Displaying items by tag: Bilal Dardai

Language Rooms is a convincing portrait of the hidden world of government interrogators. These individuals use cajolery and flattery, or fear and intimidation, to persuade individuals to spill their secrets – all on behalf of securing the safety of the state.

This two-act piece (one intermission) flies by, as the characters go about their work. But we see as well the impact that these information-gathering activities have on those doing the questioning. Their personal integrity is compromised as they lie to get truthful answers. It also faces us with a distasteful prospect: if our government and our society condones using intimidation and even physical abuse to gather data, are we not complicit?

Language Rooms involves two Arabic-speaking men on an unnamed government investigating team, quartered in a windowless vault with motorized doors that slide open with a whoosh at the touch of a button. Ahmed (Salar Ardebili) is a rookie, and his work is being closely watched by his supervisor, Kevin (Bradford Stevens). His co-worker, Nasser (Bassam Abdelfattah) is apparently even more fluent in Arabic than Ahmed, and is doing his best to help Ahmed with his weaker command of the language.

It soon becomes evident that the same hidden cameras and observational techniques used in questioning suspects are also trained on the men doing the questioning. They speak to each other with siielding their mouths from view, as they try to carry on private conversations. – just like any office, except that they have the continuous impression they are being watched. The manipulative techniques used on the subjects are also part of the office communication.

All of this provides a set up for a workplace wherein paranoia runs rampant. And as a subtext, these Arab-Americans feel they must not only do a good job, but prove their worthiness and loyalty to the government agency they work for - not to mention to society at large. The plot thickens dramatically as a new suspect is brought in, hooded and shackled: Samir (Bilal Dardai). This one, says Kevin, will be the great test for Ahmed, to prove both his loyalty and his competency. To avoid a spoiler here we can only say this sets up a dynamic, powerful tete a tete between the questioner Ahmed and his subject, Samir.

Samir (Bilal Dardai).

As the probe into his "suspicious" behavior goes on, Samir offers truthful answers, but not convincing ones. "You know the problem with being innocent is the facts don't serve you well," he says. "Innocence is not a good story."

This worldly, sophisticated script by Yussef El Guindi feels as though it will become a classic in the existentialist-absurdist roster, along with works like Miss Margarita’s Way or Master Harold and the Boys, plays in which a sinister undercurrent froths just beneath the surface. El Guindi provides a valuable service to us all just by telling this story. That he does it in such a timeless, universal way, will allow it to be told widely – and we hope it will be.

The production boasts extremely strong performances, especially Ardebili as Ahmed, the rookie; and Dardai, who delivers a perfect portrait of a good-hearted immigrant under a torrent of unfair questioning. I had a chance to see this show twice, April 22 and April 26 – and can say Ardebili had refined and heightened his delivery, and the dynamic between Ahmed and Nasser was even more intensely expressed. Director Kaiser Zaki Ahmed specializes in actor-driven new American plays, and has assistant director credits on two recent, illustrious productions: Guards at the Taj (Steppenwolf) and Hand to God (Victory Gardens).

The script is strong, but the first act could have been streamlined just a little, perhaps to give a stronger thrust to the dramatic rise and moment of suspense as it ends. The Broken Nose Theatre production of Language Rooms runs at The Den Theatre through May 18. It is highly recommended. www.brokennosetheatre.com.

As a cook and a big fan of Ina Garten, I was excited to see “The Food Show” on opening night by The Neo-Futurists theatre. The main plot of the story is about family, which is brilliantly defined through cooking. Rather than hold the show at the Neo-Futurium, there was a last-minute change in location as the theatre company is partnering with Metropolitan Brewing in Avondale. 

Upon entering the venue, we were greeted by gentleman who offered us a beer before heading to our bleacher-like seats, similar to what one would find in a football stadium or gymnasium. Yes, this was going to be a different theatre experience.

