October 6, 2012Irvine, California

Farhang Foundation, together with The Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture at UC, Irvine present:

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Part 1: CONFERENCE 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Lectures by experts in the fields of Persian epic, mythology and art history

Language: English Venue: The Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture at UC, Irvine

Address: 1030 Humanities GatewayIrvine, CA 92697-3370

Ticketing: Free and Open to All

Part 2: PERFORMANCE 8 p.m.“Love Stories of the Shahnameh”

Storyline & Naqqali: Gordafarid (In Persian) Choreography & Production Design: Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam Dance Performance: Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam & Miriam Peretz

Venue: Irvine Barclay Theatre & Cheng Hall

Address: 4242 Campus Drive Irvine, CA 92612 www.thebarclay.org

The Shahnameh images displayed in this program book are courtesy of The San Diego Museum of Art, and part of a larger collection of these works residing at the museum. The digitalization of the pieces was made possible with funds provided by Farhang Foundation.

Cover Illustrations:“Narrative Illustrations in Persian Lithographed Books” by Ulrich Marzolph, Nazar Publishing Co.

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Shahnameh - The Persian Epic....................................................................The Conference Program.............................................................................About the Lecturers......................................................................................Premiere Performance: Love Stories of the Shahnameh.........................About the Artists...........................................................................................

4-789-1112-1314

Special Thanks Patrons of 2012 Shahnameh FestivalShazad & PariSima GhanbariAhmad & Haleh GramianSharo KhastooFarhad & Nushin MohitAlan & Anoosheh OskouianAli C. & Anousheh Razi

Sponsors of 2012 Shahnameh FestivalDIAMOND

K.Jam MediaRadisson Newport Beach

GOLDATLAS ME, Inc. Smart Level Mailing & Printing, Inc.Zarrinkelk, Kashefipour & Co.

SILVERIntratek Computer, Inc.Soraya Jewels

Orange County CouncilSharo Khastoo – ChairShazad Ghanbari – Member, TrusteeFariba Hezar – SecretaryMona Karimpour – MemberAssad Kazeminy – MemberDarioush Khaledi – Member, TrusteeParmis Khatibi – MemberTannaz Mazarei – MemberAnoosheh M. Oskouian – Member, TrusteeDariush Rachedi – MemberMajid Zarrinkelk – Member

Individuals & Community OrganizationsGoli Attaie C.H.I.L.D.The California Zoroastrian CenterTouraj DaryaeeKaren Drews HanlonBehrooz GhavamiGilda GilakIranian American Medical Association (IAMA)Iranian American Society of Engineers and ArchitectsIranian American Women Foundation (IAWF)Irvine Iranian Parent Association (IIPA)Hassan KashefipourKhayam Persian School FoundationRon MavaddatSara MizbanSia Nemat-NasserNetwork of Iranian American Professionals of OC (NIPOC)Orange County Community FoundationPacific SymphonyNasrin RahimiehDoug RankinNiloufar TalebiWorld Affairs Council of Orange CountyMajid Zarrinkelk

Media & Supporters670AM KIRN Radio IranIranianHotline.comIranshahr Weekly MagazineIRTVKetab Corp.Irvine Barclay TheatreMetro Digital Printing & Marketing SolutionsOC Metro

Graphic Design by: Sam Siãvash Anvãriwww.samarts.net

Table of Contents:

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Shahnameh - The Persian Epic Prof. Touraj DaryaeeUC Irvine

Shahnameh or the Book of Kings is the single most important work ever written on Iranian identity and history in the Persian language. The epic was composed in verse in the tenth century CE by a landed gentry from Khurasan by the name of Abolghasem Ferdowsi. Ferdowsi spent thirty years of his life putting this epic to verse, sometimes relying on his own wealth, in order to preserve the history of the Iranian people for the posterity. The Shahnameh tells the traditional narrative of Iran’s history, from a time immemorial to the Muslim conquest in the seventh century CE. The book was inspired by, and received its historical information through, intermediary sources such as the Sasanian royal history, known as the Khwaday-namag (Book of lords). Indeed the Shahnameh is a very Iranian view of the world and its ancient history.

The contents of the Shahnameh may be divided into three parts: I) Mythological; II) Epic; and III) Historical. The mythological part of the Shahnameh begins with the story of the creation of the world, followed by the primordial kings and heroes who lived, fought and brought culture and glory to the land of Iran. Such kings as Houshang, Kiumars, Jamshid, Tahmures and others fight demons and monsters, brought culture, learning and art for the Iranians. The greatest among these rulers is king Jamshid who is endowed with the most important ingredient for rulership in the Iranian world,

namely the Farr, which is roughly translated into English as (Divine/Royal) Glory. The story of Jamshid is one of the best known stories of the early part of the Shahnameh as it tells how during his rule the Nowruz or the Iranian New Year was first celebrated. The creation of a societal order along with all that is needed for a civilized people is attributed to king Jamshid. The story of Jamshid is, however, instructive since it emphasizes that men are subordinate to God and should not overreach their

17th century Iran Manuscript PaintingKing Faridun receives the envoy of his two sons17th century | Opaque watercolor on paper | 9 3/4 in. x 5 1/8 in. (24.77 cm x 13.02 cm) | IranAsian 1971.65Gift of Edwin Binney 3rd

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potential: Jamshid, the greatest king of the mythical age, falls from grace and loses his Farr because of hubris and thinking that he is above God. Then the land of Iran is taken over by a foreign ruler who has two snakes over his shoulders. This is a motif in Indo-European literature, where a three headed dragon or snake appears in Nordic, Indian and Iranian tradition as an enemy of the people. Luckily, he is dethroned through the help of a blacksmith named Kaveh who, by placing his leather apron on a pole as a flag, is able to rally the people and the next king, Faridun, is able to win the day. It is important to note that legend has it that this very same leather apron became the royal flag of Iranians until the seventh century CE and was taken to battle by the kings of Iran.

