March 8, 2008
By Tony Adler
Yussef El Guindi's new play takes a classic American conundrum--that of the immigrant torn between old ways and new identities--and applies it to present day Arab Americans. Two of his five Egyptian-born New Yorkers are tempted to parley their Middle Eastern exoticism into conventional success, two want to hold tight to their Islamic roots, and one's being driven crazy by the contradictions.
Though long passages of El Guindi's script amount to a debate on the issues, the show never feels dry because the playwright leavens that debate with humor, sex, and a healthy dose of both intellectually and emotionally honest ambivalence. Patrizia Lombardi Acerra keeps her Silk Road Theatre Project production fluid and passionate.