‘I learnt my lines while I was washing the dishes’ she laughs. The next day she arrives early, knows all her lines perfectly and asks me to help her with the performance of it.

By the end of that morning, she has learnt the first paragraph. I discover later that she has taken a photo of my laptop’s screen and is learning the words. I go ahead and continue setting up the yoga mats, as the rest of the women arrive I see Nebal walking around looking at her phone reading and talking to herself. On Tuesday I mentioned to Nebal we might use the weather forecast scene which came from one of Wafaa’s amusing improvisations a few weeks ago, and would she like to do it? I show her the script on my laptop and said I’d print it out during the break so she can take it home and look at it. The way Wafaa’ & Retaj interacted and improvised with the audience as they led them around the back of the building, through muddy patches, narrow alleys, over rocks, in the dark with a torch was so impressive and set the show off to a great, cheeky start. I reflect on the week gone by – the first thing that comes into my mind is – what ballsy women we worked with. Live drawing in the show which came out of a beautifully poetic picture Mona drew in rehearsals.

Instead I wake up feeling somewhat deflated. I should be waking up early, posting my blog, running to buy fruit for the break, water, exchanging money, carrying the props from one studio to the other, laying the yoga mats out and waiting for the actors’ arrival.

Our Syria by Dina Mousawi