The genesis for the story was a pastiche of my feelings regarding an Israeli bomb that killed children playing soccer on the beach, photos and videos of the event, the American invasion of Iraq, Fallujah and IEDs, active-duty soldiers with PTSD, go pills and opiates, the flexing and permissive definition of “enemy combatant,” the American disregard for Black and Brown lives, the similar disregard in Israel for Palestinian lives, what walls between people do, the Pale of Settlement, Clinton’s rendition prisons, Bush’s “Mission Accomplished” and an argument I had with a friend about some of these topics. He took the part of Muhammad and I was Abdelaziz.
Read the full interview here.
"When The Phone Rang" tells of the harrowing journey of Muhammad, a prisoner of war whose mind creates a fragile sanctuary amidst relentless interrogation. It’s a powerful exploration of psychological torment, human resilience, and the blurred lines between reality and imagination.
We’re thrilled to share “When The Phone Rang” as a literary play to reveal its depth and potential in contemporary theater.
Also, I designed a single-page website to be an intuitive and engaging portal to “When The Phone Rang,” focusing on ease of understanding and exploration. This page is primarily for those interested in producing the play, in order to help visualize the various worlds and how they interact.
"When The Phone Rang" tells of the harrowing journey of Muhammad, a prisoner of war whose mind creates a fragile sanctuary amidst relentless interrogation. It’s a powerful exploration of psychological torment, human resilience, and the blurred lines between reality and imagination.
We’re thrilled to share “When The Phone Rang” as a literary play to reveal its depth and potential in contemporary theater.
Also, I designed a single-page website to be an intuitive and engaging portal to “When The Phone Rang,” focusing on ease of understanding and exploration. This page is primarily for those interested in producing the play, in order to help visualize the various worlds and how they interact.
