Photo Flash: TENNIS IN NABLUS Plays the Alliance Thru 2/21
By: Lauren Wolman Feb. 11, 2010
Palestine. 1939. A dying revolution. An Arab family trapped: divided between rebellion and hope for a stable future. True events inspire this compelling story about Arab revolt against British occupation as two nations fight for their stake to land during a period of momentous global change. Emerging playwright Ismail Khalidi lends a bold, contemporary voice to the Israeli/Palestinian history in Tennis in Nablus, the sixth winner of the nationally recognized Kendeda Graduate Playwriting Competition. Off-beat humor abounds in this "tragipoliticomedy" about allegiance, struggle and crisis, where events and people are not what they seem. Sacramento Theatre Company Artistic Director Peggy Shannon directs this new work now playing through February 21 on the intimate Hertz Stage at the ALLIANCE THEATRE. BroadwayWorld brings you the production photos.
Set in Nablus in the spring/early summer of 1939, Tennis in Nablus brings to life the waning days of an Arab revolt that began in 1936, which almost succeeded in driving the British out of Palestine. It is a genre bending look at Palestine's embattled status through the eyes of a lifelong rebel, his wife (a writer of anti-colonial tracts) and his enterprising young nephew.
The nine-member cast includes six local actors - Andrew Benator (Eurydice), Suehyla El- Attar (Bluish), Bart Hansard (A Christmas Carol), Joe Knezevich (Glengarry GLen Ross), Jim Sarbh, and Tom Thon - in addition to Demosthenes Chrysan, Bhavesh Patel and Michael Simpson from New York. (Biographical information on the cast and creative team members may be found in the attached fact sheet.)
Members of the artistic team that will bring this gripping play to life on stage are Brian Sidney Bembridge, set designer; Anne Kennedy, costume designer; Mike Post, lighting designer; and Clay Benning, sound designer.
Performances are Tuesday through Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Jan. 29 - Feb. 21 on the Hertz Stage. There will not be a 2:30 p.m. matinee performance on Saturday, Jan. 30. The Sunday, Feb. 14 show at 2:30 p.m.
will be Audio Described.
Tickets are $25 and $30 and are available at the Woodruff Arts Center Box Office by calling 404.733.5000 or online at www.alliancetheatre.org. Discount rates for groups of 10 or more are available by calling 404.733.4690. Discount rates are also available for members of the military, seniors and students. The ALLIANCE THEATRE is located at the Woodruff Arts Center, corner of Peachtree and 15th Street, in Midtown Atlanta.
Tennis in Nablus is part of the Turner Series on the Hertz Stage. Tennis in Nablus is a recipient of an Edgerton Foundation New American Plays award. Additional Sponsors: Tennis in Nablus is sponsored by Marriott Residence Inn - Official Hotel of the ALLIANCE THEATRE; and The Home Depot - Set Construction Sponsor of the ALLIANCE THEATRE.
For more information on the ALLIANCE THEATRE, visit www.alliancetheatre.org.
Photo Credit: Jeff Gaines
Young Lieutenant Douglas Duff (Joe Knezevich) and General Falbour (Bart Hansard)
Wife Ambara (Suehyla El-Attar), Yusef (Demosthenes Chrysan) and Hajj Waleed (Tom Thon).
Yusef (Demosthenes Chrysan) and Ambara (Suehyla El-Attar)
Ambara (Suehyla El-Attar), Douglas Duff (Joe Knezevich), and Hajj Waleed (Tom Thon, background)
Tariq (Bhavesh Patel) and Hajj Waleed (Tom Thon).
Soldier Rajib (Jim Sarbh, background), and O'Donegal (Michael Simpson)
Yusef (Demosthenes Chrysan)
O'Donegal and Rajib (Michael Simpson and Jim Sarbh), and Yusef (Demosthenes Chrysan, center)
Yusef (Demosthenes Chrysan, seated on ground), and Tariq (Bhavesh Patel)
Yusef (Demosthenes Chrysan, on top), and Tariq (Bhavesh Patel, on the ground)
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