Interview: Playwright Nakisa Aschtiani Returns to SheLA Arts with BISMILLAH, OR IN THE NAME OF GOD

Nakisa Aschtiani’s Bismillah, or In the Name of God will be one of the five plays featured in this year’s SheLA Art’s Summer Theatre Festival, performed live July 12th and 15th at the Zephyr Theatre (and available to stream later in the month).

Thank you for taking the time for this interview, Nakisa!

Is Bismillah, or In the Name of God based on a real-life event that has affected you?

We have gotten to the point in our society where mass shootings are happening at an alarming rate. Every time I hear about one, I can’t help but think about all the things that went unsaid and missed between the victims and their families and friends. I keep thinking, “What if you never saw someone you loved ever again? Were you able to tell them you loved them? Did they know you cared?”

Are gay Iranians acknowledged in your culture?

There is a lot happening in Iran – especially now with the WomenLifeFreedom protests. It is almost as if there are multiple cultures going on. Gay Iranians have a safe place in the hearts of a lot of Iranians – they have allies. They have people who will stand up for them and their rights as human beings. Unfortunately, not everyone feels this way – this is the case all over the world – not just Iranian culture - that is why expressing things through Art is important. Art gives us the power of expression and the power to connect with others. It is such a wonderful teaching tool.

What would your three-line pitch for Bismillah, or In the Name of God be?

When a shooting at a gay bar changes their lives forever, a group of longtime Iranian-American friends are forced to grapple with their beliefs and fight for what they believe is right. Who will stand up for you when you cannot take a stand for yourself? What happens when hate clashes with the promise of unconditional love?

Have you worked with any of Bismillah’s cast or creative before?

Yes! My director, Ani Marderosian, and I go back. She first stage managed for me a few years ago for one of my other plays. We connected right away! After that, I worked with her as a director several times over the years. This is my third play with the SheNYC Arts team, so I have worked with a few of the creatives there.

If you were to submit Darius and Bahar on a dating site, what qualities of each would you list?

HA, HA! What a fun question! For Bahar, I would say loves her job and her nieces. She stands up for her friends and has a great family. For Darius, I would say he loves working with animals – especially dogs - and wants to learn to cook. He loves to check out the local bar scene with friends.

What character flaws would you definitely omit?

For Bahar, I would say she would leave out her lack of cooking skills. For Darius, he may want to leave out how bad he is at basketball.

Bismillah, or In the Name of God is your third play with SheLA Arts. Were you satisfied with the responses to Children of Camelot and To Each His Own? Definitely! SheNYC/SheLA Arts is such a great platform for new works. I always felt supported, and the audiences were very receptive. In addition to getting produced, scenes from those plays are published in SheNYC’s first anthology which was another dream come true.

You’ve been a SheLA board member since 2017. What does the responsibilities of a board member include?

In addition to attending regular meetings, we fundraise to help reduce costs on our production teams and playwrights. Each year, we work towards creating the best possible festivals. We read plays to narrow down our choices for each festival: N.Y., L.A., and Atlanta.

When does your script become set in stone? After first table read? Post dress rehearsal?

For me, I think it varies with each script. With “Children of Camelot,” I wrote each scene separately, printed out all the pages, and rearranged the scenes to create the story I wanted to tell. With “To Each His Own” and “Bismillah,” I sat at a computer and typed them from beginning to end. I reached out to some colleagues for some input, and those plays were pretty much done after that. Sometimes, I do tweak them a bit here and there working with the directors on trouble spots that I didn’t see because they see the plays on their feet and work closely with the actors. I feel like if I don’t set limits for each, I will keep doing re-writes and won’t get anything completed.

What’s in the near future for Nakisa Aschtiani?

I have two plays I have been working on for awhile now. My goal is to finish them by the end of Summer. I would also like to get back into directing this fall.

Thank you again, Nakisa! I look forward to meeting your Darius and Bahar.

For tickets to the live performances July 12th or 15th, or for the link to the digital performances July 19th through 26th; click on the button below:

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