Scandinavian Stage to Present I CALL MY BROTHERS by Jonas Hassen Khemiri

The Scandinavian Cultural Center has announced its first-ever theatrical performance in partnership with the Center for Arabic Culture: I Call My Brothers, on Wednesday, May 11th at 7:30 pm. The play is written by Swedish-Tunisan playwright and author Jonas Hassen Khemiri and directed by Guy Ben-Aharon, founder of Israeli Stage.

I Call My Brothers tells the story of one man in the 24 hours following a bombing. Inspired by the 2010 terrorist bombing in central Stockholm, Khemiri examines the paranoia that sets in after the terror of such an event. It challenges us to examine what "normal" really is as it explores where the line between criminal and victim, and fantasy and reality, blur.

"With Boston experiencing an eerily similar event just three short years later, the audience will experience this challenging piece and be able to reflect on its vitality and universality in a unique post-performance dialogue," says Ben-Aharon, who has also developed German Stage, Swiss Stage, Austrian Stage and French Stage in Boston. "In an increasingly globalized world, it is up to artists to build cultural bridges across borders; this type of work provides audiences a platform to explore contemporary issues in our society through a foreign lens and perspective."

Khemiri is the author of three novels and six plays. His first novel, One Eye Red, received the Boras Tidning award for best literary debut. His second novel, Montecore, (published by Knopf in 2011) won several literary awards including the Swedish Radio Award for best novel of the year. Khemiri's works have been translated into more than 15 languages and his plays have been performed by more than 40 international companies. In 2001, Invasion! received its US premiere in New York and Khemiri was awarded a Village Voice Obie Award for playwrighting.

Ben-Aharon is a Boston-based stage director dedicated to works in translation. An Emerson College alum, Ben-Aharon founded Israeli Stage, followed by German, Swiss, Austrian and French Stage, and since 2010 has produced and directed over 40 translations in the Greater Boston Area.

The award-winning cast includes Boston theater actors Ramona Alexander, Nash Hightower, Nael Nacer (winner of the Elliot Norton Award and IRNE Award) and Gigi Watson.

The production has been made possible by a generous grant from The Barbro Osher Pro Suecia Foundation.

Tickets for the performance are $12 and can be purchased here.

Photo courtesy of the Scandinavian Cultural Center.

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