II) The epic part of the Shahnameh details the rule of a dynasty by the name of the Kayanids who are endowed with Farr and rule over Iran, often against the kings of Rome and Turan. These Kayanids include Kay Kavus who has magical powers and can revive the dead, and perhaps the greatest of the Kayanids, Kay Khusro who is able to defeat the great Turanian king, Afrasiyab. But kings are men and are susceptible to making mistakes and some of them indeed fall into dire straits. It is here that the greatest of the Iranian heroes named Rostam, along with his horse Rakhsh, appear on the scene. He not only liberates those Iranian kings in trouble, but also fights with ferocity against anyone who dares to invade the Iranian realm. He surely is a demon slayer, a dragon fighter and is very much interested in fighting and feasting. Originally Rostam’s tales belonged to the eastern Iranian Scythian saga, where some of the Sakas had settled in the region known today as Sistan (meaning land of the Sakas / Scythians). In these tales, Rostam also has a son named Sohrab, whose birth commences one of the most tragic stories in Classical

Persian literature. Rostam unknowingly faces his son, whom he has not seen before, and mortally wounds him, because he had come to Iran as an invader. Kay Kavus, who has the potion to revive the son of the great Rostam, refuses to do so and Sohrab passes away in his father’s arms. The moral of this tragic story is that even the greatest of Iran’s heroes will lose out if the sovereignty of Iran and the institution of kingship is in danger.

III) The historical part begins with Dara, that is Darius III, the last Achaemenid king of kings. His story and the coming of Alexander of Macedon are given a very Iranian flavor, where the invader becomes a half-brother of the Iranian king. Here Alexander receives the kingship over Iran by Dara himself. Then the Arsacid dynasty makes a brief appearance, followed by the rest of the story which is the history of the Sasanian Empire.

15th century India Manuscript PaintingKay Khusro besieges the castle of Bahmanca. 1475 | Opaque watercolor and gold on paper | 9 17/32 in. x 6 5/16 in. (24.2 cm x 16 cm) | IndianAsian 1990.252Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

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The reason for which the Sasanians receive such detailed attention in the epic is that it was in fact due to their efforts that the writing of a royal history of Iran had been undertaken. It was the Sasanians who coined the name Iran and Iranshahr for their empire. Ardashir Babakan is the first Sasanian king whose talent is not only war, but all the important accoutrements of Persian culture - polo, chess, backgammon and jousting. Sasanians also established Zoroastrianism and sacred fires throughout the realm and supported the magi. Nonetheless, they also intermarried with the Byzantines, the Armenians, the Jews and the Christians and some were raised in Roman, Arab and Turkic courts. These stories show the cosmopolitanism and the worldly nature of the Sasanian kings and the realm of Iran. The greatest of the Sasanian kings is Khusro Anushirvan, who is the model of justice in not only Persian literature, but also the entire medieval world of the Middle East. His wise minister, Bozorgmehr is the symbol of sagacity, knowledge and provides the earliest material for wisdom literature in both Persian and Arabic literature. Khusro’s rule is the highpoint of Iran, where his palace at Ctesiphon - in modern day Iraq (Iraq is a Middle Persian term from the Sasanian period meaning “low-land”), had the highest standing arch in the world, and was part of one of the most diverse and largest cities in late antiquity, namely Mahoza / Mada’in.

The Sasanian Empire comes to an end after long wars with the Turks and Byzantines and finally is eclipsed by the Arab conquest in the Seventh century. The tale of Yazdgerd III, the last Sasanian ruler, is given a tragic treatment in the Shahnameh, where his end comes in Khurasan, the same place where the epic was composed by Ferdowsi.

We should remember that the Shahnameh was composed some four centuries after the fall of the Sasanians. Although the stories of the Shahnameh were current and well-known from the Jaxartes River in Central Asia to Iraq and beyond, it was this particular national epic of Iran that immortalized the stories. By the ninth century CE, most if not all the dynasties forming in this region claimed to be connected to the Sasanians or one of the Iranian heroes or rulers mentioned in the Shahnameh. Thus, the Shahnameh also became their

17th century India Manuscript PaintingRustam battles a divca. 1620 | Opaque watercolor on paper | 7 5/8 in. x 5 23/32 in. (19.4 cm x 14.5 cm) | IndianAsian 1990.260Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

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history, but also a manual on how to act and rule over Iranian lands. Local kingdoms, be it ruled by Arabs, Turks or Persians, all promoted the Shahnameh, and their Amirs, Sultans or Shahs read the epic to learn from their ancient predecessors.

There were many copies of the Shahnameh which circulated in the Iranian world, while others retold the stories by heart and the epic of the Iranian nation passed from heart to heart. In this way, in villages, countryside, towns and capitals the tale of the great Iranian kings and heroes lived on and became a vehicle for remem-bering the past. In a much similar way, the Shahnameh remains the badge of identity for the Iranian people for the past millennium and even today.

