Rehearsal

Memory, identity, conflict and migration lie at the core of Aziz Hazara’s audiovisual practice. This is evident in Rehearsal, which captures an apparently innocent scene between two Afghan boys as they look into the camera. Perched on the shoulders of the older child and aiming his fingers at the viewer, the younger boy mimics the movement and sound of someone firing a weapon. His uncanny imitation of the burst of an assault rifle suggests that these children have had direct contact with the military conflict in their country. The title invites reflection not only on the present but also on the future awaiting Afghan children. What are they rehearsing? What does “playing at war” mean when you have been surrounded by it since birth? Does one child carrying another signal care or sacrifice? What agency remains when they grasp an imaginary rifle with such real knowledge of conflict? Deceptively simple at first glance, in Hazara’s hands a children’s game becomes a potent metaphor and a damning political indictment.