TO THE DEATH OF MY OWN FAMILY is an intensely dramatic nonlinear play about an Afghan-American woman who returns to Afghanistan to help her father escape, only to witness the carnage of her entire family. Upon her return to the U.S., she is detained, interrogated, and forced to justify her journey in order to reclaim her citizenship. We then learn about a deeper, darker secret that has haunted the family for many years, but which they do not want to confront until they are forced to confront each other in the face of death. It is a one-woman show with over 20 characters, but it is not a monologue; rather, time is suspended and no one in the audience knows how long they have been in the theater. This excerpt is from a tour we did in India to sold out house and standing ovations. It starred Farah Bala and was directed by Peter Ratray to great success.
