Author: Matthew Westphal

María Irene Fornés, Pathbreaking Playwright , Dead At 88

“Arguably the most influential American dramatist whose work hasn’t become a staple of the mainstream repertoire, Fornés, a nine-time Obie winner, carved a special niche in the American theater. Although she was not as well-known as fellow theater maverick Sam Shepard, her playwriting exerted a similar magnetic pull on generations of theater artists inspired by her liberating example.”

How Theatremakers Get Their Work Done Under Egypt’s Dictatorship

“Playwright Rasha Abdel Monem describes the climate that has developed in recent years as ‘cold and fearful,’ given the censorship barriers and lack of funding. You’re either with the regime, she says, or you’re against it. As an artist, you’re afraid to be labeled as a ‘threat to the state,’ the same umbrella term applied to terrorists. Yet the repression has led to a competitive spirit among those artists still trying to produce work … [and] crafty theatre people are finding ways to work around the limitations of censorship.”

Meet The Syrian Expat Philharmonic Orchestra

“[The SEPO’s] roughly 75 musicians perform on traditional orchestral instruments – strings, woodwinds, brass, percussion – occasionally supplemented by instruments from Middle Eastern traditions. In the three years of the orchestra’s existence, it has performed extensively throughout Europe.” DW’s Rick Fulker speaks with the orchestra’s founder and artistic director, Raed Jazbeh.

Italian State Television Suspends Cooking Show Chef Because He Cooks Foreign Food

“Vittorio Castellani, also known as Chef Kumalé, says RAI told him in a telephone call last week that his role [on the program La Prova del Cuoco (The Chef’s Test)] had been temporarily put on hold because producers of the programme, hosted by Elena Isoardi, the girlfriend of Italy’s far-right deputy prime minister, Matteo Salvini, wanted to give more space to ‘multi-regional’ Italian rather than ‘multicultural’ food.”