Director and creator KAREEM FAHMY leads the third of four SINDBAD LABS, running May 31 – June 24. Kareem’s lab, THE TRIUMPHANT [PARTS 3, 4 AND 7], runs from June 13 – 17.

You’ve been working for some time on collecting and amplifying the stories of the LGBTQ community in Egypt as they face increasing violence and persecution. How did you begin doing this? What inspired this work?
This idea stemmed out of a conversation I had with a mentor many years ago. I was feeling a little creatively lost at the time and he suggested that I would be the “ideal” person to tell the story of the experience of gay Middle Eastern people on an American stage. I was really resistant to the idea at first because, while I’m Middle Eastern and culturally Muslim, I was born and raised in Canada and as a result my experience as a gay man has been wildly different than those in Arab countries. But then I realized that I could be a conduit for the stories of these men and women. So I began traveling to the Middle East to meet people and hear about their lives. I quickly realized that they are a largely voiceless community, and that the situation they’re in is way worse that most of us imagine – if we think about it at all. So if this theatre piece in some small way sheds a light on these individuals and their struggles, I’ll have done something I can feel proud of.

What’s your “setting off to sea,” AKA what adventurous, foolhardy thing can’t you stay away from?
It’s not something that I feel comfortable sharing with the world. ;-) But when you watch The Triumphant you might be able to infer it. There’s a lot of me in the piece.

What was your relationship to the source text or even just the story of Sindbad the Sailor? When and how did you realize that your work in Egypt was in conversation with Sindbad?
It’s funny… a few years back I was approached about creating a theatre piece that was inspired by the Middle Eastern mythology (this became my play The In-Between). My initial response was to scoff and say: “What am I going to do? A play about Aladdin? Ali Baba? Sindbad?” These stories from the 1001 are so pervasive in our culture, but have been so bastardized over the years, and have been filtered through a Western lens. When I went back to the source Sindbad stories the thing that leapt out at me was how Sindbad was able to be resilient in the face of huge adversity. His life and those of his companions are constantly at risk, yet they manage to persevere through a reliance of faith and a deep wellspring of courage. It’s beautiful and inspiring and also really dark since at times in order to survive, Sindbad has to do things that rob him of his humanity. As I was thinking about these men who have been imprisoned for being gay, and the way oppressive Middle Eastern regimes are trying to strip them of their rights and freedom, there was this immediate connection between them and Sindbad. I wanted to tell a story about resilience, and hope, and triumph, even when faced with the most dire situation.

As the playwright and director of this piece, how has your process differed from past projects where you’ve only acted as director?
I’ve directed my own work before, but everything about this process has been new and different (and exciting!) to me. I usually develop new work like this over a long period of time. I write, and re-write, and workshop with actors… I think a lot about character and plot and structure. With The Triumphant [Parts 3, 4, and 7] it’s been more a process of channeling directorial ideas into written fragments and piecing them together. The piece doesn’t have a strictly narrative format: there are several different modes of storytelling (naturalism, a heightened “adventure story”, interviews, reporting, memory, fantasy) and it’s in the juxtaposition of these various modes that the piece comes to life. It’s a bit like a theatrical collage, performance art, and a peepshow all at the same time. It’s also the most raw and disturbing piece I’ve ever worked on. It feels dangerous and scary to work on, and I think will feel dangerous and scary to watch.

Which Sindbadian value could you use more of? Pick one and tell me why: DUMB LUCK, SENSE OF ADVENTURE, RADICAL HOSPITALITY, PERSEVERANCE, or RESOURCEFULNESS.
I could definitely use more of a sense of adventure. I think the older I get I’m becoming a little safer (or possibly more fearful). I’m not going to be skydiving any time soon (or ever!)

What’s up next?
The day after The Triumphant closes I go to New York Stage and Film to workshop a brilliant play called On That Day in Amsterdam with playwright Clarence Coo. It’s about the migrant crisis in Europe, seen through the eyes of two young gay men, one an American backpacker and the other a Syrian refugee. Then this fall I’ll be directing the world premiere of Refuge*Malja by Bess Welden at Portland Stage in Maine. It’s about an American photojournalist who has a complicated love affair with a Middle Eastern man. I’m also continuing my work on an adaptation of the beloved Egyptian novel The Yacoubian Building. Oh and I’m getting married this July!

KAREEM FAHMY is a Canadian-born director of Egyptian descent who focuses on new play development. He is a 2017-2018 National Directors Fellow with The O’Neill/NNPN/The Kennedy Center/SDC. He has directed and co-conceived a number of world premiere productions including Sevan K. Greene’s This Time (Rising Circle, New York Times Critics’ Pick), James Scruggs’s 3/Fifths (3LD, New York Times 5 Must-See Shows), and Victor Lesniewski’s Couriers and Contrabands (TBG Theatre). Other NYC credits: Rohina Malik’s The Mecca Tales (Voyage Theater Co.), Adam Kraar’s Alternating Currents (world premiere, Working Theater). Kareem has developed plays with organizations including New York Theatre Workshop (where he is a Usual Suspect), MCC, Second Stage, Soho Rep, New Dramatists, E.S.T., Sundance, The Civilians, and Berkeley Rep. MFA: Columbia.