Hannah Khalil: Plays of Arabic Heritage

<p>This is the first ever collection of plays by Palestinian-Irish playwright Hannah Khalil; the first woman of Arab heritage to have a main-stage play at the RSC. It encompasses a decade's worth of plays exploring her Arab heritage drawing on family histories as well as significant events in the Arab World. They were all written during a period that included the end of the war in Iraq the intensification of the occupation of Palestine and the birth and disillusion of the so called Arab Spring. <p/>The plays included are set in both a historical and modern context. They include a feminist take on 1001 nights and the Scheherazade story; an exploration of Gertrude Bell the Museum in Baghdad and Britain's role in the birth of the Iraq; plus two plays looking at the Palestinian experience one based on a family living through the creation of the State of Israel in 1948 the other an epic collage that moves in time from 1948 to present day. This anthology also includes a radio play set in Dubai and a monologue about the power and legacy of artefacts. <p/>It's notable that these plays offer a plethora of non-stereotypical roles for actors of Arab heritage. Through the six plays included the reader can trace a variety of approaches to storytelling a host of memorable characters and some unforgettable stories. <p/><b>Plays include: </b> <p/><i>Plan D</i><br><i>Scenes from 73* Years </i><br><i>A Negotiation</i><br><i>Museum in Baghdad</i><br><i>Last of the Pearl Fishers</i><br><i>Hakawatis</i></p>