Same Apartheid Drama, On A New Stage
The Jenin Freedom Theatre wraps its tour of Athol Fugard’s ‘The Island’ in New York City, bringing Palestinian cultural resistance and prisoner experiences to U.S. audiences.
By Matt Surrusco |Published September 29, 2013
NEW YORK — You would think the words “Israel,” “Palestine” and “occupation” would have to be spoken during a theatrical production tackling the Palestinian political prisoner experience.
Not so in the Jenin Freedom Theatre’s adaption of South African playwright Athol Fugard’s “The Island,” which just concluded a four-state U.S. tour, the first Freedom Theatre production performed in English to tour abroad.
The reason: the Palestinian experience in Israeli prisons parallels that of black South African prisoners during the apartheid era, said the actors and director during a post-performance Q&A session Friday in New York City, which included American playwright Tony Kushner and Public Theatre artistic director Oskar Eustis.
Most Palestinians have had some experience with an Israeli military prison. Since 1967, approximately 40 percent of the male population of the Occupied Territories has been detained by Israel, according to the Council for European Palestinian Relations.
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http://972mag.com/same-apartheid-drama-on-a-new-stage/79488/
