The creative exile of Mahsa Mohebali and Hossein Zoghi in Catalonia

Iranian writer and theater director find refuge in Ribes de Freser while preparing new works in Barcelona.

Generic image of a theater stage symbolizing artistic resistance and exile.
IA

Generic image of a theater stage symbolizing artistic resistance and exile.

Writer Mahsa Mohebali and director Hossein Zoghi have relocated to Ribes de Freser through the Artists at Risk program, escaping years of state surveillance and censorship in Iran.

The couple, who arrived in Catalonia four months ago, continues their artistic mission in Barcelona. This Thursday, they will host a discussion at the Ateneu Fort Pienc following the screening of the documentary The Apple Day, which explores life in the outskirts of Tehran.

"Artistic resistance in Iran is very important."

Mahsa Mohebali and Hossein Zoghi · Exiled artists
Their upcoming play, The Well / The Body, is scheduled to premiere at Sala Beckett in May. The production, supported by the organization No Callarem, focuses on the daily resistance of Iranian women against systemic inequality and the mandatory hijab laws.
Reflecting on the geopolitical situation, Zoghi criticized the lack of international attention toward the Iranian people's struggle, comparing the current regime's methods to historical European fascism and calling for stronger human rights advocacy.