AN acclaimed adaptation of the best-selling novel The Kite Runner comes to Bath Theatre Royal from Monday 18th to Saturday 23rd March as part of a new nationwide tour. Epic, exhilarating and accompanied by evocative and virtuosic live drumming by tabla player Hanif Khan, this theatrical tour de force is a faithful adaptation of a modern classic.
Afghanistan is a country on the verge of war and best friends are about to be torn apart. It’s a beautiful afternoon in Kabul, the skies are full of colour and the streets are full of the excitement of a kite flying tournament, but no one can foresee the terrible incident that will shatter their lives forever.
Based on Khaled Hosseini’s 2003 debut novel, this haunting tale of friendship spans cultures and continents as it follows one man’s journey to confront his past and find redemption. Matthew Spangler’s stage adaptation, directed by Giles Croft, has been a hit in the West End and on Broadway.
The company includes Stuart Vincent as the show’s narrator, Amir, and Dean Rehman in the pivotal role of Baba. Hassan is played by Yazdan Qafouri, who also appears as Sohrab. Bhavin Bhatt reprises the role of Assef, after winning best newcomer at the Asian Media Awards when he starred in The Kite Runner in the West End. The cast also features Daphne Kouma, Tiran Aakel, Ian Abeyesekera, Christopher Glover, Aram Mardourian, Stanton Wright, with Amar Aggoun and Sulin Hasso in the ensemble.
Hanif Khan has been the resident tabla player for the production since 2013. During his career, Hanif has performed internationally in Europe, the Middle East and North America, and nationwide in the UK, including at the Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, The Royal Opera House, Edinburgh International Festival and the Glastonbury and Womad Festivals.
Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul in 1965. His father was a diplomat in the Afghan Foreign Ministry and his mother taught Farsi and History in Kabul. In 1976, the Foreign Ministry relocated the Hosseini family to Paris. They planned to return to Kabul, but their homeland witnessed a violent communist coup and invasion by the Soviet Army. Granted political asylum in America, the Hosseinis moved to California in 1980. Twenty years later, whilst practising medicine, Khaled began writing The Kite Runner. It spent more than 100 weeks on the New York Times’ Bestseller List.
Photograph by Betty Laura Zapata.