Photo Flash: Najla Said's PALESTINE Opens Off-Bway

In PALESTINE, Ms. Saïd provides a unique passage into one of the most volatile and historic corners of the earth. With compassion, humor and honesty she makes a case for Palestinian and Arab points of view in ways that truly allow them to be heard. Raised in privilege on New York City's Upper West Side (where many of her best friends were Jewish) Ms. Saïd was forced as a teenager to take a family trip to the Middle East to visit her father's homeland. Anorexic and depressed, obsessed with boys and the beach, her experiences nevertheless kindled a life-long exploration of what it means to be both Arab and American. Ms. Saïd takes audiences on a whirlwind tour from kissing Jewish boys to what she describes as "the stench of Gaza," through two wars, the horrors of 9/11, encounters with world figures including Yasser Arafat, and life with her beloved father. Edward Saïd, was a professor at Columbia University and, until his death in 2003, a worldwide spokesman for Palestine and the Middle East.

Ms. Saïd created PALESTINE, with dramaturgical help from Mr. Warner, through a series of developmental readings and workshops at New York Theatre Workshop. In the past year she has performed readings of the work in venues across the U.S., from Berkeley to Harvard and Brown, to the Arab-American National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan and Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington, DC.

As an actress, Najla Saïd has appeared at Seattle Rep in Heather Raffo's solo play NINE PARTS OF DESIRE, and in the world-premiere of PROPHECY at New End Theatre in London (NY debut scheduled for May 2010). She is a founding member of Nibras Arab-American Theatre Collective, having served as artistic director, as well. She is one of New York Theatre Workshop's "Usual Suspects," and her writing has appeared in such varied publications as Mizna, the Arab-American literary journal, and Heeb Magazine.

Sturgis Warner, as co-artistic director of Twlight Theatre Company, has directed the company's FIRST DAY, SUITE FOR FOUR ACTORS AND PERCUSSIONIST by Ted LoRusso and Mr. Warner; ALL FALL AWAY by Said Sayrafiezahdeh, THE SECRET MACHINE by Gordon Dahlquist, and Michael John Garces' SUITS and UP FOR AIR. He has also directed productions at Kitchen Theatre Company, Actors Theatre of Louisville, New Jersey Rep, Barrington Stage and Abingdon Theatre Company, among others. He is a member of New York Theatre Workshop's "Usual Suspects."

Now in its 12th year, Twilight Theatre Company is dedicated to the creation of new plays, with particular emphasis on new playwriting voices whose work helps to contextualize the rapidly-changing world in which we live. The individual voice of a theatre artist - in response to the corporate sprawl in society today -- is essential to the company's mission. For more information about Twilight, visit www.twilighttheatrecompany.org.

Louis Moreno and Sturgis Warner are co-artistic directors of Twilight Theatre Company;
Editha Rosario is executive director; Kathryn Pierroz is managing producer.

Set and costume design for PALESTINE are by Meghan E. Healey; lighting design by Ben Stanton.

Scheduled through March 21, 2010, PALESTINE will perform Tuesdays through Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 4 p.m., with an added performance on Monday, February 15 and no performance on Thursday, February 18. Tickets are $20 and can be reserved by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444 / smarttix.com.

Photo credit: Sturgis Warner

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