14th century Iran Manuscript PaintingGordiyeh advises her brother Bahram Chubineh not to aspire to the Persian throneca. 1330 | Opaque watercolor, gold and ink on paper | 12 in. x 8 15/32 in. (30.5 cm x 21.5 cm) | Iran Asian 1971.54Gift of Edwin Binney 3rd

16th century India Manuscript PaintingAlexander at the wall of Gog and Magogca. 1600 | Opaque watercolor and gold on paper | 7 9/16 in. x 4 9/16 in. (19.2 cm x 11.6 cm) | IndianAsian 1990.313.1Edwin Binney 3rd Collection

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10:45 a.m. Welcome Remarks: Touraj Daryaee (UC Irvine) 11:00-12:30 p.m. THE ART OF THE SHAHNAMEH

Mazyar Lotfalian (UC Irvine)Linda Komaroff (Los Angeles County Museum of Art)“Engaging the Present and Recontextualizing the Past: Shahnameh Illustration Now and Then”Alka Patel (UC Irvine)“The Shahnameh in India”Sonya Rhie Quintanilla (The Cleveland Museum of Art)“Paintings from the Shahnameh in the Collection of The San Diego Museum of Art”

12:30-2:00 p.m. LUNCH BREAK2:00-3:30 p.m. SHAHNAMEH IN HISTORY

Jennifer Rose (Claremont Graduate University)Rahim Shayegan (UC Los Angeles)“Old Iranian Inscriptions, Greek Narratives,and the Shahnameh”Yuhan S-D Vevaina (Stanford University)“The Khodaynameh and the Shahnameh: Putative Text and Narrative Context”Charles Melville (University of Cambridge)“The Shahnameh and its echo in medieval Persian historiography”

3:30-4:00 p.m. TEA BREAK4:00-5:30 p.m. SHAHNAMEH: IDENTITY AND NATIONALISM

Touraj Daryaee (UC Irvine)Firuza Abdullaeva (University of Cambridge)“Shahnameh in the Soviet and post-Soviet space”Mahmoud Omidsalar (CSU Los Angeles)“A Text of Art, A Text of Identity”Ali Ansari (University of St Andrews)“The Shahnameh and Iranian Nationalism”Mazyar Lotfalian (UC Irvine)

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Concerefne ProgramEnglishThe Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture at UC, Irvine1030 Humanities GatewayIrvine, CA 92697-3370www.humanities.uci.edu/persianstudiesFREE and Open to All

Language:Venue:

Address:

Directions & info:Ticketing:

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About the Lecturers

Firuza Abdullaeva (University of Cambridge)Dr. Firuza Abdullaeva is a graduate (BA, MA honour) of the Iranian Philology Department, Faculty of Oriental Studies, St Petersburg University, where she received her PhD in Iranian philology, Art and Islamic Studies in 1989. She was

an Associate Professor at the University of St Petersburg when she joined the Cambridge Shahnama Project in 2002 after a term at the Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton) and a term at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) as a Fulbright Professor. From September 2005 until September 2010 she was Lecturer in Persian Literature at the Oriental Institute, University of Oxford and Fellow and Keeper of the Firdousi Library of Wadham College, Oxford. From October 2010 she is the Head of the Shahnama Centre, Pembroke College, University of Cambridge. Her main research interests include Classical Persian literature, Medieval Persian book art, Travelogue literature of the Qajar period and Russian Orientalism in Persia, Central Asia and the Caucasus.

Ali M Ansari (University of St Andrews)Professor of Iranian History & Director of the Institute for Iranian Studies at the University of St Andrews; Associate Fellow of the Middle East Programme, Royal Insti-tute for International Affairs (Chatham House). Author of: Crisis of Authority:

Iran’s 2009 Presidential Election RIIA, London, 2010; Iran Under Ahmadinejad, Adelphi Paper, IISS, January 2008, Confronting Iran: the failure of US policy and the roots of mistrust Hurst, London, 2006, Modern Iran since 1921: the Pahlavis and after, 2nd Edition, Longman, London, 2007, Iran, Islam & Democracy - The Politics of Managing Change 2nd Edition, RIIA, London, 2006; “Iran and the US in the shadow of 9/11: Persia and the Persian Question revisited”, in Iranian Studies, Vol 39, No 2, June 2006, pp 155-170; “Peacekeeping in the Middle East’ Peacekeeping ed Rachel Utley, Ashgate, Aldershot, 2006, pp 135-146; “Persia in the Western Imagination’ in Vanessa Martin (ed) Anglo-Iranian Relations since 1800 Royal Asiatic Society Books, Routledge, London, 2005, pp8-20; “Iranian Nationalism” in Youssef Choueri (ed) Companion to the History of the Middle East Blackwell,

London, 2005, pp 320-333; “Cultural Transmutations: the Dialectics of Globalisation in Contemporary Iran”, in T Dodge & R Higgot (eds) Globalisation and the Middle East: Economy, Society & Politics RIIA, London, 2002; “The Myth of the White Revolution: Mohammad Reza Shah, ‘modernisation’ and the consolidation of power”, in Middle Eastern Studies, 37, 3, July 2001 pp 1-24; “Iranian Foreign Policy under Khatami: Reform & Reintegration”, in Iran & Eurasia ed A Ehteshami & A Mohammadi, Ithaca Press, Reading, 2000, pp 35-58; ‘Continuous Regime Change from within’, The Washington Quarterly, Autumn 2003, Vol 26 number 4, pp 53-68.

Forthcoming: The Politics of Nationalism in Modern Iran, CUP, 2012

Touraj Daryaee (UC Irvine)Touraj Daryaee is the Howard C. Baskerville Professor in the History of Iran and the Persianate World and the Acting Director of the Dr. Samuel M. Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture at the University of California, Irvine. He is the

editor of the Name-ye Iran-e Bastan: The International Journal of Ancient Iranian Studies and the creator of Sasanika: The Late Antique Near East Project. Among his publications are the following books: The Oxford History of Iran, 2012; Sasanian Persia: the Rise and Fall of an Empire, IB Tauris 2009; Scholars and Humanists: Iranian Studies in the Correspondence of S.H. Taqizadeh and W.B. Henning, co-edited with Iraj Afshar, Mazda Publishers, 2010; Sasanian Iran: Portrait of a Late Antique Empire, Mazda Press, 2008; The Spirit of Wisdom: Essays in Memory of Ahmad Tafazzoli, co-edited with M. Omidsalar, Mazda Press, 2004

Linda Komaroff (Los Angeles County Museum of Art)Dr. Linda Komaroff has served as LACMA’s curator of Islamic art since 1995. She is the author or editor of several books, and has written numerous articles and book chapters on various aspects of Islamic art, with a special focus on the Iranian world.

