Yussef El Guindi

Gods with issues. “Set in Stone” is a loose retelling of the ancient Egyptian myth of Isis, Osiris, Set and Nephthys, as they both reenact their story (the overthrow of Osiris by Set; Set dismembering Osiris into 14 pieces; the attempted gathering of those pieces by Isis and Nephthys, etc.), even as they attempt to change that story. Only to discover that even the gods are pawns to the fates assigned to them.

A play of kings and queens and petty family dynamics, and the assigned roles that even the gods can’t escape.

Love, politics, and art and the struggle to maintain the idealism of all three in the face of various corrupting forces.  A young man and an older woman meet in a bar on Senate Election Night and return to the young man's apartment. Both are reluctant to reveal too much about themselves and withhold information that would affect the relationship. What are their secrets? Are there hidden agendas? They flirt, drink, and fall into bed. It's only when the woman’s husband, a newly elected Senator, shows up unannounced, that it becomes clear who they are and what's at stake.

Sakinah, an Arab American woman, undergoes a mental health evaluation to determine what led to the violent crime she committed against Emily, a rich heiress. The play explores race, class, privilege, and how those factors collide and play out in today’s culture.

No matter where you live, the ups and downs of married life are universal. For a middle-aged American couple traveling to Egypt on a business trip-slash-vacation, their relationship is put to the test when an old connection leads to new temptation. Drawing from the political, cultural and religious realities of living in the region, this fiery drama set in the heat of Cairo pits loyalty against attraction as its characters grapple with the ever-changing realities of staying committed to their partners.”

When a teenager attempts suicide by hanging in a wooded area, the tree that he's using refuses to cooperate. A conversation ensues between this enchanted tree and the teenager. A couple from another time emerge and try to dissuade the teenager from ending his life. The couple have their own past with the tree and suicide; and as the teenager works through his demons, they work through theirs. “The Hanging Tree” is a fable of teenage angst and racial divides which explores love, death, and choice using magical realism and memory.

Jason returns from war to literary glory after writing an international best-seller, but his celebrity is underscored by his marriage to Madeeha, an Iraqi woman he saved. When he reunites with old friends, Amir and Lynn, questions emerge about the veracity of the book and its particular patriotic American gaze. Lust, jealousy, and personal politics bring things between old friends to a boiling point and we are asked “what is the expense of lies – personally and as a country?

A one-woman show about intimacy and consent. Cass, a perturbed actor in a search for truth, welcomes the audience into her bed and her psyche as she rationalizes her thirst for attention with her personal boundaries. Through intimate, intertwining stories about her experiences with men, the audience gets to know Cass and feel, as she does, the presence of the unnamed collaborator who made all this possible.

The American Dream teeters on the edge of the abyss as immigrants Cindy and Omar face their thwarted dreams and unraveling marriage, while Omar’s buddy Patrick connives to push them over the edge. In this surprisingly funny dark comedy, trouble erupts one night when bad choices are followed by extremely bad choices. The stakes become lethal as these characters manipulate the truth and do anything to justify their desires. Mixing realism with memory and dance, The Talented Ones explores the extra pressure to succeed that immigrant children experience as they try to balance aspiration and reality. Cindy and Omar (and their counterparts) may be cast with actors of any ethnicity except white/European.

Anyone who has ever looked for love know the dilemma. Do you make a safe, sensible match? Or take a risk on an exciting someone who might—just might—be the One Great Romance of your life? Musa, an Egyptian immigrant, and Sheri, a very quirky Caucasian waitress, must negotiate the twists and turns of not only love but cultural expectations in this charming romantic comedy with a delightful twist.

East meets West meets mayhem in this Muslim-American family comedy evoking universal themes of faith, culture, belonging, and desire. Ten Acrobats adds a new chapter to the American immigrant narrative.

Struggling writer Gamal hates the way his fellow Arab-Americans represent their culture on American media. It’s easy enough to take out his frustration on literature superstar Mohsen and local mosque leader, Sheikh Alfani. But when his own girlfriend and novelist Noor gets an offer from a major publisher backed with a national media campaign, how will Gamal manage his frustration?

BACK OF THE THROAT is the tale of an apparently friendly visit by two government officials, which soon devolves into a full-blown, no-holds-barred probe. Khaled, an Arab-American writer and the focus of their inquiry, finds himself, to his astonishment, suddenly accused of possible ties to terrorists. As the interrogation proceeds, the officials reveal their evidence, but is it evidence? Or have innocent events been distorted through the lens of paranoid suspicion? As the situation turns increasingly surreal, and the menace to Khaled increasingly real, the question of what it means to be an American takes on a very personal and charged significance. A chilling black comedy, BACK OF THE THROAT confronts bureaucratic euphemisms like "person of interest" and "extraordinary rendition" with the frightening reality they seek to obscure.