Rehearsals are well underway for The Boy With Two Hearts, our first homegrown production since reopening our doors.

We’re working closely with brothers Hamed and Hessam Amiri to bring their family's extraordinary true story to the stage this October.

In 2000, the Amiri family fled Afghanistan after facing persecution from the Taliban, with their journey made even more critical by their eldest son Hussein’s life-threatening heart condition.

Their story is one of hope, from Afghanistan to Wales. We can’t wait to share it with you.

Meet the writers

Hamed Amiri, the author of The Boy With Two Hearts, was born in Afghanistan. He currently works as a senior leader in the tech sector while also an influencer in the education sector.

Hamed’s promise to his brother Hussein, to share his story with a wider audience and ensuring his legacy lives on, has been his new mission in life. He was awarded the 2016 ‘Inspiring the next generation’ Alumni Award by the University of South Wales.

Hamed’s younger brother and co-author, Hessam Amiri is a digital marketing executive at The Royal Mint. He is also a Governor for University Hospitals Bristol & Weston and an ambassador of the Daring to Dream charity.

Their story has been adapted for the stage by Phil Porter, a multi-award-winning playwright and librettist. His work spans theatre, opera, radio and television, with productions at Manchester Royal Exchange, Northampton Theatre Royal, The Unicorn Theatre and The Royal Opera House.

Supporting our teams

The Amiri family’s extraordinary story, fleeing persecution from the Taliban after their mother Fariba gave a public speech in favour of freedom for Afghan women, is even more poignant given the current events in Afghanistan.

Throughout this production, the Amiri family, the production team and our cast are all being supported through group and on-call sessions with an experienced artist wellbeing practitioner. They provide space and time to reflect personally and professionally on their relationships to the content of the show, as well as the events that are presently unfolding in Afghanistan.

We are also holding refugee awareness training sessions for Wales Millennium Centre staff, so we can better support the team working on this production. These are led by Oasis Cardiff, a charity who provide a warm Welsh welcome for refugees and asylum seekers.