Yussef El Guindi’s Back of the Throat premiered in 2005, as wars dragged on in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the same time, Arab and Muslim culture had a brief moment of popularity in American theatre, partly to counteract Bush-era politics and stereotypes. The play is about an Arab-American writer named Khaled who is trapped in a violent, Kafkaesque encounter with federal agents who suspect he is linked to a dead terrorist. Does the play hold up thirteen years later? It’s early to say; this production at Brown, directed by senior Ahmed Ashour, runs for one weekend only.
Back of the Throat
