An Experimental and interactive theatre work exploring displacement, alienation and belonging
A monologue of a somewhat stranger.
A solitary soul in the world.
“There's something in all art forms that's beyond words,
and it's beautiful when someone gets it.”
Çağrı Sinci (Composer of Dünyada)
About the show
Dünyada (“In the World”) is a experimental & interactive theatre work preparing for its London presentation in 2026, it is a stage work blending theatre and moving image, adapted from award winning playwright Will Eno’s monologue play "Title and Deed”, directed and performed by the established Turkish artist Mehmet Ali Nuroğlu. Intimate in scale yet ambitious in artistic reach, and through a combination of live performance, camera work, projection and live sound mixing, the production offers its audience an immersive, filmic stage experience, and brings together literary sensibility and a deeply human reflection on belonging, estrangement, and our place “in this world.”
At its heart, Dünyada is a project about encounter, between languages, between places, and between people. It is precisely this spirit that makes it especially suited to London. Therefore, our vision is to bring Dünyada to London for its first UK presentation, a limited run of intimate performances that preserves its original raw and boldly honest essence. The production invites its viewers to leave behind names, borders, and time, and to meet, if only for an instant, on the common ground of the stage.
Running time: 85 minutes, no interval
Language: English (*Turkish special runs with surtitle available)
Form: Solo/monologue with multimedia integration
Rehearsal: Start mid July 2026, for 2 weeks
Performances: Start August 2026, for 3-4 weeks
(*Approx. 4-5 shows per week; align with the theatre capacity. )
show video excerpt
show video excerpt
Show video excerpt.
From the moment the audience enters the space, often without realising it, they have already stepped into the unnamed protagonist’s world, the world of the man.
In the dim, cluttered front of the stage, a gaunt figure crouches on the floor, legs folded against his chest, seemingly adjusting audio equipment scattered around.
At times, the audience finds the stage entirely empty except for a solitary microphone, standing in the centre like a sentinel. And yet, unseen by most, just off-stage or among the audience, that same figure waits, headphones on, immersed in a soundscape only he can hear. No one knows when he will be “ready” to begin his long war of words. We don't even know: are we his witnesses, his allies, or his adversaries?
At an unannounced moment, the lights dim. The prelude of Çağrı Sinci’s “Başkası” begins, meaning “someone else”, the song immediately setting the tone for a show obsessed with dislocation, exile, and the quest for a self that floats unmoored, and always resides elsewhere.
Bathed in the nostalgic R&B, a backlight isolates the man in silhouette. His face remains hidden. As the director puts it, “The character appears as a silhouette at the beginning. We see their figure not with our eyes, but through fiction.”
As the performance progresses, the visual field begins to fracture. In a dazed instant, someone looks up from their lap, and sees a strange however oddly familiar face filling the screen behind the man, and quickly realise: That’s their own face!
They hear the man’s voice narrating his memories, fractured, at times overlaid with sharp vocal distortion, or the paper-thin hiss of white noise, or the jagged scrape of branches. Thunder-like, wind-like, his voice loops back like fevered sleep-talking, sounds not quite of this world. The murmurs played over and over, scarcely resembling sounds one might hear fully awake. Hearts tighten, shoulders curl, some feel pressure on their chest, like a rush of air hitting them through an open car window. And suddenly, a disarming joke, the audience exhales.
Some audience members spiral inward. They remember, inexplicably, a long-lost lover; A father already gone (*This account originates from genuine feedback provided by audience member during performances in Istanbul). They smell the damp of the basement walls, the faint chemical note of plastic theatre seats. On the tongue, the dry salt of one's own intensity. The room becomes a vessel of collective memory...
What audience would experience
More of their work will be exhibited & integrated during the performance of Dünyada’s London Run. We are also developing ways to bring the work of British artists into the performance itself, in response to the production’s uniquely flexible and interdisciplinary form.
Artists we collaborated with
Sevil Alkan, İlknur Can, Previous Poster Designer
Ugur Erbas, 2026 Touring Poster Designer, Illustrator Artist
Shiyang Liu , Production / Visual Designer (Lon), Royal Academy of Arts VFX artist
Critical Responses
The original Istanbul presentation of Dünyada received strong critical attention and audience appreciation, with reviewers responding in particular to its emotional intelligence and contemporary relevance.
“Throughout the play, Nuroğlu roamed the space with a camera, capturing live footage of the audience, sometimes projecting our images onto the screen as stand-ins for the mother and father his character mourns. During the post-show talk, I shared an uncanny realization: I didn’t perceive my projected image as “myself,” but rather as my father, someone I increasingly resemble with age.
One of the production’s greatest strengths lies in how its audiovisual elements are used with restraint, never overshadowing the text but instead deepening its emotional resonance and inviting the audience into personal reflection.
In this sense, Nuroğlu’s Dünyada is not only a compelling piece of storytelling, it’s a masterclass in theatrical craft, interactivity, and emotional depth
.
