By CARRIE NEAL
A Seat on the Aisle
We are living in unsettling times, and that cannot help but impact the lens through which we view all kinds of art. So often when reviewing over the past year or so, I’ve thought “this lands differently” or “this hits harder,” or have simply been overwhelmed by the poignancy of the words within the context of our world right now.
When IRT selected English, the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Iranian-American playwright Sanaz Toossi, for their current season they couldn’t have known that the United States would be dropping bombs on Iran by the time the play was performed. But that fact serves to make the setting and subject matter all the more affecting.
English takes place in Karaj, a suburb north of Tehran, but all of the action occurs inside of one classroom. This classroom belongs to Marjan, an instructor for advanced English speakers who is helping her students prepare for the TOEFL exam (Test of English as a Foreign Language). Each of her four students has a unique and compelling reason for taking the course, which is revealed as the 90-minute, one-act play unfolds.
Playwright Toossi uses an ingenious technique to break down the language barrier between Farsi and English: whenever the characters are speaking English, they speak English more haltingly and with an Iranian accent. When they’re speaking Farsi, they also speak English but more rapidly and fluently, with no Iranian accent. It may take a minute or two for audience members to adjust to this device, but it’s astonishingly effective.
Neagheen Homaifar as Marjan. (Photo by Zach Rosing)
As teacher Marjan, Neagheen Homaifar is just the steadying influence we need. Clear-eyed and serene, yet wonderfully emotive as well, she’s the perfect touchstone for her four very different students. At first she seems to exist only as a sounding board, but Marjan turns out to have her own complicated backstory. As oldest student Roya, Leyla Modirzadeh has the smallest but perhaps most impactful role; she begins as comic relief but takes the audience on a journey of devastation. As young Goli, Emelia Maryam Mosay is just beginning her career on stage but you’d never know it; her Ricky Martin monologue is an absolute highlight of the show.
The heart of the play is the character Elham, beautifully portrayed by Natasha Behnam. An aspiring med student, she dreams of studying in Australia but has failed the TOEFL five times. Despite being highly intelligent, English doesn’t come easily to her, so she’s particularly frustrated by her nemesis Omid, played by Revon Yousif. Omid’s facility with English seems to come effortlessly, but he has a secret that might be a factor.
We come to love each and every one of these characters during the six classroom lessons that comprise the course of the play. I must admit that I thought this production might be too niche for the Indianapolis market, but I’m so happy to have been mistaken. Director Azar Kazemi takes us on a journey that I expected to be heartbreaking but which was equally hilarious.
English is a must-see, and will be running at IRT on the Janet Allen Stage (Upperstage) selected dates through April 4. Tickets are available at irtlive.com.
Read more great play reviews from A Seat on the Aisle at asota.wordpress.com.