Theatre NOVA Premieres ARABIC TO ENGLISH in June

Theatre NOVA, Ann Arbor's resident nonprofit professional theatre, kicks off the new year with the world premiere of “ARABIC TO ENGLISH” by David Wells, which runs June 2-25, 2023.

This world premiere by the playwright who penned hit productions “Resisting,” “Mazel Tov, John Lennon,” and “Irrational” makes its long-awaited debut. In 2017, as the Trump administration rounds up hundreds of Iraqi immigrants in Southeast Michigan, Faheem, an Arab American man, is accused of fraudulent marriage to gain a visa. Losing in court will send him to a country he barely knows. As his high-stakes trial unfolds, a young Arab American court translator learns how the slipperiness of language can be manipulated to shape his future, and hers, or even reality itself. 

Directed by Sarab Kamoo. Featuring Zeyy Fawaz, Fedor Kinaya, and Joe Sfair. The production and design team includes Paul Taylor (scenic design), Jeff Alder (lighting design), Genevieve Compton (costume design), Sonja Marquis (sound), and Briana O'Neal (stage manager).

For the health, safety, and well-being of our patrons, staff, and artists, Theatre NOVA's current COVID-19 policy requires patrons to wear masks while in the building for particular shows. On dates when masks are not required, we still highly recommend patrons wear masks. This policy is subject to change anytime, following fluctuating local, state, and federal guidelines. Please check our current COVID-19 policy before your scheduled performance date.

Theatre NOVA is located at 410 W Huron St., Ann Arbor, MI 48103. Performances are on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. General admission tickets for plays are $22. In addition, Theatre NOVA continues to make theatre accessible by offering pay-what-you-can tickets for those who need them at all performances.

Tickets, memberships, flex passes, and subscriptions may be purchased online at www.TheatreNOVA.org. Tickets may also be purchased in person one hour before each performance. Seating in the theatre will begin 30 minutes before each performance. There is ample free parking and quick access to the city's restaurants, bars, bakeries, and coffee shops. New patrons can find Theatre NOVA across Huron Street from Ann Arbor's YMCA through a parking lot entrance on the north side of the street. For more information, visit www.TheatreNOVA.org.

Theatre NOVA is dedicated to raising awareness of the value and excitement of new plays and new playwrights in a diverse and expanding audience; and providing resources and outlets for playwrights to develop their craft, by importing, exporting, and developing new plays and playwrights.

David Wells' (Playwright) writing has earned the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award, a National New Play Network Showcase Selection, two Wilde Awards for Best New Script, a Motion Picture Academy Nicholl Fellowship In Screenwriting Finalist, a National New Play Network Finalist, and a Wilde Award for Best Original Production. He is an NNPN Affiliated Artist, a member of the Writers Guild of America, and a UM grad. He especially wants to thank Farah Kader, Nisreen Khokhar, and Fareah Fysudeen for all their insight and input into the development of “Arabic To English,” as well as Sarab Kamoo and Carla Milarch for their feedback along the way.

Sarab Kamoo (Director) has performed in most of the professional theaters in Southeast Michigan. She most recently co-directed and performed in the one- woman show, “9 Parts of Desire” at Williamston Theatre where she also performed in Silent Sky, and Boom. Sarab is also a resident artist at The Purple Rose Theater where she most recently played Irene Adler in an original Sherlock Holmes trilogy. Other theater credits include: “Death of A Salesman,” “Smart Love,” “Comedy of Tenors,” “Don't Dress for Dinner,” “Dancing Lessons,” “Falling,” “God of Carnage,” and “Sonia Flew.” Some film credits include: Stone, Happiest Season, Conviction, Trust, The Giant Mechanical Man, Won't Back Down, Secrets in the Walls, and episodes of Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Detroiters, and Low Winter Sun. In addition to her acting, Sarab is also a part-time school social worker in the Rochester School District. She sends a huge thank you to the cast, crew, and the whole gang at Theater Nova as well as her never-ending love and gratitude to Tom, Grant, Joelle and Julia.

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