March 31st through April 22nd, 2023
Preview on March 30th, 2023
Th, Fri, Sat 8:00 PM CST
Sun 3:00 PM CST
Join us as we bring Samer Al-Saber’s new play, Decolonizing Sarah: a hurricane play, to the stage. A finalist in the National Playwrights Conference, this smart, quick-witted, and fast-paced piece explores a modern representation of cultural and racial identities, and how they intertwine with the complexity of love and relationships. Later this summer, this show will be produced in Arabic with The Freedom Theatre in Jenin.
Playwright: Samer Al-Saber
Director: Samer Al-Saber
Co-Producer: Iymen Chehade
Co-Producer: Maren Rosenberg
Stage Manager: JC Widman*
Set & Props Design: Erin Gautille
Costume & Props Design: Rachel Ullrich
Lighting Design: Mary Mouton
Fight Choreography: Danielle Stahl
*Indicates members of actor’s equity association
Cast:
Waleed: Kal Naga/Khaled Abol Naga*
Sarah: Maren Rosenberg
Charles and Neighbor: Whitman Johnson
Melissa and Neighbor: Cat Hermes
Synopsis
During a category 3 hurricane at an isolated Airbnb, while the Corona pandemic rages on, Waleed and Sarah must confront each other and themselves. Charles lurks as Sarah's racially perfect partner. Dangerous encounters occur with armed neighbors. The hurricane within Sarah and Waleed intertwines with the Atlantic hurricane to force a confession in the eye of the storm.
How do they choose when their heart and their politics want different things? Until the final moment, the greater question of their generation persists, will their final choices align with their political and racial visions for a better humanity?
About Samer Al-Saber
Samer Al-Saber is a theatermaker, director, performer, and playwright who works in both Arabic and English. His most recent performances were playing Death in Everybody by Braden Jacobs Jenkins and Malvolio in the Twelfth Night. Selected directorial credits include Betty Shamieh’s As Soon As Impossible, Hasan Abdelrazzak’s The Prophet, Arthur Milner’s Facts, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Diane Samuel’s Kindertransport, Noel Coward’s Private Lives, and Tom Stoppard’s The Real Thing. His work was seen in the USA, Canada, Europe, and the Middle East. Samer is also a theater and performance studies professor at Stanford University, where he is affiliated with the Center for the Comparative Study of Race and Ethnicity and the Abbasi Program in Islamic Studies. He’s excited about his first collaboration with Uprising Theater and to have this new play opening in Chicago.
Trigger Warning
We understand that triggers can be incredibly unique to the individual. Please feel free to reach out about trigger warnings in this piece. We are more than happy to answer any questions you have or address any potential sensitivities in content. We would much rather have every guest feel safe and comfortable than prescribe what is or isn’t worthy of a trigger warning.
Access to the Arts: Pay What You Can Tickets
We believe that art is a necessity, not a luxury, and should be made available to everyone, regardless of income or financial status. For that reason, we’re offering five pay-what-you-can tickets available at the door for every show in this run, first come, first serve.