The press opening is slated for January 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Director KJ Sanchez and one actress, Aysan Celik, will bring to vivid life the interconnected portrayal of nine extraordinary women - eight Iraqi and one American of Iraqi descent - who share true and intimate stories of how their lives have been irrevocably affected by the war and its chaotic aftermath.
Taking its title from a famous Muslim maxim, 9 Parts of Desire features stories that share the theme of survival against shocking odds, and yearning for love and peace. A grieving mother, a forgotten wife, a painter, a pediatrician who faces illness caused by violence and a teen who can identify artillery as easily as pop songs are among this sisterhood of women for whom war is a daily event.
Playwright Raffo is an actress as well as a writer. She spent months researching her drama among Iraqis, both in Iraq and expatriate communities like London and Michigan. As the daughter of an Iraqi father and American mother, raised Catholic in Michigan, her pedigree and experience were perfect for approaching this theatrical project. "I had the right mix: I was half Iraqi so they opened up to me immediately, but I was also Western so they felt they could express fears or secrets that might otherwise be judged more harshly by someone from their culture," explained Raffo.
Raffo, describes the play as a conversation between East and West, a chance for an American audience to witness these stories with clarity and sublety. "The characters are deeply engaged in circumstances unique to them as Iraqis and yet, through their passions, seem to answer the concerns of the West," said Raffo. "I wanted the audience to see these women not as the 'other' but much more like themselves than they would have initially thought."
Tickets for 9 Parts of Desire are $25 and $20 for Sunday through Thursday performances. Friday and Saturday tickets are $30 and $25.
Thirty minutes prior to curtain time, available seats are sold to senior citizens and people with disabilities for $20 and to students for $17, limit two per person.
Quick Tix, day-of discount tickets, are sold from 4 to 6 pm for $25 on the day of the performance. These tickets, subject to availability and limited to six per person, must be purchased in person with cash or check.
By www.actorstheatre.org
Posted December 22nd, 2006 by ruzik_tuzik
