Cultures clash in sweet, sexy ‘Pilgrims’
Published 12:01 am Friday, June 17, 2011
“Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World”: Seattle playwright Yussef El Guindi combines a culture clash — comedy style — with a sexy and sweet romance to deliver the message that diversity is what makes the world go round.
This new work is being called a “very now” play that follows the st
ory of Musa, an Egyptian cab driver who’s been in America less than a year, as he falls for Sheri, a sassy American waitress with an unfortunate dating history, according to press information about the show.
When love hits him like a bug on a windshield, Musa’s life takes on some unexpected and complicated turns.
Though we are seen as a melting pot, America has faced tough challenges in acceptance since Sept. 11, said director Anita Montgomery, with Americans of Islamic heritage being particularly misunderstood.
“I just love it that Yussef addresses some of these issues from a completely nonpolitical perspective,” Montgomery said in a prepared statement.
“He gives us instead an insider’s view of the confusion of being from somewhere else and trying to fit in, while spinning a delightful, funny and romantic love story.”
“Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World” opens at 8 tonight at ACT Theatre, 700 Union St., Seattle.
Shows are 7 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday (except 7:30 p.m. June 19); 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. selected Saturdays and Sundays through July 17.
Tickets start at $37.50 for adults. Call 206-292-7676 or go to www.acttheatre.org.
Theresa Goffredo: 425-339-3424; goffredo@heraldnet.com.
