Students perform staged reading of The Domestic Crusaders

By Alex McClung | Originally Published: 02/08/12 11:19pm |Modified: 02/09/12 11:38pm | No comments

A handful of music stands and seven chairs were all that filled the set of “The Domestic Crusaders” on Wednesday night at the Kellogg Center’s auditorium.

A seven-person cast of students performed a staged reading of the play written by Wajahat Ali depicting the troubles felt by a Muslim Pakastani-American family in the U.S. post-Sept. 11.
There were few movements and no breaks between scenes during the reading.

“A staged reading is really focused on the playwright’s words,” said Lynn Lammers, the play’s director and artistic coordinator of MSU’s Transforming Theatre Ensemble. “There isn’t a lot of blocking or an elaborate set.”

The play was presented as a part of Migrations of Islam: Muslim American Popular Culture in the 21st Century, a project funded by a $100,000 grant to the Muslim Studies Program and the Asian Studies Center from the Social Science Research Council, a nonprofit organization that helps advance social sciences.

The play also depicted the media’s misrepresentations and stereotyping of Muslims.

Because the play was a staged reading, the cast had minimal rehearsal time, Lammers said.

“We did a couple of rehearsals for specific scenes in the play and two with the whole cast,” Lammers said. “We had just a few rehearsals so that the actors could get a sense of what they’re reading.”

Ali sat in the audience during Wednesday night’s performance and watched as his play came to life.

“I think (the cast) did very well for a staged reading,” he said. “It’s keeping the audience’s interest and (the cast members) are getting into the groove of the characters at various points. I’m very impressed.”

Ali wrote the play 10 years ago for a short story seminar during his years studying at University of California, Berkeley.

“My professor told me to write a play or else I’d fail,” Ali said. “He encouraged me to write about my own family.”

Ali said the play is more relevant in today’s culture than it was when he wrote it a decade ago.

“I don’t know if (it’s relevance) is a good or bad thing,” Ali said. “It’s the environment we live in.”
Social work senior Lauren Jones, who attended the reading Wednesday, said she enjoyed the cast’s rendition of the play.

“It’s interesting to see what Muslim families go through,” Jones said. “Coming from a small town that doesn’t really have any Muslims, it brings about a new perspective.”

Wednesday night’s performance was the first of three for the cast. Another performance will be held 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Arab American National Museum, 13624 Michigan Ave., in Dearborn, and 7 p.m. Friday at the Cook-DeWitt Center, 1110 Kirkhof Center One Campus Drive.
Allendale.

“It’s exciting taking it on the road,” Lammers said. “With MSU being a land-grant university, it’s good to take it to the community.”