Her exhibitions at LACMA include Letters in Gold: Ottoman Calligraphy from the Sakıp Sabancı Collection, Istanbul (1999);

10The Legacy of Genghis Khan: Courtly Art and Culture in Western Asia, 1256-1353 (2003); A Tale of Two Persian Carpets (2009); and Gifts of the Sultan: The Arts of Giving at the Islamic Courts (2011). The latter was the first major exhibition on Islamic art organized by an American institution to travel to the Middle East, to the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha (2012), where Komaroff was the guest curator. Her next exhibition Gardens of Eternity: Visualizing Paradise in Islamic Art is scheduled for 2016. She is the recipient of a number of grants for scholarly research, including two Fulbright fellowships, and Metropolitan Museum of Art and Getty fellowships, while the Legacy of Genghis Khan exhibition catalogue received the prestigious Alfred H. Barr, Jr., Award from the College Art Association and Gifts of the Sultan received the Annual Publication Prize for Outstanding Exhibition Catalogue from the Association of Art Museum Curators. She has taught at Hamilton College, New York University, and UCLA. Komaroff orchestrated LACMA’s acquisition of the Madina Collection of Islamic Art in 2002, which in combination with the museum’s already existing collection of Islamic art, gives Los Angeles one of the most significant collections worldwide; in 2006 she began to acquire and exhibit contemporary art of the Middle East, placing LACMA’s collection at the forefront of American museums.

Mazyar Lotfalian(UC Irvine)Mazyar Lotfalian (PhD, Anthropology, Rice University) is currently the Assistant Director of Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture at the University of California, Irvine. He is working on a book on aesthetics and

politics of the transnational circulation of visual culture (film, multimedia art, performance, and photography) among Iranians. He is also interested in studies of science and technology in non-Western settings and the role the religion, a topic he addressed in his book, Islam, Technoscientific Identities, and Culture of Curiosity (2004, UPA). For this work he conducted multi-sited ethnographic research of Islamic movements in Malaysia, Turkey, Iran, and the US. He has taught courses on Islam, cinema, media, and science studies at University of Pittsburgh, Yale University, The New School University, and Emerson College, and held post-doctoral fellowship positions at the Center for Religion and Media at NYU, and Harvard University’s Middle East Center.

Charles Melville (University of Cambridge)Charles Melville is Professor of Persian History at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Pembroke College. Since 1999, he has been Director of the Shahnama Project, and since 2006 he has been President of The Islamic

Manuscript Association (TIMA), both based in Cambridge. His main research interests are in the history and historiography of Iran in the Mongol to Safavid periods, and the illustration of Persian manuscripts. Recent publications include edited volumes of Safavid Persia (1996), Shahnama Studies I (2006), Shahnama Studies II (2012), and ‘Millennium of the Shahnama of Firdausi’ (Iranian Studies, 2010, with Firuza Abdullaeva); recent books include The Persian Book of Kings. Ibrahim Sultan’s Shahnama (2008, also with Firuza Abdullaeva) and Epic of the Kings. The art of Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh (2010, with Barbara Brend), together with numerous articles on aspects of Iran’s medieval history and culture.

Mahmoud Omidsalar (CSU Los Angeles)I was born in 1950, studied in Iran through high school, came to the US in 1969.  Got my BA in Economics from Fresno State University in 1975, my MA and PhD in Iranian Philology and Persian literature respectively in 1982 and 1984. Taught

comparative literature and Persian language and literature for a while in various universities (UCB, UCLA, CSULB, Indiana University at Bloomington), and ended up working at academic libraries. I am now employed by the John F. Kennedy Memorial Library of CSULA.  I am also on the folklore editor for the Encyclopedia Iranica, and have been serving on the Supreme Council of the Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia in Tehran. I have published 6 volumes of facsimile editions of Persian manuscripts with Iraj Afshar.  Also, two volumes of my Persian papers have been published in Iran and two English volumes entitled Poetics and Politics of Iran’s National Poem, the Shahnameh (New York: Macmillan, 2011) and Iran’s Epic and America’s Empire: A Handbook for a Generation in Limbo (Santa Monica, CA: Afshar Publishing, 2012). There are also some 100+ articles and encyclopedia entries published here and there. 

Alka Patel (UC Irvine)Alka Patel is the Associate Professor of Art History at the University of California, Irvine. Her research has focused on South Asia and its connections with Iran and Central Asia including overland and Indian Ocean maritime networks. Her works include Building Communities in Gujarat:

11Architecture and Society during the Twelfth-Fourteenth Centuries (Brill 2004), Communities and Commodities: Western India and the Indian Ocean (guest editor, special issue of Ars Orientalis [2004/2007]), and her current book project on the Ghurids of Afghanistan and northern India (ca. 1150-1215). Her interests have expanded to include mercantile mobility, networks and architec-tural patronage in 18th-19th-century South Asia, as evidenced in Indo-Muslim Cultures in Transition (co-ed. K. Leonard, Brill 2012) and her collaborative project with Karen Leonard on the merchant communities of Hyderabad, India.

