey of the Simorgh ticket obtain a ticket to Tarsa on February 22, 2020 in San Jose with a special two ticket package offer. Receive $10 off the combined price of both tickets at $50, advance tickets only.
Select the Dual Concert Purchase Offer when purchasing admission. Following your purchase you will receive a discount code to receive a free ticket to Tarsa redeemable at http://tarsa.bpt.me.
Farima Berenji – Artistic Director, Choreographer

Farima Berenji
Farima Berenji is an Iranian-born scholar and an award winning, internationally acclaimed performing artist, choreographer, instructor, lecturer, dance ethnologist, and archaeologist specializing in classical, folkloric, and sacred dances of Persia and the Silk Road. Her training spans a lifetime of intensive collaboration and research with master artists, scholars, and spiritual teachers worldwide. She is the founder and artistic director of the Simorgh Dance Collective, a worldwide collaborative devoted to teach dance technique, interpret, illustrate, present, and perform dances of the Silk Road. Farima performs, offers workshops, and lectures worldwide upon request and has appeared in the US, UK, Austria, Czech Republic, Turkey, Mauritius, and Iran. Read more..
Sadegh Hatefi – Director, Actor, Narrator

Sadegh Hatefi
Sadegh Hatefi is a director, screenwriter, author, and award-winning actor, known for Ghodrat (2007), Simorgh (1987) and Battle of Oil Tankers (1994). He has been director of the films and theatrical productions Story of Rumi and Shams, Simorgh, and Muhammad: The Messenger of God.
Farhang Heydari

Farhang Heydari
Simorgh Dance Collective

Simorgh Dance Collective
Homeyra Banejad and Ensemble
Homeyra Banejad is an Iranian daf player and vocalist. As a member of the Iranian Musician Union of Iran she has performed in Iran and the US with Sima Bina, Hamed Nikpay, Simin Ghanem, and many more artists!Nariman Assadi

Nariman Assadi
In 2015, Nariman immigrated to the United States. He immediately began his professional music career by performing and attending festivals. In 2017, he started learning percussion performance and world music with Professor Daniel Kennedy at Sacramento State University. Along with being a member of various ensembles, Nariman also teaches daf, tombak, and music for children.