The Domestic Crusaders
Encyclopedia
The Domestic Crusaders is a play by Wajahat Ali about a Pakistani-American Muslim family. The play made its Off Broadway premiere at the Nuyorican Poets Café
on 9/11/09. The story is about the lives of a Pakistani-American family grappling with their own internal trials and tribulations, the changing dynamics of American society and a globalized, post-9/11 world. McSweeney's
published the play in the Fall of 2010.
-Academy award-winning actress and screenplay writer, Emma Thompson
"This play is brilliant. Moving. Shapely. Clever. Funny. And the cast is amazing!"
—Toni Morrison
, Nobel Prize winning author
"Ali's sensitive treatment of the tensions and triumphs of the Muslim American community gives viewers a rare window into this often discussed but seldom heard member of the American mosaic. His debut play is destined to be a social and cultural phenomena."
--Dalia Mogahed
, President Obama's Advisor on Faith
"Wajahat Ali is a major new voice in American literature. His play is to Muslim American theater what A Raisin in the Sun is to African American theater."
—Pulitzer Prize nominated author Mitch Berman
"The Domestic Crusaders is fast, funny, whip-smart and both constantly surprising and deeply edifying. If you see only one irreverent, hilarious, profound, furious and big-hearted play about a Pakistani-American family living in a post-9-11 world, make it this one."
—Dave Eggers
, Pulitzer Prize nominated author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and author of Zeitoun
The play was featured in a TIME.com video piece called "Making American Muslim Theater."
. The idea for the play came from Ali's writing professor, Ishmael Reed
, who encouraged him to write a theatrical piece that shed light on the inner lives of American Muslims, an increasingly marginalized American religious community.
In 2004, the play established its "grassroots/seat of the pants" mode of operation with a series of staged readings launched at the Mehran Restaurant in Newark, California, a popular hub for community and family events of San Francisco Bay Area's South Asians, and continued with Oakland Public Library sponsored events.
Ali explained his choice of the play's ironic title in the February, 2011 issue of American Theatre, saying it refers to "hundreds of years of alleged inherent acrimony between the West and Islam....I wanted to reframe that within this multi-hyphenated Muslim-American family. These 'crusaders,' instead of being blood-thirsty warmongers, are nuanced, hypocritical, self-involved, quirky people. Instead of Kalashnikovs and swords and missiles, we see them fighting with stinging barbs and wit and regrets and secrets--good old-fashioned drama and melodrama."
. The play was and continues to be directed by acclaimed choreographer & director, Carla Blank. Its NYC debut, on 9/11/2009 at the Nuyorican Poets Café
was followed by a sold-out five week run, which broke attendance records for plays at this landmark Off Broadway theater. In his Nuyorican program notes, Ali said he chose this date because "I believe by proactively confronting the history of that day through art and dialogue we can finally move beyond the anger, the violence, the extremism, the separatism, the pain and the regret, and build a bridge of understanding and reconciliation."
The play received its international premiere performances at MuslimFest in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada on July 31st and August 1, 2010, and was showcased in Washington, D.C.'s Atlas Performing Arts Center 11/12/2010 and the Kennedy Center's Millennium Hall on 11/14/2010. The one hour performance of Act One remains archived on the Kennedy Center website.
Nuyorican Poets Café
The Nuyorican Poets Café is a non-profit organization in Alphabet City, Manhattan. It is a bastion of the Nuyorican art movement in New York City, USA, and has become a forum for poetry, music, hip hop, video, visual arts, comedy and theatre.-History:...
on 9/11/09. The story is about the lives of a Pakistani-American family grappling with their own internal trials and tribulations, the changing dynamics of American society and a globalized, post-9/11 world. McSweeney's
McSweeney's
McSweeney's is an American publishing house founded by editor Dave Eggers.Apart from its book list, McSweeney's is responsible for four regular publications: the quarterly literary journal,...
published the play in the Fall of 2010.
Plot
With a keen sense of timing, this dramatic-comedy utilizes the generational and culture-driven political and social evolution of American society following 9/11. Six members of a Pakistani-American Muslim family, spanning three generations, reunite at the family home to celebrate the youngest son's 21st birthday. Each individual family member, or "domestic crusader", attempts to assert his or her individual definition of self and destiny in the face of collective family and societal constraints, fears and misunderstandings.Setting
The play takes place over the course of one day during the present time, in an upper middle class suburban family home of a Muslim American family of Pakistani origins.Reviews
"The Domestic Crusaders is exactly the sort of theater we need today. The gulf that separates cultures must be bridged and Art is one of our best hopes."-Academy award-winning actress and screenplay writer, Emma Thompson
Emma Thompson
Emma Thompson is a British actress, comedian and screenwriter. Her first major film role was in the 1989 romantic comedy The Tall Guy. In 1992, Thompson won multiple acting awards, including an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for Best Actress, for her performance in the British drama Howards End...
"This play is brilliant. Moving. Shapely. Clever. Funny. And the cast is amazing!"
—Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, editor, and professor. Her novels are known for their epic themes, vivid dialogue, and richly detailed characters. Among her best known novels are The Bluest Eye, Song of Solomon and Beloved...
, Nobel Prize winning author
"Ali's sensitive treatment of the tensions and triumphs of the Muslim American community gives viewers a rare window into this often discussed but seldom heard member of the American mosaic. His debut play is destined to be a social and cultural phenomena."
--Dalia Mogahed
Dalia Mogahed
Dalia Mogahed is an American Muslim scholar of Egyptian origin. She is the Executive Director of the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies, a non-partisan research center that provides data and analysis to reflect the views of Muslims all over the world. She was selected as an advisor by U.S...
, President Obama's Advisor on Faith
"Wajahat Ali is a major new voice in American literature. His play is to Muslim American theater what A Raisin in the Sun is to African American theater."
