"My mom read me the Persian translation of Hamlet in the womb," remembers Armita Mirkarimi '25. "Now, I'm in limbo between storytelling through plays and storytelling in the real world." Born in Karaj, Iran, Armita eventually immigrated to Irvine, California, where she wrote and directed a play in high school with a local theater company. Now a senior at Dartmouth, she received funding from the theater department to produce her original play Noon Panir in the Dark, which won Dartmouth's Dodd theater prize.
Noon Panir in the Dark tells the coming-of-age story of five Iranian girls trapped in a classroom in complete darkness. "The play has to do with what it feels like to read news report after news report of what is happening in Iran. It's a hybrid of fiction and nonfiction. I think that's why I like plays so much: the political is also personal."
Armita arrived at Dartmouth with thoughts about attending law school. Mock Trial intrigued her because it provided an alternative stage for storytelling. "Mock Trial is a performance. You're playing different witnesses and even the attorneys are taking on different personas as they're giving their opening and closing statements. That medium was a different kind of storytelling. It's powerful because we give it power."
After meeting history professor Golnar Nikpour in her Modern Iran course, Armita was inspired to apply for funding from Dartmouth to research how coverage of the Woman, Life, Freedom protests in London inspired nostalgia for Iran's past. "I really wanted to understand how different sectors of policy operate and I thought journalism was an important part of that. Whenever I would hear even the faintest Persian on the streets of London, I would stop that person and say, 'Hey, I'd love to talk to you.'"
Armita's research abroad also showed her the power of Dartmouth's international alumni network. When her housing arrangement in London unexpectedly fell through, Armita reached out to Dartmouth's Centennial Mentoring Circle, which connected her with an alumna who offered to house her for the duration of her stay. "The never-ending positive feedback loop of Dartmouth means you have access to staff and monetary resources, but those relationships are worth even more."
Armita plans to work in media before earning her master's degree in journalism and international affairs. "There's so much encouragement to expand the borders of Dartmouth beyond Hanover and there's a lot of emotional and physical support to do that. The last couple of years have taught me that you can learn so much about yourself when you don't know where exactly you're headed."
Photograph by Don Hamerman, pictured at the Nest Kitchen & Café in downtown Hanover
