Nouf Rafea is a theatre director, writer, scenographer, storyteller & educator. She is the founder of Pitjes United: Let's the voice of women be heard and breaks taboos.
About Nouf Rafea
Nouf Rafea is a theatre maker & educator, writer and a storyteller graduated from scenography in 2015 at the Higher Institute of Theatrical Arts in Syria/ Damascus.
She is almost graduated as an artist educator at the ArtEZ School of the Arts in The Netherlands / Arnhem.
In 2020 Nouf directed her performance ‘Bloody Marie’ under Pitjes United at the Amsterdam Fringe Festival. At this moment she is working on her performance ‘WijZijnAlleen’.
She currently works as a theatre maker and teacher at various theatre companies and foundations such as ‘International Theatre Amsterdam ITA’, ‘Theatermijn’, ‘Stichting Trias’, ‘De Gasten’ and ‘PS|Theater’.
She previously worked as an actress and scenographer for various companies such as ‘Rhedelijk Cultureel’, ‘ZinaPlatform’ and ‘Dag Werk’. In addition, Nouf has worked as a stylist and set designer in television commercials.
Nouf also starred/ played in short films such as ‘De Zalm En jij’ by Raynor Arkenbout and ‘Yolo4Real’ by Aiman Hassani. And she made her first two short films ‘Glimpse’ and ‘The High Bumpy Road’.
about Pitjes United
Bloody Marie performance…… is a multicultural comedy to break the worldwide taboo on menstruation. Connecting, humorous, original and with zest.”
Collective Pitjes United is a theatre company with ladies with a zest between the age of 22-62 with different backgrounds. They all have experience in art from various discipline including acting and theater making.
Bloody Marrie
With Bloody Marie collective Pitjes United and the director Nouf Rafea wants to create awareness in an original and humorous way when it comes to the oppression of women. In addition they want to use the performance to spread a social and educational message on the topic of menstruation. The performance Bloody Marie is based on true stories.
The theatre performance WijzijnAlleen is about two best friends who are not together. One has once fled and the other is still in her homeland. Through a 40-minute telephone conversation, the actresses take the audience on a journey through their obstacles, ups and downs, difficulties, abuse and loneliness. A story about friendship and love at a distance. By calling each other they stay in touch, but their perspectives diverge. The performance WijZijnAlleen is also based on a true story.
WijZijnAlleen…… Is about friendship and love at a distance.”
Other projects
WijOok-Jr….. Is a performance about emancipation, origins and dreams. In collaboration with ITA.
International Theatre of Amsterdam ITA
WijOok-Jr: Fifty girls were given the opportunity to examine their ‘feminist side’. Who are they? And what do they want to achieve in society? Young women with great self-awareness, their own opinion and ideals.
Nouf was one of the six theatre makers who makes this performance under directing of Muriel Besemer.
Beside her work as a maker in this project Nouf was in the writing sessions to write the script with Muriel Besemer, Rosa Fontein and Liselotte Zwart.
Nouf is the director of ODI theatre group for this year. She works on their next project for their 40th anniversary. They decided to make a theatre performance that is based on the memories of ODI’s members.
The performance will take place in October 2022.
In the International women’s day 2021 Nouf was one of the most influencing women of the year in Amsterdam. Her photo was in Amsterdam’s event of ‘Invloed met Impact’.
Café Riboet: Stories of arrival
In 2020 was Nouf a storyteller and actress guest in a Café Riboet in Museum Sophiahof. Under the theme: Stories of arrival.
Quotes of Nouf:
In the theatre I am like a predator, ready to tackle any challenge
What scares me in life calms me in the theatre
What hurts me in life stirs laughter in my heart on this sacred floor
I am that monster whose stage is his homeland”
– “I feel like a butterfly! Flying from one flower to another in search of new experiences and adventures!”
– “I love to put my creativity in the theatre world. I also enjoy reading scripts and acting, because when I act I can be different characters living, different lives.”
For a full bio please send an email to: Nouf.rafea.nr@gmail.com or Pitjesunited@gmail.com
Details: nouf.rafea.nr@gmail.com
Bright Lights Theatrical Services
KVK-number: 80836992
Nouf Rafea: Facebook & Instagram
Pitjes United: Facebook & Instagram
Website: www.pitjesunited.nl
Blog: nouftheaterresearch.blogspot.com
Interviews with Nouf:
JAN Magazine / Period! / Podcast: ‘Vrijheid volgens’ / De Volkskrant
Quotes of Nouf:
My big secret: I usually get inspired by my dreams at night.”
– About the education vision of Nouf:
“The old saying goes: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to ‘fish’ and you will feed him for a lifetime…..
The idea is not that you can teach a man to “fish” but what way you use to teach him/ her to fish. That is the question and also the answer.”