Sami Abu Wardeh @ Pleasance Dome
Palestinian comic Sami Abu Wardeh presents 70 minutes of devastating history dressed up in an all-singing, all-dancing, joyous romp
In Palestine: Peace De Resistance, Sami Abu Wardeh takes on the almost impossible task of condensing centuries of colonialism, oppression and genocide into seventy minutes – and then to try and make those seventy minutes funny. Almost impossible, but not quite, because Wardeh does just that.
It’s a cleverly constructed show, to say the least. Wardeh gives voice, and occasionally hands, to a whole cast of characters, most crucially to Merguez, a 1960s Palestinian playboy, exiled from his country but quite happy to swap devastation and death for a stolen yacht and gorgeous women. During his philandering he meets and falls in love with Fatimah, an Algerian who teaches him that the quickest course to peace is via resistance.
Wardeh’s acting – his physicality, voice work, facial expressions – would singlehandedly carry this show for much longer than seventy minutes, but, as a nice treat for us, there is so much more peppered throughout. There’s puns and punchlines, the push of a horrifying piece of history then the pull of an impish dance routine. There’s an Irish chat show host, who eases any sincere and necessary points of tension and discomfort with quick quips. There’s hand puppets, and ‘Dear Diary’ entries into hot pink sparkly journals.
All this, and yet Wardeh doesn’t once undermine or diminish the ongoing tirade of terror he, his family, and his country have been subjected to. Quite the opposite, in fact, as Wardeh presents through his ceaseless arsenal of performing talents that there are real people at the centre of this conflict despite how it may be being presented to us via mainstream media; people with flaws, with lovers, silliness, humour, impeccable dancing skills, a proclivity for drinking fancy cocktails, and an unrelenting, innate desire for peace. In the ultimate allegory for comedy, Sami Abu Wardeh presents seventy minutes of fun, frivolous, gleeful optimism whilst simultaneously revealing the true roots, depths and horror of the genocide happening in Gaza.
Sami Abu Wardeh: Peace de Resistance, Pleasance Dome (Ace Dome), until 24 Aug (not 21), 9.45pm, £12-15