Sonya Rhie Quintanilla (The Cleveland Museum of Art)Sonya Quintanilla recently began her post as the George P. Bickford Curator of Indian and Southeast Asian Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art. For eight years she was the Curator of Asian Art at The San Diego Museum of Art, where she was in charge

of the world-class Edwin Binney 3rd Collection of Southern Asian paintings. She completed her B.A. in South Asian Art and Religion at Smith College in 1993 and her Ph.D. in Indian art history at Harvard University in 1999; in 2007 she published her doctoral work in History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura. From 2000–2004 Sonya taught South Asian art history at the University of California at Irvine. Her scholarly publications are on early Indian sculpture and Jainism as well as modern paintings of India. She has curated major traveling exhibitions, including Into India: South Asian Paintings from The San Diego Museum of Art (2012), Dreams and Diversions: Japanese Woodblock Prints from The San Diego Museum of Art (2010), and Rhythms of India: The Art of Nandalal Bose (2008).

Jennifer Rose (Claremont Graduate University)Jenny Rose teaches Zoroastrian Studies at the School of Religion, Claremont Graduate University. She holds a doctorate in Ancient Iranian Studies from Columbia University, and her dissertation was published in book form as The Image of

Zoroaster: The Persian Mage Through European Eyes (Bibliotheca Persica Press, 2000). In 2011 Jenny published Zoroastrianism: An Introduction (I.B. Tauris), and Zoroastrianism: A Guide for the Perplexed, (Continuum), both of which have been favorably reviewed in the US and abroad.   Jenny lectures extensively at other academic institutions, museums, and Zoroastrian Association events throughout North America and Europe. She also leads study-tours of some of the most important archaeological, cultural and devotional sites in Iran and Central Asia.

Rahim Shayegan(UC Los Angeles)M. Rahim Shayegan is associate professor of Iranian, and acting director of the Program of Iranian Studies at the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures (NELC) at UCLA, where he has been the inaugural holder of the

Musa Sabi Term Chair of Iranian (2005-2009). He received his BA from the University of Cologne, Germany, and his MA from the University of Sorbonne, followed by Ph.D. work at the University in Göttingen. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. He was a Junior Fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows, before joining the NELC faculty at UCLA.

His research concentrates on Iranian languages, literary traditions, and history, with special attention to interactions between Mesopotamia and Iran, as well as Greco-Roman and Iranian cultural and ideological exchanges. He is also keenly interested in the impact of ancient Iran upon the collective memory and intellectual makeup of Iranian society in modern times. He has authored and edited several books, among them: Arsacid and Sasanians: Political Ideology in Post-Hellenistic and Late Antique Persia (Cambridge University Press, 2011); Aspects of History and Epic in Ancient Iran (Harvard University Press, 2012); The Talmud in Its Iranian Context (co-editor, Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2010); and Persia beyond the Oxus (guest editor, Bulletin of the Asia Institute, 2012).

Yuhan S-D Vevaina (Stanford University)Yuhan Sohrab-Dinshaw Vevaina received his M.A. in 2003 and his Ph.D. in 2007 from the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University. He served as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Undergraduate Core

Curriculum and as the Lecturer on Old Iranian at Harvard from 2007-2009. He was a Fellow of the National Endowment for the Humanities from the National Council for the Humanities in 2010. He is currently a Lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at Stanford University. He teaches a number of courses related to Ancient and Late Antique Iran, including Old Persian and Middle Persian Language and Literature; Winged Bulls and Sun Disks: Religion and Politics in the Persian Empire; and most recently, Priests, Prophets, and Kings: Religion and Society in Late Antique Iran. He is currently working on a book project on Zoroastrian hermeneutics in Late Antiquity, and he is a co-editor of the forthcoming, The Blackwell Companion to the Study of Zoroastrianism, to be published by Wiley-Blackwell of Oxford, U.K.

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Premiere Performance: “Love Stories of the Shahnameh”

Inspired by the beautiful myths of the Shahnameh.

Storyline & Naqqali: Gordafarid (In Persian)Choreography & Production Design:Shahrokh Moshkin GhalamDance Performance: Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam & Miriam Peretz

“Love Stories of the Shahnameh” is based on epic poems from Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh (“Book of Kings” – Iranian National Epic), one of the masterpieces of Persian literature, retelling the tales of “Shirin & Khosrow”, “Bahram & Arezoo” and “Sohrab & Gordafarid”. This program is designed and staged in the epic storytelling manner known as naqqali, combined with music and dance. It is performed in seven scenes of specially choreographed dances accompanied by five recitations of selected poems from the Shahnameh. The music consists of traditional Persian melodies by renowned composers.

“Shirin & Khosrow”, is about the love and union of Khosrow-Parviz, a renowned king of the Sassanid dynasty, and Shirin, a beautiful Armenian princess.

First Act: Khosrow Parviz as a young man (set to ‘Rood’ in the Segah mode by Majid Derakhshani)Middle Act: Shirin

(set to a piece in the Segah mode by Majid Derakhshani)

Final Act: The two proud lovers meet(set to a piece in Chaharmezrab-e

shekasteh in the Bayat mode by Majid Derakhshani)

