In 2026, the BUDA arts centre will celebrate its 20th anniversary, and we’ll be marking the occasion throughout the year, on the 20th of every month. 

Whispered Dreams began as a series of letters and texts exchanged between Mona (a writer and actress from Tehran) and Fariborz. They are close friends and members of the same collective, which has been active in Tehran since 2011. Through these texts, they reflect on their bond, friendship and artistic collaboration, taking into account their life experiences – Fariborz’s in Amsterdam and hers in Tehran. Due to the distance between them, their collaboration takes place remotely, which presents certain challenges for their creative process and the structure of the performance. This distance is an integral part of the work’s concept and presents challenges, particularly regarding the role of the audience.

‘Friendship’ is the central theme they explore in Whispered Dreams. Fariborz examines various aspects of friendship, self-censorship, distance, absence and presence, and investigates how these can be translated into a physical space, whilst involving the audience in the process.