A History of Water in the Middle East review – cheeky political lesson makes waves

Royal Court, London
Poet Sabrina Mahfouz uses songs, music and humour to deliver an impassioned assault on British imperialism

Passion counts for a lot in the theatre. That is proved by this fiercely political piece written by Sabrina Mahfouz, and performed by her and three colleagues, which lives up exactly to its title. A mix of gig and lecture and running just over an hour, it is driven by a strong anti-imperialist urge and informs even as it entertains.

Mahfouz, an admired poet who has dual Egyptian-British nationality, admits this is a highly condensed account of the way water has been used by Britain in the Middle East to exert commercial and colonialist control. We get snapshot histories of various countries and protectorates including Bahrain, which was pivotal to British trade routes, Iraq whose borders were determined by the Sykes-Picot agreement of 1916 and where neighbouring Kuwait became vital for the transport of oil, and the UAE, which is a world leader in ecologically destructive desalination.