Khosrow Parviz is a prominent king of the Sassanid dynasty. During his father’s reign, he falls in love with Shirin, an Armenian princess, favoring her above all other women. After assuming the throne, Khosrow Parviz’s time is taken up with travels, and battles with Bahram Chubineh (Persian army-commander), causing him to gradually forsake Shirin, who weeps day and night. Ferdowsi situates the scene of their next encounter during Khosrow Parviz’s return from a lavish hunting expedition, the description of which in itself is one of the most astonishing sections of the Shahnameh. When the forsaken Shirin hears news of Khosrow Parviz and his entourage approaching, she prepares herself: she wears a red brocade Byzantine surcoat adorned with jewels over a golden dress perfumed with musk. On her head she places a crown of imperial Pahlavi splendor. She rouges her face the color of pomegranates, and steps onto the balcony of her palace to wait there, tears trickling off her lashes onto her cheeks, until Khosrow arrives. When he does, Shirin stands up and laments their lost former days, seducing him with her woman’s wiles, tempting him back to her: Oh great invincible warrior! Oh lion-heart, blessed king! Where did all your love and tears of blood, that were remedied by Shirin, go? What of our many unions and vows? The endless nights we turned into days? Eyes and hearts in tears, and smiles upon two lips? She cries until Khosrow too wells with tears, his face turning yellow like the sun. Khosrow orders Shirin to be brought back to his pavilions with esteem and honor. He immediately asks his chief priest to marry them according to ancient rites and rituals, which begins a long life of highs and lows for Khosrow and Shirin, who spend the rest of their lives loyally in love.  “Bahram & Arezoo”, examines the love between Bahram-e-Goor, a famous brave Iranian warrior king, and Arezoo, a beautiful girl who sings, plays harp, and serves wine gracefully.

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First Act: Bahram-e Gur huntingMiddle Act: Arezoo’s storyFinal Act: Bahram and Arezoo

(all three sections set to music in the Chahargah mode by Parviz Meshkatian)

Bahram is another acclaimed Sassanid king, a brave, measured, just and benevolent king. Nothing made King Bahram happier than to see his subjects prosperous and peaceful, living in pleasure. This story not only depicts the love of Bahram and Arezoo, but also displays dimensions of Iranian social life, such as the customs of courtship and marriage, and the hospitality Iranians are known for. In the beginning of the story, Bahram-e Gur (Gur, the ‘onager,’ is the animal he hunts) is on one of his usual hunting expeditions. He is shown to skillfully pin a male and a female onager together with one arrow, inspiring the awe and compliments of his entourage. He then gallops into a meadow full of sheep, where a sense of danger lingers. He asks the shepherd who the sheep belong to, and why the air of danger. The shepherd says the sheep belong to a wealthy jeweler who constantly worries about the safety of his jewels in transit, and that this jeweler has a beautiful daughter, the only person he takes his wine from. The shepherd, not recognizing King Bahram, praises the King of Kings, without whose just rule and lack of greed for gold the old man could not have such a prosperous enterprise. Bahram asks for directions to the jeweler’s home, and the shepherd points him to it, mentioning that if he waits until nightfall, he will hear a harp. Bahram wears common clothes, and rides on his horse towards the jeweler’s home, accompanied by only one groom. He hears the harp, and lifts the knocker on the door. He is invited into the home by the master of the house, and is lead by a maid servant through an ornate hallway. He thanks god to himself, and asks god to guide him away from greed and towards the way of justice, so that his subjects will rejoice in his legacy after death. The jeweler bows and greets him as his guest, spreads a carpet and cushions and begins to make merry, offering a feast of delicacies, cold and hot. Bahram tells the jeweler that he is a knight named Goshasp, who has asked to come in because he heard a harp, not intending to stay long. When it is time for wine, the jeweler calls for his daughter, Arezoo, whom he describes as an exceptional

wine-bearer, storyteller, harp-player and singer of songs that lift spirits. Arezoo tells the guest that he resembles King Bahram in grace and countenance, then sings songs that praise the king. Bahram is intoxicated and overwhelmed by Arezoo’s beauty and brains, and asks to marry her that night. Arezoo, who is equally smitten with the charming Bahram, agrees to marry him immediately. 

“Sohrab & Gordafarid”, explores the infatuation, frustration, and unfulfilled love between Sohrab, a young Iranian-Turanian hero, and Gordafarid, a brave and clever Iranian warrior maiden.

In One Act: Inspired by the battle between Sohrab and Gordafarid (the arrangement of this Kurdish piece by Keykhosrow Pournazeri).

Rostam, the valiant Iranian hero of all the world, returns to Iran after a one-night union with Tahmineh, a princess from Turan, an enemy country to Iran. The result of this union is a son, Sohrab, who grows into a mighty and heroic young man. With the encouragement of the king of Turan, Sohrab sets to attack Iran in order to kill the Iranian king, and to install his legendary father, Rostam -- whom he has yet to meet -- in the king’s place, and to become the hero of all the world himself. When he arrives at the Iranian border, he defeats the keeper of the White Fortress. No one inside the fortress has the courage to face this mighty warrior, except for Gordafarid -- the heroin daughter of the warrior, Gazhdaham -- who is dishonored at this shameful defeat. She immediately dresses herself in knight’s armor, hides her hair under a helmet, mounts a swift-footed horse, and races out of the fortress to fight. In a harrowing battle between them, Sohrab’s sword tears her armor, and her helmet falls to the ground. Sohrab realizes at the sight of her disheveled hair that he is fighting a woman, and is astonished at the lionesses of Iran. Sohrab falls for Gordafarid’s doe eyes, arched brows, and cypress-like figure, and ropes the woman he is captivated by. Gordafarid, who no longer sees combat to be a means of victory, resorts to a ruse of alluring glances, a charming tongue, and enchanting laughter, which lead to her freedom. 

