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San Jose Mercury News
June 29, 2012


Shakespeare in Three Languages
by Karen D'Souza

What's in a name? Shakespeare Iraq is out to prove that the Bard's English will sound just as sweet mixed with a little Arabic and Kurdish.

Led by Bay Area-educated professor Peter Friedrich, this ambitious band of Iraqi theater students raised more than $30,000 on Kickstarter to fly to the U.S. and fulfill their dream of performing at the fabled Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The troupe of 10 students recently landed in the Bay Area to rehearse at Santa Clara University before making the trek to Ashland for their big debut, with the first performance on Tuesday.

"It is a tremendous challenge but I wanted to show something that this group can do that no one else can," says Friedrich, an SCU alum. "This is what makes them special. It's our trump card."

Sahar Jamal admits she had to screw her courage to the sticking place before tackling the Bard in three languages. She serves as the narrator for this eclectic romp through the canon which mixes soliloquies and silliness in a mashup of Shakespeare and Iraqi culture.

"The first time I went on stage I was dying," admits the 21-year-old during rehearsals at SCU's Fess Parker Theatre. "Shakespeare is totally complicated. Sometimes it's so tough that you hate it but the more you do it, the more you love it."

This unlikely troupe began as a club on campus at the American University of Iraq in Sulaimaniyah but the students were so enthusiastic that they soon staged their first public performance. Friedrich suspects it may have been the first time Shakespeare has ever been staged in English in Iraq.

A rapturous crowd of almost 600 people turned out for the show last July. That historic event caught the attention of the OSF team, who invited the troupe to perform in the festival's Green Show, which features free performances in an outdoor courtyard.

"I am over the moon with excitement about the arrival of the students," says OSF artistic director Bill Rauch. "I suspect we will look upon this visit as one of the most important events in our company's life for many years to come."

It's certainly a midsummer night's dream for these students. Sitting cross-legged on the stage at SCU, they describe themselves as ambassadors from their native land.

"We wanted to show that students from all over Iraq can come together," says Jamal, who also serves as the assistant director. "We are very serious about the work we do."

For the record, the company is extremely diverse, including Arabs, Kurds, Sunnis, Shias and Yazidis, but all of them are united in their love for the world's greatest playwright.

Nawaf Ashur, who spent two years in the Iraqi military working alongside American forces as a translator, instantly felt a connection with the butchery and betrayals of "Julius Caesar."

"Julius Caesar" is so close to the history of Iraq," says the veteran, who was once shot during an ambush. "Every day in Iraq has been a battlefield for years. Power plays, assassinations, dictators."

The soft-spoken 24-year-old hopes to build a cultural bridge between the U.S. and Iraq and banish stereotypes on both sides.

"There are a lot of negative perceptions about Americans in Iraq," he says. "We wanted to meet normal American people, not just soldiers waving guns at checkpoints, and we also wanted them to see that we are not all terrorists."

The solace of comedy is what drew Saman Karim to the group. A natural ham, the 24-year-old excels at the physical hi-jinks that makes his scene from "Two Gentleman of Verona" pop.

"We have had a lot of sorrow in Iraq, now it is time for comedy," says the engineering major. "I don't see the benefit of crying. I want to make people laugh."

Many have expressed surprise that these newbie English speakers would take on the rigors of Shakespearean verse, the Olympics of linguistics, in three languages.

"If you tell an Iraqi student anything is the most difficult kind of anything, believe me they will try to do it," says Friedrich, who cut his teeth in drama at SCU and San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. "They like flying without a net."

The play's the thing, but Friedrich also couldn't wait to show his students the real America. They are touring everything from Google to ACT.

"Most of these students learn about America from movies and music videos," he says. "Because I have close ties here, I thought I could deliver an American experience that was more genuine."

In fact, sometimes the troupers long for more shopping and less pentameter during their American tour.

"I am such a single dad right now," jokes Friedrich as the high-spirited class breaks into a spontaneous song-and-dance routine.

Still, the moxie of this traveling band of players has drawn many admirers.

"To witness what Peter Friedrich has accomplished with his Iraqi students is incredibly inspiring," says Carey Perloff, head of ACT. "It shows that the issues raised by great drama are universal and can speak to people across such a wide range of backgrounds and experiences."

After previews at SCU, the company has chartered a bus to make the 350-mile trek to Ashland, where it performs July 3 through July 8.

Preparing to face some of the most discerning Shakespeare audiences ever, these aspiring thespians are undaunted.

"For us, it's not just about being good, it's about being courageous," says Jamal, "and we are fearless.