March 4. In Between, A One-Man Show Written and Performed by Ibrahim Miari
Ibrahim Miari’s one-man show about growing up Jewish-Palestinian features vivid storytelling, humor, and puppets. Free and open to the public.
In Between is a semi autobiographical one-man show that portrays the complexities and contradictions inherent in Palestinian-Israeli identity. On the precipice between two cultures stands Ibrahim Miari. His play recalls his childhood in Acre, memories of his Jewish and Palestinian grandmothers, of war, and of the struggle to shape and understand his own multifaceted identity.
Ibrahim Miari is a theater artist and educator. A graduate of Boston University’s MFA in Theater Education program, Ibrahim is originally from Israel where he performed with the Acco Theatre Center Ensemble for nearly 12 years. In addition to acting and directing, Ibrahim is also Sufi dancer and sacred dances instructor. Ibrahim is also a lecturer in Hebrew at the University of Pennsylvania.
Sponsored by CAS Academic Enhancement Fund, Institute for the Study of Muslim Societies and Civilizations, Pardee School Mudarri Fund for Arab Culture, and Jewish Cultural Endowment at Boston University
March 22. Migrations of the Tongue: A Conversation about Arabic Poetry and Translation by Robyn Creswell & Iman Mersal
Egyptian poet and essayist Iman Mersal and scholar-translator Robyn Creswell speak at the BU Literary Translation Seminar. All lectures are free and open to the public.
Dr. Mersal also visited LY 350 on March 21 at 9:30 am.
April 25. On The Devil’s Pink Cloak and Staging Arabic Theatre across Borders
Scenes, coffee, and conversation with playwright-director-scholar Mas’ud Hamdan (University of Haifa) and scholar-translator-director Rebekah Maggor (Cornell U), moderated by Margaret Litvin (WLL).
In 2017, Rebekah Maggor (Cornell U) adapted and directed Hamlet Wakes Up Late, a 1970s Syrian political satire by Mamduh Adwan (trans. Margaret Litvin). This year she is working with Palestinian playwright-poet director- scholar Mas’ud Hamdan (University of Haifa) to translate and produce Hamdan’s 2013 play The Devil’s Pink Cloak: a Hallucinatory Play in Two Acts and Thirteen Scenes.
The play begins in spring, during the blossoming of the almond trees, sixty years after the massacre at Deir Yassin. At the Kfar Shaul Mental Institution, housed inside the refurbished village ruins, the Israeli head doctor is as mad as his patients.
Sponsored by the BU Center for the Humanities