BWW Reviews: Lesser Known Aspect of Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Explored in 'IT'S WHAT WE DO': A PLAY ABOUT THE OCCUPATION

Drawn from testimonies from former Israeli Defense Force (IDF) soldiers who served in the West Bank and Gaza, Pamela Nice's "It's What We Do": A Play About the Occupation," is unique among this year's offerings at the Capital Fringe. Sure, it was one of the more successful shows in terms of ticket sales - thus earning it a slot in the Fringe extension week - but it also is different because of the challenging material it seeks to relay to its audiences, grounded in one of the world's most well-known conflicts.

The topic of Jewish settlements and Israeli military occupation in Palestinian-held territories like the West Bank and Gaza is an aspect of the current conflict that's not often discussed. Recent television shows like Breaking Borders on the Travel Channel have profiled the challenging - if not controversial topic - and the various viewpoints parties hold, but it may not be well-known to the larger population. In the case of this play, drawn mostly from IDF testimonies found in the book Our Harsh Logic, Nice explores the viewpoint of some IDF soldiers who had the mission of enforcing policies related to border checkpoints, the protection of the Jewish settlements, and what could broadly be labeled "counterterrorism" operations in those areas. Sarah, Avram, and Ilan (Olivia Haller, Tariq Triano, and Keanu Ross-Cabrera - some of the more natural actors in the cast) talk with an interviewer (Dior Ashley Brown, who sits in the back of the house) about their experiences and the conflicting emotions they felt during their time of service as they enforced those policies. Blowing up houses, protecting some of the more fanatical Jewish settlers as they threw rocks at local Palestinians, and enforcing checkpoint policies that weren't always crystal clear were among the duties they were tasked to execute.

As the soldiers respond to the interview questions, we are transported to the West Bank or Gaza to see what happened in the situations they discuss. These situations involve them engaging with everyday Palestinians and, to some extent, Jewish settlers in the West Bank (Moses Bernal, Sofia Pellegrino, Jamal Naijab, Xavier Goytia, and Jaelyn and Izabella Cruz). Nice has rich source material from which to draw, which is the play's primary asset. The source material is well-organized and structured to allow for an exploration of a variety of policies and the group's responses to it. If I were to make one suggestion it would be to use a narrator to explain when these situations took place and insert that into the production. While that may not be important for audience members generally interested in advocating for peace between Israel and Palestine (be it through a two-state solution or another method), it is important for those who look at the conflict from a largely academic lens or those who have done extensive research. It's hugely distracting when the specific era of which we are speaking is not made known, especially to those of us with training in political science or history. Not to mention, if the intent is to educate segments of the population that might not be fully aware of these issues, this kind of information needs to be put forth in a transparent way.

Theatrically-speaking, Nice goes for a barebones approach, which allows the rich material to be the primary, if not sole, focus. However, if the intent is to ensure a future life for the piece in the theatre (as opposed to presentations at schools, advocacy groups, religious organization etc.), Nice may want to consider ways to make it a little more theatrically interesting and improve upon some of the blocking choices.

Clearly, however - as evidenced by the inclusion of a talkback session that's nearly half as long as the play itself - Nice is interested in using the piece to start a conversation. This is a fine, if not admirable, decision. If that is her intent, however, she might consider adding more contextual information to the play with additional narration and perhaps feature other viewpoints -perhaps from other former soldiers that don't espouse the same views - to fully explore the issues at hand from all sides.

Nonetheless, this is the kind of theatre piece one does not often see in the Fringe and it's one with some promise.

Running Time: 65 minutes, not including a talkback.

"IT'S WHAT WE DO": A PLAY ABOUT THE OCCUPATION has one more performance in the Capital Fringe on Sunday, August 2 at 2 PM in the Logan Fringe Art Space's Trinidad Theatre. For additional information and tickets, see the Capital Fringe website.