As we sat down, I noticed Tif Harrison kneading some dough that will later be used to make pasta, which was interesting to watch in itself – and pleasantly strange. I was also happy to see Spencer Meeks who starred in “We Are Going to Die” at Den Theatre earlier this year, who puts on yet another steady performance in this very unusual, yet entertaining, production. The play is divided into seven sections with an opening by Kyra Sims who was visiting from New York. 

One of the most identifiable performers in “The Food Show” is Oliver Camacho who happens to be a chef in his days before acting. He is easy to connect with and, in this particular performance, made what looked to be a perfectly seared salmon. Bilal Dardai is another intriguing character impressed upon the audience who engagingly talks about Islamic constraints of eating pork and his kid's food allergies. 

I want to be clear. The style of cooking in “The Food Show” is not refined like that you would see Ina Garten cooking up in her Hamptons home. Actors before cooking professionals, these chefs were a bit messy and their chopping skills (sorry, Bilal) need some help. But that is all part of the fun in “The Food Show”. After getting past the fact that we are not watching Gordon Ramsay, it’s easy to appreciate what the play really is - sharing life experiences over food and reflecting on where our food comes from. 

The Neo-Futurists' “The Food Show” is being performed at 3031 North Rockwell, right next to the Metropolitan Brewing. Tickets range from $10-$25 and can be purchased at www.neofuturists.org. The show will be playing until September 2nd. My tip to those planning to see this production - wear something light and breezy as there is no air conditioning in the warehouse. 

Redletter is the latest creation by the Neo-Futurists, this piece written by ensemble member Lisa Buscani and directed by Jen Ellison.  As Buscani puts it, “Everyone’s bemoaning about the ‘death of news’. But the news will never die, not as long as humans do newsworthy things.” That’s true…to a point as we see in Redletter when a news team covers a burrito.

Redletter hits on many media related issues such as how the rise of technology has affected the way news is delivered over the years, the mistakes in reporting and transferring the news along with the corrections that go unnoticed (if corrections are even made), the silly stories that have now become news, story oversaturation and the manipulation of media - it’s cause and effect. What you get in Redletter are samples of each while each issue is worthy of its own story and then some. As a viewer I felt a bit teased by the multiple issues brought to the table rather than watching a story that solely focuses on any of the above mentioned subjects. It’s mentioned at one point that a reporter is asked to make up the news leaving hope that corporate and government media manipulation would be addressed in depth, but instead the story jumps back to another questionable form of news delivery. Still, it’s nice to see attention paid to these unethical media practices that go unnoticed by many due to laziness, ignorance, complacency or simply the belief that our trusted news carriers would never purposely dupe the public. Kudos to Buscani for taking the initiative to tackle such a brave subject.

In true Neo-Futurist fashion we get a nice blend of witty humor and subject matter that we can take home and think about afterwards. Buscani is joined by ensemble members Bilal Dardai, Trevor Dawkins, Lindsay Muscato and Thea Lux who together combine for a very amusing cast, each contributing their own unique comic talent to collectively create a smart amalgam of absurd fun. Projections are plenty used in adding oomph to the show’s story including a comical montage of 1970s Robert Redford who Buscani sees as a real media man.

Trevor Dawkins steals much of the show with his genius transformation into his dad, an overly exaggerated portrayal of a hard-nosed CBS news man from the early 1980s who can be found partying at night in the clubs living it up with cocaine and Jack Daniels, but can also just as easily be found at his own “pity party”. Dawkins performance is as energetic as it is hilarious receiving one belly laugh after another from the crowd and in itself is a good enough reason the see Redletter: The News Done Medium Well.  

The bottom line is this play has plenty of funny moments, and though Redletter might be trying to cram in too many issues at once with news and media, it does raise awareness to this important subject and makes us question what we deem as “news” and question the trust that we so often blindly put in the hands of “professional broadcasters and writers”.  

Redletter is playing at The Neo-Futurarium through March 28^th Thursday through Saturday at 7:30pm and tickets are very reasonable at just $20 ($10 for students and seniors). For tickets and/or more information visit www.neofuturists.org or call (773) 275-5255. 

*Photo - Trevor Dawkins