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About the Artists

GordafaridThe first female naqqal (Iranian epic storyteller) of Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh “Iranian National Epic”, Gordafarid, has excelled in performing traditional narration of epic stories (naqqali) through

fourteen years of research, meticulous collection of narratives, and patiently following the footsteps of old masters of this ancient dramatic art. Gordafarid has come a long way in challenging conventional social norms that consider naqqali as being an art form performed by men and for men in public places such as Traditional coffeehouses. Her perseverance and determination bore fruit when Morshed Torabi, the most famous naqqal in Iran, prized her with his own cane in recognition of her achievements. She has incorporated different styles of naqqali into a seamless and unique narrative style that is all her own. Gordafarid’s stunning capability in capturing the imagination of audience has drawn large crowds to her numerous performances both inside Iran and abroad. She has also published books and articles on naqqali and offered workshops and courses on the subject at schools and universities. Her name has been recorded in the “Intangible Heritage” of UNESCO.

Website: www.gordafarid.net 

Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam Shahrokh Moshkin Ghalam graduated from the University of Paris VIII with a degree in History of Art and Theatre. He specializes in Middle Eastern folklore and mystical dance and has a deep

interest in Indian, Indonesian and Flamenco dances. Shahrokh joined the renowned Theatre du Soleil in 1991, where he played lead roles in Ariane Mnouchkine’s productions of “Tartuffe” “La ville parjure” and “Les Atrides”. In 1997 he established the Nakissa Dance Company and created: “A Persian Night’s Dream”, “The Route of Orient”, “Nostalgia or Ghassedak”, “The Seven Pavilion of Love” (Haft Peykar), “Omar Khayam,” “Les Danses Mythologiques,” “Mani the Bouddha of Light,” “Rumi Le brûlé” and coming soon: “Hafez”. Meanwhile, he has also been playing in: “Twelfth Night” by Shakespeare, directed by Christophe Rauck; “Romeo and Juliette”, directed by Lionel Briand; “The Baccantes” by Euripide, directed by Usevio Lazaro; “Soldier’s Tale” by Strawinsky and “La Diva D’Auschwitz”, directed by Antoine Campo; “A Streetcar Named Desire” by Tennessee Williams directed by Phillip Adrian; “Kidnapping at the Seraglio” by Mozart directed by Jérome Deschamps and Macha Makeïef. He directed “Zohreh va Manouchehr” (Venus and Adonis) by Shakespeare in Persian; “Mardha va Chiz” (Men and the Thing); and “Kafané Siah” (Black Shroud). Since January 2005 he has been an official member of the “Comédie Fançaise” (the house of Molière) playing in: “Le Sicilien” by Lully-Molière, directed by Jean-Marie Villégier; “La Maison Des Morts” by Philippe Minyana, directed by Robert Cantarella; “Pedro et Le Commandeur” by Felix Lope de Vega, directed by Omar Porras.

Website: www.shahrokh-nakissa.com

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Miriam Peretz Miriam Peretz is an internationally acclaimed performing artist and dance instructor. She was a principle dancer with Inbal Ethnic Dance Theater in Tel Aviv, Israel, and is now assistant artistic director

and principle dancer for Ballet Afsaneh where she has been a member since 1998. Miriam specializes in dances from the Silk Road (Persia and Central Asia), Middle-East, North Africa, Roma “Gypsy” trail, and Sacred Dance/Dance Midrash. She has also trained in Flamenco, Hawaiian, West African, Capoeira, Afro-Cuban, Afro-Haitian, Dunham Technique, and various forms of modern dance. Miriam has studied with master teachers from around the world including Egypt, Spain, Morocco, Turkey, Tajikistan and Israel. In the bay area she has been privileged to study with - Sharlyn Sawyer, Mahea Uchiyama, Suhaila Salimpour, Nanna Candelaria, Katarina Burda, and Yaelisa. Her studies and extensive work with traditional dance forms has also inspired new innovative work in the realm of Sacred Dance. In the fall of 2008, Miriam’s new interfaith performance piece, Miriam’s Well, will premiere in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Website: www.miriamdance.com

16th century Iran Watercolor PaintingEnthronement of Luhrasp16th century | Opaque watercolor on paper | 14 21/32 in. x 8 15/16 in. (37.2 cm x 22.7 cm) | Iran Asian 1968.6.1Museum purchase with funds provided by the Asian Arts Council

Kia Jam, KJam Media and itsaffiliate companies salute

Farhang Foundationand

University of California, Irvinefor their collaboration in

celebrating the Shahnameh.

The management team ofSmart Level Media and Printing Inc.,

saluteFarhang Foundation

andUniversity of California, Irvine

for their collaboration incelebrating the Shahnameh.

Zarrinkelk, Kashefipour & Co,Certified Public Accountants

salute Farhang Foundation

and University of California, Irvine

for their collaboration incelebrating the Shahnameh.

Parviz  and  Behrouz  Horriat  and  Atlas  ME,  Inc.  salute    Farhang  Foundation    

and    University  of  California,  Irvine  

for  their  collaboration  in  celebrating  the  Shahnameh.  

ATLAS  ME,  INC.  

Farhang Foundation is dedicated to celebrating and promotingIranian art and culture for the benefit of the community at large.

Areasof Focus

CultureArt

Poetry

Music

Film

Literature

PaintingTraditions

Language

Philosophy

Cuisine

History

Constituencies

Frequently Asked Questions

A. Trustees, Council Members, Advisors & SupportersIranians, Iranophiles and Iran Scholars who support the mission of Farhang

Foundation and our programs by donating their time, knowledge and financial support.

B. Iranian-Americans (Iranians in our community)These are the people that most immediately relate to and benefit from learning more about their art and

culture. They are also the individuals who will later be our cultural ambassadors to the community at large.

C. Non-Iranians (Community-at-large)We feel that Iranian art and culture can contribute positively and should be woven into the multi-colored

tapestry of great cultures that comprise America. That’s why our mission at Farhang Foundation is tocelebrate and promote Iranian art and culture for the benefit of the community-at-large.