“Nuroğlu brings much of himself to Eno’s character, who says, “My way of speaking is sad, but it’s my voice.” From his subtle facial expressions to his pauses and fleeting glances at the audience, he maintains the rhythm of the piece with precise control. Managing the camera, lighting, and sound on stage by himself, he not only makes this control mechanism part of the performance but also propels the play beyond the boundaries of the text, without ever overshadowing it.
Though the character’s eloquence and mischievousness captivate, the play’s intensity can at times feel suffocating—perhaps its only drawback. Yet with a bit of patience, as I followed the trail of its wit, I found myself nourished by the spirit that accompanied it.
While Dünyada may initially make you feel estranged, by the end, you realise that it has quietly built bridges between us—woven with fine details that linger long after the performance. For me, it has been one of the most surprising and provocative works of the season.
Catch it if you can.
“Ashocking, impressive direction and acting.
A perfect work, meticulously woven with details on stage, regarding the new understanding of theatre, a must-see.
— Pınar Çekirge / Tiyatronline"
Previous Life of Dünyada
Dünyada first emerged in Istanbul as a unique piece of live staged work, a phantom of the erstwhile underground theatre art in Turkey: developed through rehearsal, tested in front of audiences, and refined through performance.
In its Turkish life, the piece established its distinctive language of exposed theatrical space, live camera, projection and direct address, allowing its central questions of estrangement, memory and belonging to be encountered in real time. Each presentation has deepened the work rather than fixed it; the production continues to evolve in response to the room, the audience, and the performer’s own shifting relationship to the text.
The London version builds on that existing artistic life, carrying forward a work that has already found form on stage while opening it to a new cultural context, a new language environment, and a new public encounter.
Original Creative Team
Will Eno/Text
Ayberk Erkay/Translator
Mehmet Ali Nuroğlu/Director
İnönü Bayramoğlu/Dramaturgy
Ayşe Irmak Şen/Cinematography, Visual Design
Ömer Rauf Aksoy/Lighting Design
Muaz Ceyhan/Sound & Effects
Çağrı Sinci/Music
Büke Akşehirli/Production Advisor
Ayşegül Nuro ğlu/Assistant Director
Batuhan Kurt, Emir Güzel/Asistant(s)
Sevil Alkan, İlknur Can/Poster Design & Photography
Ezgi Turan/Visual Communication
2026 London Run Team
Director / Performer (Inviting)
A widely respected Turkish artist known for his work across screen and stage, Mehmet Ali Nuroğlu brings to Dünyada a rare combination of emotional precision, literary intelligence, and strong cultural resonance within both domestic and international audiences including Turkey, United Kingdom, Germany, Pakistan and etc.
UK Producer
A London-based producer working across international commercial film and independent screen projects, now leading the London realisation of Dünyada with a growing focus on theatre and intercultural live performance.
Ayşegül Nuroğlu
Assistant Director (Inviting)
Shiyang Liu
Visual Designer
Beril Yavuz
Lighting Design
Tess Dignan
Dialect Coach
Joy Li
Co-Producer / Marketing & PR Partner
Neil McPherson
(Artistic Director of Finborough Theatre)
Funding Advisor
Zahra Malik, Siyi Wu,
Betül Dagli
Production Assistant(s)
Ying Huang
Digital Designer & Photographer
Access & Audience Care
Dünyada includes live audience projection as part of its theatrical language. At selected moments, audience images may appear on screen within the performance; however, no audience footage will be recorded, stored or redistributed. Clear information about this element will be provided in advance through ticketing and front-of-house communication, so audiences can make an informed choice about attending.
The production will also provide clear content guidance where relevant, including notice of flashing or strobe-like lighting effects and other sensory elements. The London run is designed to remain multilingual and accessible, with English surtitles provided where needed and selected Turkish-language performances forming part of the project’s wider intercultural approach. Our aim is to make the experience artistically distinctive while also ensuring that audiences feel informed, welcomed and respected throughout.
LATEST UPDATES
New Season Line-Up Announced!
Discover the Exciting Shows Coming This Season.
Use this space to promote the business, its products or its services. Help people become familiar with the business and its offerings, creating a sense of connection and trust. Focus on what makes the business unique and how users can benefit from choosing it.
Behind the Scenes
An Exclusive Look at Our Latest Production.
Use this space to promote the business, its products or its services.
Award Recognition
Celebrating Our Recent Accolades and Achievements.
Use this space to promote the business, its products or its services.
Community Outreach
How We're Bringing Arts to Every Corner of Our City.
Use this space to promote the business, its products or its services. Help people become familiar with the business and its offerings, creating a sense of connection and trust. Focus on what makes the business unique and how users can benefit from choosing it.
VENUE
Everything You Need to Know About Our Space.
This is the space to share the business's contact information. Let people know the best ways to get in touch and encourage them to reach out.
WHITE BOX SPECIAL
11 Jul 2035, 20:00 – 23:00San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USAExperience Live Performances Like Never Before