CANADA - Amidst all the momentous events taking place in Egypt regarding the presidential election and the whole world is watching, the theatre company ‘Waves' travelled to Canada last week to participate in the 11th Liverpool International Theatre Festival Biennale, which took place from May 16 to 20. Troupes from across the globe and locally from Nova Scotia gathered in the Astor Theatre in Liverpool to compete in this prestigious festival. The LITF has become one of the world's most recognised festivals and the competition is intense; in 2012 over 40 entries were received. The festival comprised performances from Egypt, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, the United States, Wales and Canada. Egypt's Waves Troupe for Independent Theatre was able to participate after the Foreign Cultural Relations Sector secured travel tickets, visas and other facilities as part of its policy of encouraging independent troupes and enhancing the participation of Egypt in global events. Since it was the first time for Egypt to be part of this International festival, the audience and all participants were keen to see what Egypt would present after its great revolution. Wave performed a play that is not disconnected from what has been taking place in Egypt since the early days of the Revolution. Eugène Ionesco's play ‘Frenzy' for two or more actors is a political play that lends itself well to an Egyptian context, where the unfolding of everyday life is no less absurd than its own surreal political realities. The play has two characters, a husband and a wife, whose bizarre marital arguments go on against the backdrop of a war that rattles their walls and sends hand grenades through their windows. The play follows their relationship from young to old, from war to war, from quibble to quibble with humour and whimsy. If the play has a theme, it's that people can virtually argue about anything. The couple bickers about so many different things, it's hard to keep track of what they're going on about. They argue whether a snail is ultimately a turtle, why one is hot while the other feels cold, and even about what is up or down. ‘Frenzy for Two or More' is climactic because it all happens in one place and in real time. The husband can be interpreted as the protagonist.He attempts to be productive and come up with ideas. The sympathy of the audience is usually on his side. If the husband is the protagonist, then the wife is definitely the antagonist. At every turn she tries to spite, disagree or just yell at her husband. When he tries to end an argument, she just keeps going. They only agree on very few things. Seeing as this isn't much of a play, it is difficult to discern where it all starts. If anything, the inciting incident is probably when the people next door are taken away, which makes the couple focus on itself. This creates the dramatic question “will the couple survive?” The war outside gets worse and worse, putting the couple in more danger, which represents a negative reversal. When they realise that the battle is over and it's safe to go outside, they experience the closest thing to recognition, which is also a positive reversal. The climax occurs when the battle ends