—Pulitzer Prize nominated author Mitch Berman
Mitch Berman
Mitch Berman is an American fiction writer known for his imaginative range, exploration of characters beyond the margins of society, lush prose style and dark humor.-Time Capsule:...
"The Domestic Crusaders is fast, funny, whip-smart and both constantly surprising and deeply edifying. If you see only one irreverent, hilarious, profound, furious and big-hearted play about a Pakistani-American family living in a post-9-11 world, make it this one."
—Dave Eggers
Dave Eggers
Dave Eggers is an American writer, editor, and publisher. He is known for the best-selling memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and for his more recent work as a screenwriter. He is also the co-founder of the literacy project 826 Valencia.-Life:Eggers was born in Boston, Massachusetts,...
, Pulitzer Prize nominated author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and author of Zeitoun
Zeitoun
Our Lady of Zeitoun, also known simply as El-Zeitoun, Zeitun or rarely Our Lady of Light, was a mass Marian apparition that occurred in the Zeitoun district of Cairo, Egypt, over a period of 2–3 years beginning on April 2, 1968.-Apparition:...
The play was featured in a TIME.com video piece called "Making American Muslim Theater."
Characters
- Hakim is the grandfather, a retired, Pakistani army officer, played by Abbas Zaidi, Saqib Mausoof, and Swaraj Sehajpal.
- Salman is the middle-aged son who oscillates between prideful exuberance and the daily grind that preys on his feelings of self-worth, played by Imran Javaid, Atif Qureshi, and Shahab Riazi.
- Khulsoom is Salman's wife who misses her native land and struggles to impart her traditional values onto her American-raised children, played by Nidhi Singh, Vidhu Singh, and Deepti GuptaDeepti GuptaDeepti Gupta is an Indian-American actress who lives in New York City. She was born and raised in Delhi, India.Deepti got her MFA in Acting from University of Texas in Austin, Texas. She also has an MA in Theatre Studies from National University of Singapore in Singapore...
. - Salahuddin is the eldest son who is a successful businessman, played by Kamran KhanKamran KhanKamran Khan may refer to:* Kamran Khan , Geo TV presenter* Kamran Khan , Indian cricketer* Kamran Khan , football player* Kamran Khan , Actor / Photographer...
, Kashif Naqvi, and Paras Chaudhari. - Fatima is the middle child and a social justice activist, played by Monisha Shiva, Sadiya Shaikh and Khushboo Shah.
- Ghafur is the youngest child, played by Adeel AhmedAdeel AhmedAdeel Ahmed is an American stage, television and film actor, whose career began following his first year at St. John's University when he made his television debut in an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent.-Career:...
, Atif Naqvi, and Ali KhanAli KhanAli Khan is a citizen of Pakistan, and a permanent resident of the United States.One of his sons, Majid Khan, was held in extrajudicial detention, in secret interrogation centers, run by the CIA, for four years....
, with Imran W. Sheikh as the understudy for all the male roles.
History
Ali, who is an attorney and writer in the Bay Area, began writing the play in 2001 while studying at the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. The idea for the play came from Ali's writing professor, Ishmael Reed
Ishmael Reed
Ishmael Scott Reed is an American poet, essayist, and novelist. A prominent African-American literary figure, Reed is known for his satirical works challenging American political culture, and highlighting political and cultural oppression.Reed has been described as one of the most controversial...
, who encouraged him to write a theatrical piece that shed light on the inner lives of American Muslims, an increasingly marginalized American religious community.
In 2004, the play established its "grassroots/seat of the pants" mode of operation with a series of staged readings launched at the Mehran Restaurant in Newark, California, a popular hub for community and family events of San Francisco Bay Area's South Asians, and continued with Oakland Public Library sponsored events.
Ali explained his choice of the play's ironic title in the February, 2011 issue of American Theatre, saying it refers to "hundreds of years of alleged inherent acrimony between the West and Islam....I wanted to reframe that within this multi-hyphenated Muslim-American family. These 'crusaders,' instead of being blood-thirsty warmongers, are nuanced, hypocritical, self-involved, quirky people. Instead of Kalashnikovs and swords and missiles, we see them fighting with stinging barbs and wit and regrets and secrets--good old-fashioned drama and melodrama."
Premiere
The two act play officially premiered as a 2005 showcase production at the Tony Award winning Berkeley Repertory TheatreBerkeley Repertory Theatre
Berkeley Repertory Theatre is a regional theater company located in Berkeley, California. It was founded in 1968, as the East Bay’s first resident professional theatre. Michael Leibert was the founding artistic director, who was then succeeded by Sharon Ott in 1984. The company runs seven...
. The play was and continues to be directed by acclaimed choreographer & director, Carla Blank. Its NYC debut, on 9/11/2009 at the Nuyorican Poets Café
Nuyorican Poets Café
The Nuyorican Poets Café is a non-profit organization in Alphabet City, Manhattan. It is a bastion of the Nuyorican art movement in New York City, USA, and has become a forum for poetry, music, hip hop, video, visual arts, comedy and theatre.-History:...
was followed by a sold-out five week run, which broke attendance records for plays at this landmark Off Broadway theater. In his Nuyorican program notes, Ali said he chose this date because "I believe by proactively confronting the history of that day through art and dialogue we can finally move beyond the anger, the violence, the extremism, the separatism, the pain and the regret, and build a bridge of understanding and reconciliation."
The play received its international premiere performances at MuslimFest in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada on July 31st and August 1, 2010, and was showcased in Washington, D.C.'s Atlas Performing Arts Center 11/12/2010 and the Kennedy Center's Millennium Hall on 11/14/2010. The one hour performance of Act One remains archived on the Kennedy Center website.