The Shows of Elmaz Abinader
with music by Tony Khalife
performed by the Country of Origin Band

Country of Origin, debuted 1997, University of California,










Ramadan Moon, debuted 1999, Porter Troupe Gallery



32 Mohammeds, debuted, 2004 University of North Dakota





32 Mohammeds, debuted 2002 University of San Francisco







The Torture Quartet, debuted 2005, University of San Francisco









Voices From the Siege, debuted 2006, La Pena Cultural Center
Eight writers, poets and performers respond to e-mails from Gaza and
Lebanon during the Invasions of 2006. Combining poetry,  monologue and
music, this CeaseFire Presentation creates an emotional dialogue between
the people under seige and the sense of poetic witness. The artists change
for each production and include local artists. It runs 90 minutes,
   In the shadow of Abu Gharib, this play with poetry tells the story of four
victims of a torture including one of the soldiers. From the lips of the mother,
the prisoner, the interpreter and the torturer, the unheard voices that are
affected by the humiliation of a race.
   it can be performed as a one-person show or with four actors and with
media -runs 75 minutes
   While teaching in Egypt, the narrator connects her students with other
Arabs in Palestine and the different lives they lead. Focusing on the lives of
children living under siege, the story of Mohammed al Durra is dramatized.
   Original music by Tony Khalife.
   It runs 35 minutes
   The  notions of the veil, of the practices of Islam and the role of women in
the Arab world are explored through the playwright's experience with her
first interactions with veiled societies and the company of women in the
Middle East and Gulf countries. Using some old movies clips, and costume
changes, the show is a one-woman monologue that is both funny and
impacting.
   It runs 60 minutes
   The winner of two Drammy Awards, this three-act play is a portrait of
three generations of women: Marwa, the small village mother who travels
with her daughters to the U.S. in search of her husband: Elizabeth,
Lebanon-born, American-raised daughter sent back to the "old country" to
marry her first cousin; and Elmaz, a seven-year old who faces racism and
self-loathing in a small Pennsylvania town.
   The show is done as an evening (1:25) or in separate acts (25-35)
performance times
may be adjusted per
show