ENGLISH to Open at Boise Contemporary Theater
Director Vaneh Assadourian leads a powerhouse cast of Iranian and Iranian-American actors in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play.
Boise Contemporary Theater will produce a Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy about how spoken language and personal identity are deeply interconnected. English by Sanaz Toossi, directed by Vaneh Assadourian, previews Wednesday, October 7, and runs through Saturday, October 24, 2026, with evening performances starting at 7:30 PM this season in their newly renovated location on Fulton Street in Downtown Boise.
Kicking off BCT's 26|27 Season, this captivating production dives into heart, humor, and the hilarity of human connection: Am I funny in English? Do we sing with an accent? Is my given name part of my identity? Written by Iranian-American playwright Sanaz Toossi from Orange County, California, English explores how language shapes who we are. Set in 2008 Iran, four adults in an English classroom tackle tricky prepositions and profound personal transformation.
Bringing an authentic, Iranian narrative to the Boise stage, the production features a team of artists, some Iranian-born and Iranian-American: Pantea Ommi (BCT's The Life You Gave Me) and her aunt Shila Ommi (Pixar's Elemental, Apple TV's Tehran), both born in Iran and raised in Los Angeles, share the stage for the first time. They are joined by Fady Demian (Amazon Prime's Terminal List: Dark Wolf), Iranian-American Ariana Mahallati (Pixar's Win or Lose), and Maliha Sayed (Hulu's Deli Boys). Director Vaneh Assadourian, born and raised in Tehran, leads this powerhouse cast in a funny and deeply moving Pulitzer Prize-winning story of identity and belonging.
BCT's Producing Artistic Director Benjamin Burdick added, "We are thrilled to kick off our 26|27 Season of Communication, Connection and Courage with Sanaz Toosi's brilliant, funny, and moving play English. Under Vaneh's vivid direction, these five actors and their incredible talents bring it to life, and it truly soars."
The cast will include Fady Demian (Omid), Ariana Mahallati (Elham), Pantea Ommi (Marjan), Shila Ommi (Roya), and Maliha Sayed (Goli).
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