Friday night completely changed the focus of the piece I’d been intending to write, and reminded me – yet again – of the transformative power of art. You see, on Friday night I went along to Wolverhampton Arts Centre and watched Peace de Resistance, a one-man show performed by the force of nature that is Sami Abu Wardeh.
It. Is. Phenomenal.
There’s no way that a show which looks at colonialism, resistance, and the Palestinians’ loss of their homeland should even begin to be the slightest bit funny, but Sami has created a one-hour piece of theatre which is informative, unflinching, and laugh-out-loud hilarious. It’s beautifully produced, impeccably delivered, Sami’s energy levels never drop, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. Any show which starts with the artist walking onstage to Chumbawamba’s acapella song The Day the Nazi Died is off to a very good start in my book, and what followed more than lived up to that.
Do yourself a favour. Go and watch this show. My amateurish trawling of the internet reveals that Sami is taking it to Basingstoke, Bristol, and Birmingham before moving on to other letters of the alphabet and visiting Ipswich, Lowestoft, and Cambridge. He may be going to other places too. I hope so.
Don’t take my word for how good this show is. Check out reviews of Peace de Resistance – and buy your tickets to see it – here.
Sometimes, it’s a joy to point folk towards artists who excel at what they do. This is one of those times.
See the show, people. And thank me later.