C

B

A

Why does Farhang focus on art and culture only?Because at Farhang Foundation we believe in putting our efforts only in areas that can bring people together and add value to the community where we live.Iranian art and culture are universally interesting and can be useful to anyone in our community, Iranian and non-Iranian alike. As an example, think ofIranian cuisine; who in the world does not enjoy Iranian food when they try it? Yet many non-Iranians in our community don’t even know about and havenot tried Iranian food. The same is true of Iranian music, philosophy, art and film. Each can be enjoyed by our whole community, yet, before Farhang, noorganization has been focused on celebrating and promoting programs that make our art and culture accessible to the community-at-large.

Is it a surprise then that most of the associations that the community-at-large has about Iran are negative and divisive? At Farhang we’re focused atchanging this false image of Iran and Iranians, by celebrating and promoting the best parts of our art and culture in a way that is of benefit of thecommunity at large. After all, America is a melting pot of the best parts of different cultures and so, it benefits from having our great culture added to it.

What does Farhang do?• Build bridges by highlighting aspects of our culture that are of benefit to the community-at-large.• Define the image of Iranians around positive aspects of our heritage instead of media stereotypes.• Educate our constituencies on the positive aspects of our heritage.• Rally around unifying elements (art and culture) to bring Iranian-Americans closer to the community-at-large.• Create a platform for Iranian-Americans and the community-at-large to celebrate Iranian-American traditions, cultures and contributions to society.• Become a trusted resource.

How does Farhang do it?• By funding university programs, publications and academic conferences.• By sponsoring art and cultural events such as Nowruz and Mehregan, art shows, musical performances, plays, dances, films, and poetry readings.• By planning and funding exhibitions with local cultural and / or academic institutions, such as LACMA, UCI, USC and UCLA.

www.farhang.org

Farhang Foundation is a non-religious, non-political and non-profit foundation dedicated to celebrating Iranian art and culture for the benefit of the community at large.

Farhang FoundationP.O. Box 491571 Los Angeles, CA 90049(310) 666-1546 | www.farhang.org

Ali C. Razi – ChairmanMark AminDar Gabbay Shazad Ghanbari

Ahmad GramianAmir HemmatDarioush KhalediFarshad (Fasha) Mahjoor

Ron MavaddatAria MehrabiFarhad MohitAnoosheh M. Oskouian

Hooshang PakShidan Taslimi

Management TeamBita Milanian - Executive DirectorHassan Izad - Chief Financial OfficerSanam Zahir - Operations Manager

Fine Arts CouncilRoshi Rahnama – ChairAmir Angha – MemberLadan Behnia – MemberAzadeh Dadgostar – MemberShazad Ghanbari – Member, TrusteeHoma Mahmoudi – MemberHooshang Pak – Member, TrusteeMaryam Pak – MemberAnousheh Razi – Member

The Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture, originally established by the School of Humanities in collaboration with the Claire Trevor School of the Arts, became a campus center in January 2009. Dedicated to drawing on the strengths of the entire UC Irvine campus, the Center focuses on interdisciplinary research projects that bridge the arts, humanities, engineering, medicine, and the sciences.

Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and CultureUniversity of California, Irvine1st Floor Humanities Gateway Irvine, CA 92697-3370(949) 824-1662 | www.humanities.uci.edu/persianstudies

Patron CouncilAbdi Rais – ChairNazfar Afshar – MemberAhmad Gramian – Member, TrusteeAmir Hemmat – Member, TrusteeAfshin Kateb – MemberAJ Safavi – Member

UCLA CouncilMark Amin – Member, TrusteeFarhad Mohit – Member, TrusteeAli C. Razi – Member, TrusteeMehran Taslimi – MemberShidan Taslimi – Member, Trustee

Generations CouncilAmir Hemmat – Chair, TrusteeAli Fakhari – MemberFarhad Mohit – Co-Chair, TrusteeSara Pak – Member

Orange County CouncilSharo Khastoo – ChairShazad Ghanbari – Member, TrusteeFariba Hezar – SecretaryMona Karimpour – MemberAssad Kazeminy – MemberDarioush Khaledi – Member, TrusteeParmis Khatibi – MemberTannaz Mazarei – MemberAnoosheh M. Oskouian – Member, TrusteeDariush Rachedi – MemberMajid Zarrinkelk – Member

Iranian Studies CouncilHaleh Emrani – ChairAmir Aalam – MemberCyrous Adami – MemberMehrdad Amanat – MemberAkbar Azad – MemberHoushang Dadgostar – MemberAhmad Gramian – Member, TrusteeHassan Izad – Member, CFORon Mavaddat – Member, TrusteeAria Mehrabi – Member, TrusteeAli C. Razi – Member, TrusteeMichael Saei – MemberFarrok Yazdi – Member

Shahram Soleimani - SecretaryDavid. W. Newman - Legal Counsel (Pro Bono)Haydeh Shirmohammadi - Special Projects Director

Advisory CommitteeJanet Afary - University of California Santa BarbaraAmin Banani - University of California Los AngelesElizabeth Carter - University of California Los AngelesTouraj Daryaee - University of California Irvine, Academic CoordinatorFereshteh Daftari - Independent Scholar and CuratorArash Khazeni - Pomona CollegeLinda Komaroff - Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Afshin Matin-Asgari - California State University Los AngelesSheida Mohamadi - Poet-in Residence at Maryland UniversityAli Mousavi - Los Angeles County Museum of ArtShirin Neshat - Modern ArtNasrin Rahimieh - University of California IrvineShardad Rohani - COTA Symphony Orchestra-Los AngelesKourosh Taghavi - Namâd Ensemble

Board of Trustees