Brent Askari

In 1976, the artist Andy Warhol, having re-invented himself as the portrait painter of the rich and famous, travels to Tehran to take Polaroids of the Shah of Iran’s wife. Amidst taking in the Crown Jewels and ordering room service caviar, Warhol encounters a young revolutionary who throws his plans into turmoil.

After a civil war in the United States, the Sutton family from Connecticut flees the country, ending up as refugees in the Middle East. The Suttons find themselves impoverished and in the minority, struggling for existence in their new home. Winner of the National New Play Network's Smith Prize For Political Theater.

John and Laura Baron throw their annual White Party -- however, when none of their guests arrive, they grow confused and angry. Feeling like victims and wondering why this is happening to them, John and Laura harbor suspicions toward Mary, the African-American cook; Nando, the Hispanic bartender; and Hank, a Middle Eastern man who shows up even though they didn’t invite him.

ADVICE is a three-character comedy of manners that concerns Ron and Joy, a professional couple who learn that their biggest screw-up of a friend, Gary, has somehow managed to get a self-help book published by a small press. The couple attempts to persuade Gary that he should not quit steady employment to pursue dreams of becoming a life coach; however, in their attempts to set Gary straight, they end up uncovering secrets that throw their relationship into chaos.

An interracial couple enjoys a visit from their college-aged son when a young Muslim woman arrives at their back door looking for safe passage via a new Underground Railroad.

Hard Cell is a comedy concerning Nick Abtahi, an Iranian-American professor whose car breaks down during a cross-country road trip. When a tough local thug falsely identifies the mild-mannered Nick as a terrorist -- and threatens his life -- Nick feels he has no choice but to pose as a bomb-wielding terrorist merely to stay alive. As the situation spirals out of control, Nick uses his attackers' own Islamophobic stereotypes and fears against them, manipulating the situation in order to survive a modern American nightmare.

EXILED KINGS OF PERSIA takes place in Texas in the late 1970’s. Fereydun is a recent college graduate who dreams of opening his own night club back home in Tehran. He tries to recruit his friend, Mehdi, to be his business partner; they fly up to New York to check out Studio 54 as research. Fereydun’s hopes shatter because of the Iranian Revolution; when Ayatollah Khomeini returns to Iran, Fereydun’s final illusion implodes. He suffers a mental breakdown where he calls upon the ancient kings of Persia to come save him.

BENDING REEDS concerns Ali Farzan, a Persian screenwriter who comes home to Boston to attend an early screening of his first produced movie. However, when Ali’s mother learns that his movie features Middle Eastern stereotypes, arguments ensue that expose decades-old family secrets involving key moments in Modern Iranian history… and cause Ali to confront his own identity as a Persian-American.

Gun rights lobbyist Ralph Meers accidentally shoots himself in his hotel room before a major speech. He then attempts to cover it up, leaving disaster in his wake.

Digby’s Home concerns Digby Preston, a prop comic living in Los Angeles, who returns to his small New England town after his first national television appearance. He arrives home hoping that, after his newfound brush with fame, he will finally receive the respect and admiration that he’s felt he’s always deserved – from his family, his ex-girlfriend, and the kids who pushed him around in high school.
He doesn’t.

Greg has arranged a nice, quiet, intimate cocktail party with his wife, Emily, and his stuffy colleague, Professor Stilton. A perfect evening could mean Greg achieves tenure at the college. But when Professor Stilton arrives, Emily and the hors d’oeuvres are missing, Greg’s mother-in-law insists on crashing the party, and Greg’s deadbeat brother is convinced he can somehow help. And what on earth is in the punch? Things couldn’t get any worse. Or could they?

WINNER of the Neil Simon Festival National New Play Contest in 2015. FINALIST for the Reva Shiner Comedy Award and the Mountain Playhouse International Comedy Competition.

Dirty Deeds Downeast concerns hapless policeman Gerard who has the jurisdiction of a small Maine island. The problem? Nobody takes the poor guy seriously as law enforcement.