International Voices Project (IVP), in collaboration with Intercultural Music Production, is proud to announce that the company will present The Shroud Maker, at the Chicago Dramatists, 798 N Aberdeen St., March 16 - April 8, written by Ahmed Masoud, directed by Marina Johnson and starring Roxane Assaf-Lynn with set design by Jonathan Berg-Einhorn and sound design by Ronnie Malley and Eric Backus. The Shroud Maker made its IVP premiere at the 2022 International Voices Project Festival, in association with Uprising Theater, Medina Theater Collective, Intercultural Music Production, to audience acclaim. Previews for The Shroud Maker are Thursday, March 16 and Friday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m. with the press opening Saturday, March 18 at 3 p.m. The regular performance schedule is Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m. Tickets for The Shroud Maker are $20 and are currently on sale. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit IVPChicago.org.
The critically-acclaimed Palestinian writer Ahmed Masoud, who was born and raised in Gaza, has written the story of Hajja Souad, an 80-year old Palestinian woman living on the besieged Gaza Strip, who knows about business. She has survived decades of wars and oppression through making shrouds for the dead. A compelling black comedy, The Shroud Maker delves deep into the intimate life of ordinary Palestinians to weave a highly distinctive path through Palestine’s turbulent past and present. Loosely based on a real-life character still living in Gaza, this solo performance weaves comic fantasy and satire with true stories told first hand to Masoud and offers a vivid portrait of Palestinian life in Gaza underscored with humor.
ABOUT AHMED MASOUD (playwright)
Ahmed Masoud (he/him/his) is the author of the acclaimed novels ”Come What May” (Victorina Press 2022) and ”Vanished – The Mysterious Disappearance of Mustafa Ouda” (Rimal Books 2015). Masoud is a writer and director who grew up in Palestine and moved to the United Kingdom in 2002. In 2019, he worked with Maxine Peake on Obliterated, a theatrical experiment and artistic protest - you may learn about it here. His theatre and radio drama credits include: Application 39 (WDR Radio, Germany 2018); Camouflage (London 2017); The Shroud Maker (London 2015 – still touring); Walaa, Loyalty (London 2014, funded by the Arts Council England), Escape from Gaza (BBC Radio 4 2011). Masoud is the founder of Al Zaytouna Dance Theatre (2005 – 2013) where he wrote and directed many productions with subsequent tours in the UK and Europe, including Unto the Breach (London and Vienna 2012); Between the Fleeting Words (London, Zurich, Freiburg, Ljubljana, Madrid 2010 – 2012); Ila Haif (London, Freiburg 2008-2010) and Hassad (London 2007-2008). After finishing his PhD research, Masoud published many journals and articles including a chapter in the “Britain and Muslim World: A Historical Perspective” (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2011). Most recently, Masoud launched his new artistic initiative called PalArt Collective.
ABOUT MARINA JOHNSON, director
Marina Johnson (she/her/hers/they/them/theirs) is a third-year Ph.D. candidate in Theatre and Performance Studies Department at Stanford University, also pursuing Ph.D. minors in feminist, gender and sexuality studies and critical studies in race and ethnicity. She was a 2021-2022 graduate public service fellow with the Stanford Haas Center. She is the co-artistic director of the Nitery Experimental Theatre on Stanford’s Campus. Johnson has a BA and a BS from Penn State University and received her MFA in directing from the University of Iowa. She is the co-host of “Kunafa and Shay,” a podcast produced by HowlRound Theatre Commons. Johnson is a member of Silk Road Rising’s Polycultural Institute and is an associate literary manager with Golden Thread Productions’ 2023 ReOrient Festival. She has trained with the SITI Company and in the Kennedy Center Directing Lab. Prior to beginning her Ph.D, she was a visiting assistant professor at Beloit College for three years.
Recent directing credits include Shakespeare’s Sisters, The Palestinian Youth Monologues, Supposed Home, Man of God, Five Lesbians Eating a Quiche and In the Next Room at Beloit College. Additionally, she was the assistant director and dramaturg on As Soon As Impossible (Stanford, 2021) and dramaturg and assistant director for Twice, Thrice, Frice at Silk Road Rising (2019). Her work has been published in MATC’s Theatre/Practice, Eumenica and in Arab Stages.
ABOUT ROXANE ASSAF-LYNN, performer
Roxane Assaf-Lynn, originally from New Orleans, moved to Chicago to continue her pursuit of work in the performing and visual arts. While in New Orleans she had leading roles with New Orleans Contemporary Arts Center, Louisiana State University and the Loyola University Opera Workshop.
She has also worked professionally in both cities as a classically trained mezzo-soloist and chorister with additional work as a voiceover artist, which gained Assaf-Lynn her SAG credentials.
At age 35 years old, after ‘discovering’ Palestine, the land of her paternal grandparents and moving to the West Bank as a freelance journalist and contributor to the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, Assaf-Lynn devoted her stage work to original presentations by invitation, such as her own performance piece Now that I'm an Arab,for the Chicago Humanities Festival, a video dramatization for broadcast in the role of esteemed activist Cedar Duaybis, the role of Nabila in the The Voice of Rachel Corrie for American Friends Service Committee and a staged reading of Dr. Robert Hostetter’s The Longing. Her most significant contribution included the launch of Chicago’s venerable Silk Road Theatre Project with Jamil Khoury’s Precious Stones, a two-woman play with six characters and narration that received favorable reviews and an extended run.
Assaf-Lynn received her master’s degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and currently teaches journalism and video reporting at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her reports and opinion pieces as a journalist have appeared in recognized and respected news outlets around the world. Her work and passion continues with volunteering with arts organizations preserving the life of theatre, cabaret and opera, co-founding Chicago Cabaret Professionals and the Chicago Paris Cabaret Connexion, as well as for peace and social justice initiatives.
ABOUT INTERNATIONAL VOICES PROJECT
The International Voices Project (IVP) champions the work of global playwrights by creating opportunities to experience new and contemporary international plays in urban settings and on stages in Chicago. IVP celebrates the mother tongue and fosters work that brings native languages to the forefront. From its inception, Chicago was conceived as the crossroads of the country. The rail lines that crossed the city now symbolize the role that Chicago will play in the future: as the center of international dialogue and design, creating opportunities for artists and audiences alike to experience the most engaging and provocative new plays from around the world. IVP fosters new translations, supports the work of translators and creates ongoing relationships with playwrights from the five continents.
International Voices Project (IVP), in collaboration with Intercultural Music Production, is proud to announce the company will present The Shroud Maker, at the Chicago Dramatists, 798 N Aberdeen St., March 16 - April 8, written by Ahmed Masoud, directed by Maren Johnson and starring Roxane Assaf-Lynn with music composed and performed by Ronnie Malley. The Shroud Maker made its IVP premiere at the 2022 International Voices Project Festival, in association with Uprising Theater, Medina Theater Collective, Intercultural Music Production, to audience acclaim. Previews for The Shroud Maker are Thursday, March 16 and Friday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m. with the press opening Saturday, March 18 at 3 p.m. The regular performance schedule is Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m. Tickets for The Shroud Maker are $20 and are currently on sale.To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.IVPChicago.org.
