March 7, 2008
By Barbara Vitello
Daily Herald Critic at Large; Contact writer
Compromise and obligation. The twin challenges budding artists confront prove especially acute for minorities.
Should they alter their work to ensure commercial success or meet obligations to their communities?
Should they reveal unpleasant truths that might ultimately feed racist stereotypes and promote hatred? Or should they shine a more positive light in an effort to foster tolerance and understanding?
Such a dilemma confronts Noor, the young Arab-American writer in Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat, Yussef El Guindi's examination of Arab-American identity, the U.S. media's portrayal of Arabs and Muslims, and Arab-Americans' role in helping paint that portrait.
El Guindi's witty, stimulating if slightly flawed play gets a crisp, well-acted production courtesy of Patrizia Lombardi Acerra, who directs the world premiere for Silk Road Theatre Project, where El Guindi is a resident playwright.
El Guindi ("Ten Acrobats in an Amazing Leap of Faith," "Back of the Throat") places Noor (Monica Lopez) between two extremes. On one side stands Noor's aspiring writer boyfriend Gamal (a passionate Kareem Bandealy), the archetypal angry young man whose book debunking Western impressions of Arabs is rejected by publishers as too angry. A self-described "critical crusader" and "new Arab Zorro," Gamal strikes out against fellow Arabs who pander to the American media in exchange for exposure, humiliating them through a series of pranks. His targets include Sheikh Alfani (Vincent P. Mahler), a local cleric whose genial disposition and obvious affection toward his Americanized son Hani (James Elly) contrast sharply with the extremist views he promotes on TV.
On the other side stands schoolteacher-turned-author Mohsen (Andrew Navarro), whose inflammatory best-seller "Jihad 101" depicts Arabs and Muslims as oppressive, fanatical and violent, thus confirming every negative stereotype Americans hold. Mohsen, whose appearances on cable talk shows hosted by fictional hard-liner Earl Bainbridge (Don Bender, playing several supporting roles) sell books while perpetuating ill will, also winds up the butt of one of Gamal's jokes.
Caught in the middle -- philosophically and emotionally -- is Noor. Her contemporary bodice ripper catches the eye of powerhouse editor Olivia (a sharp Susie Griffith as the "Nurse Ratched of the literary world.")
But Olivia pressures Noor to rewrite the book to satisfy readers' craving for the exotic, which means incorporating an Islamic tone and re-imagining it as a confessional offering a glimpse behind the veil of a Muslim woman. Does Noor stay true to her vision while her book remains unpublished? Or does she compromise and become a best-selling author?
The dilemma isn't new, but it gets a powerful spin from El Guindi. Like it or not, what these "enemies" produce has an impact beyond what they intend, especially during these unstable times.
But for all its insight, El Guindi's script has problems, beginning with a couple of extended debates involving Noor and Mohsen that bookend the intermission. She argues that he maligns and betrays their people; he counters that she's blind to very real cultural and personal flaws. They make their positions clear during their initial confrontation at their publisher's house. Repeating it later as part of an entirely predictable scene (which the stage crew telegraphs the moment they place the set pieces) only bogs down the narrative. The dialogue gets preachy and not all the characters are as developed as the main trio.
Our Enemies presents both sides of the dilemma without offering a definitive solution. The individual must decide what compromises he or she will make, just as the individual must decide what obligations he or she will fulfill. One thing's for certain. As one character says, "we have to stop hurting each other." Such a simple solution, so hard to implement.
"Our Enemies: Lively Scenes of Love and Combat"
3 stars out of four