Can you believe it?!

We are just starting our 12th year serving greater Los Angeles. Don Heckman wrote the first LA Times article about us, positively reviewing our first public program, in a Calendar review published June 25, 2001. (We received another thumbs-up review in December 2001 by theatre critic Don Shirley and many more LA Times articles since.) 

Get some comic relief and laugh about the Middle East with one of L.A's hottest comedy group, the Sultans of Satire, in a special performance featuring Middle Eastern comics with guest star K-von. The Sultans of Satire are seriously funny-if you love to laugh, if you need to laugh, you'll appreciate this show with its satirical insights and fresh perspectives on American and Middle Eastern life. The humor is universal; the comedans hail from the Middle East and North Africa! This show's cast features Noël Elgrably, Zara Mizrahi, Sammy Obeid and Mona Shaikh, with specal guest K-von. The Sultans of Satire is the longest-running Middle Eastern stand-up comedy show in the U.S. Features some of the best young stand-up comedians today from diverse faiths. This show cosponsored by Freedom Theatre West. Tickets/info 323.413.2001. Watch video clips at sultansofsatire.com.

Freedom Theatre West, the Middle Eastern theatre company, presents Cynthia Sophiea's one-woman show,Everyone Has Tears (running time 70 minutes, no intermission) for two nights only at the Imagined Life Theater, March 29 and 30, 2013, at 8 pm. With a long career spanning the Broadway stage as well as screen and television, Cynthia Sophiea shines in this very personal performance, fresh from her dazzling success in a preview version in the 2013 Los Angeles Women's Theater Festival. Accompanied by Arabic music, this piece tells the story of a woman—American, Lebanese, Palestinian—afraid to be Arab in America. But she is silent no more, claiming her own voice and giving voice to others rarely heard.. Seating is limited, tickets are $30 for Preferred Seating, $20 General Admission, and there a limited number of member/student priced seats at just $15. Hurry, these shows will sell out quickly. Call 323.413.2001 to reserve by phone, or click above to reserve online.

Freedom Theatre West, the Middle Eastern theatre company, presents Cynthia Sophiea's one-woman show, Everyone Has Tears (running time 70 minutes, no intermission) for two nights only at the Imagined Life Theater, March 29 and 30, 2013, at 8 pm. With a long career spanning the Broadway stage as well as screen and television, Cynthia Sophiea shines in this very personal performance, fresh from her dazzling success in a preview version in the 2013 Los Angeles Women's Theater Festival. Accompanied by Arabic music, this piece tells the story of a woman—American, Lebanese, Palestinian—afraid to be Arab in America. But she is silent no more, claiming her own voice and giving voice to others rarely heard.. Seating is limited, tickets are $30 for Preferred Seating, $20 General Admission, and there a limited number of member/student priced seats at just $15. Hurry, these shows will sell out quickly. Call 323.413.2001 to reserve by phone, or click above to reserve online.

ON the 10th anniversary of the death of International Solidarity Movement peace activist Rachel Corrie, who was crushed by an IDF bulldozer while attempting to defend a Palestinian home in Gaza, host Khadija Anderson and the Levantaine Cultural Center invite you to share in an evening of poetry and music on behalf of Palestine. Los Angeles poets Arminé Iknadossian, Arash Saedinia and Khadija Anderson will read from their own work, and from Palestinian poets at home and in the diaspora. Ambient Oud artist Dann Torres performs on oud and guitars. A short film will screen. Café-bar open. Work of poets to include Taha Muhammad Ali, Laila 'Allush, Donia El-Amal Ismail, Siham Da'oud, Mahmoud Darwish, Najwan Darwish, Nathalie Handal, Annemarie Jacir. Fady Joudah, Samih al-Qasim, Islam Samhan, Mai Sayigh, Naomi Shihab Nye, Fadwa Tuqan, Ghassan Zaqtan. This literary event is one in a series celebrating literacy and the Middle East under the aegis of the NEA's Big Read program, supported locally by the Los Angeles Dept. of Cultural Affairs. 

The Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival (LAWTF) presents its star-studded Emerald Anniversary, "A Perfect 20!" marking 20 years producing close to 500 extraordinary multicultural and multi-disciplined solo performers from around the globe. The LAWTF presents performances March 21-24 at the Renberg Theatre located at the LA Gay & Lesbian Center, 1125 McCadden Place, Hollywood, CA 90038. The gala on March 21 will be hosted by Danny Glover and Hattie Winston, and on March 22, 8 pm, Levantine member, actress Cynthia Sophiea, will perform her play Everyone Has Tears. Accompanied by Arabic music, an Arab American woman faces the challenges of being Lebanese and Palestinian in America. She gives voices to those rarely heard. Reservations, 818.760.0408. Visit the Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival web site at http://www.lawtf.com.

New comedians added: Omid Singh and Amir K. Hilarious! Outrageous! Do you want satirical insights on the Middle East? Ready for a fresh and funny perspective on American and Middle Eastern life? Need to laugh about it all? The Sultans of Satire show features some of the best stand-up comedians today who just happen to be of Arab, Iranian, Pakistani and Middle Eastern Jewish heritage. This edition of Middle East Comic Relief features (Egyptian American) Omar Elba who hosts, along with (Pakistani American) Mona Shaikh, (Jordanian American) Mike Batayeh, (Sephardic American) Noël Elgrably and special guests Omid Singh (Iranian-Indian) and Amir K. (Iranian), with a special appearance by (Indian Jewish) Samson Koletkar from the Bay Area. 

This world premiere comments on war and peace through the eyes of seven women characters. It runs for two weekends at The Imagined Life Theatre on San Vicente, with a special performance one night only at The Museum of Tolerance on Oct. 18. Carry the World: Women and Peace stars Shohreh Aghdashloo along with Yareli Arizmendi, Alexandra Chun, Colleen Duffy, Constance Ejuma, Jennifer Hasty, and Katarina Radivojevic. It is a new piece of theatre adapted from interviews and inspired by Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, Marissa Roth's exhibition "One Person Crying: Women and War." Roth's exhibit is currently on view through October 18, 2012 at the Museum of Tolerance.

LOS ANGELES WILL BE HOME TO FIRST MULTIDISCIPLINARY ARTS CENTER
FOR THE MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA, OPENING JAN 2013

After over a decade of presenting arts and education programs in Southern California, the Levantine Cultural Center (LCC)—a 501c3 nonprofit organization that champions diverse cultures from Morocco to Afghanistan—has embarked on a 6-month campaign to raise $2 million. The Center will re-open in a new 10,000 square foot multidisciplinary space in January 2013. The LCC presents arts that promote inter-cultural dialogue and friendship, including film, theatre, music, art exhibits, author talks, classes and workshops.