2013 - Present
Everything you’ve wanted to know about the four hijabs, but didn’t think to ask! This ground-breaking initiative adapts the scholarly work of Dr. Manal Hamzeh, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies & Gender and Sexuality Studies at New Mexico State University, situating her work within artistic and pedagogical inquiries around feminist ijtihad, Muslimness, and gender justice. Rooted in feminist interpretations of sixteen Koranic verses relating to the visual, spacial, ethical, and spiritual hijabs, The Hijab Cycle challenges traditional readings of sacred texts—a process best illustrated in the animated short film The Four Hijabs.
Read MoreFebruary 15, 2013 - January 19, 2014
In the spirit of bringing live theatre to Silk Road communities, this collaborative partnership with the Ismaili Community Center of Chicago introduced our work to local Shi’a Ismaili Muslims, a community comprised largely of families from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Because the community’s daily prayer schedule conflicts with most theatre performances, their exposure to live stagework is limited. This initiative enabled us to present enhanced staged readings of three new plays, each with a Muslim theme, and each performed by professional actors in the community center’s social hall. Each performance was followed by a Q&A.
Read More2011 - Present
Inspired by the 2010 “ground zero mosque” controversy in New York City, playwright and Silk Road Rising co-founder, Jamil Khoury, set out to investigate resistance to the building of mosques in communities across the U.S., and the intersections of Islamophobia, zoning, and public policy. Khoury developed a nine-step process that includes digital and live theatre components, and invites virtual and live audiences to weigh in on artistic decision-making and matters of civic importance. This first-of-its-kind initiative crowd sources its creative processes and encourages open, unfiltered public dialogue.
Read More2009 - Present
Our online initiative, SouthAsianPlaywrights.org, allows us to generate greater exposure and more opportunities for American and Canadian playwrights of South Asian backgrounds. This initiative defines South Asians as people with ancestry in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, including people of mixed ancestries, who create works relevant to their intersectional identities. SouthAsianPlaywrights.org connects participating playwrights and their (English language) plays with theatre companies, cultural organizations, academic institutions, artistic directors, producers, literary managers, editors, publishers, and agents.
Read More2008 - 2009
Silk Road Sojourns was a 11-episode video series, launched in 2008, that sought to connect new audiences with the artists and thinkers that inspire us. Aired on Chicago's CAN-TV (a Cable Access Network station) and streamed on Silk Road Rising's YouTube channel, the program established an easily-accessible forum from which we could share insights on creative processes while exploring the motivations and challenges inherent to telling a story. Featured guests included Silk Road playwrights who contextualized the world of their art within real-world political and cultural frameworks.
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