Language Rooms

Ahmed is a shining example of the American Dream, successfully landing a big-time position as translator at a top secret detainment facility. But things are not what they seem in this twisted workplace as he soon finds himself dodging shifty video cameras and absurd interoffice mind games. A riveting dark comedy about misguided patriotism and the true meaning of "loyalty," brilliantly shifting between comedy and political suspense with surprising twists along the way.

"Go see LANGUAGE ROOMS now. I bought a ticket with no intention of a review, but Yussef El Guindi is far and away one of the most exciting new playwrights I have heard in years. The story takes place in an unnamed interrogation facility at an undisclosed location, and translator and interrogator Ahmed finds that his loyalty to the CIA and his adopted country, the U.S.A., is suddenly questioned. What could have been a play about issues - terrorism, 9/11, displaced Muslims in a new world - becomes an engaging, funny, scary tale about family, identity and more. Guindi avoids an agitation propaganda approach and lets the story tell itself. This is theatre that makes you think about universal themes that affect all of us." -Tony Frankel, Stage and Cinema

"Sometimes a show is so well-done that you leave the theatre wanting to talk about it. Other you leave speechless ... [LANGUAGE ROOMS] belongs to the latter category ... LANGUAGE ROOMS interrogates the immigrant dream, the dirty foundation of American life, and the concept of truth itself in modern America. Not only the extent to which we can know what's really going on around us, but also the extent to which we can know ourselves ... Powerful seems too trite an adjective to use, but when a show leaves you speechless, you have to make do with the words you have." -Eilish McLean, Drama in the Hood

"Enormously clever ... There's lots going on in this two-act, dialogue-heavy play, and it's to El Guindi's credit that he has achieved such a sweet balance between serious, relevant drama and dark humor (a captive in shackles is asked to fill out a questionnaire evaluating the agency's interrogation methods; torture devices include not only pliers and duct tape but also a honey bear, a carton of milk - because terrorists are assumed to be lactose-intolerant). The plight of the immigrant in America - and the unease we've surely all experienced in relationships with family, government and community - is beautifully captured in the characters of Ahmed and his father, Samir, a Middle Eastern immigrant who was an engineer at home, a shopkeeper in America." -San Franciso Examiner