Written and performed by Dora Nominee Ahmad Meree, UNCIVILIZEDdraws from Meree’s experiences of coming to Canada as a refugee from Aleppo, Syria, in 2016.

The set up is instantly striking. We find Meree centre stage, facing a video camera projecting his image onto the back screen. A disembodied woman’s voice comes over the loudspeaker, and (mostly) through the format of a hostile interview, Meree alternatively explains himself to her and the gruelling trials of becoming a citizen to us. Over the course of the hour he’s subjected to hostility, ridicule, and a citizenship exam that seems designed to trip up anyone who hasn’t studied exhaustively.

This premise has a lot of potential: the format of the citizenship interview provides a clear central structure to the story. The layers of mediation add a heightened sense of alienation and scrutiny to the objectification (not to mention being able to see the literal beads of sweat rolling down his face). The interviewer (voiced by Shannon Pitre) is cold and matronly, giving us a visceral sense of Canada personified, brusquely deflecting when Meree tries to question the implicit (and sometimes explicit) racism underlying the dynamic.

The execution, though, is a little unfocused. The video lag is distracting, and the action jumps around a lot. There are places that I wanted more of the story. At times he turns to us to cry, ‘what the fuck??’ – his exasperation is warranted but I wanted him to complete the thought by unpacking his perspective. At one point there’s a reel of news broadcasters describing Syrians as ‘virtuous refugees’ that reinforces the repugnant racist gatekeeping of not only the state but also the media, but it didn’t feel as integrated into the personal narrative unfolding on screen as it could have been.

Thankfully, Meree’s passion and charisma help to mostly make up for this. The authenticity of his pain and his vulnerability come through powerfully, and the relevance of the story is on point.