Rita was born in Jordan and grew up in Seattle. Through the years she has maintained close ties to the Arab world, as well as to the Arab-American communities throughout the U.S. She founded the Salaam Cultural Museum (SCM) to raise awareness of Arab American cultures and provide support to refugees and immigrants both locally and internationally. Rita is owner and founder of Caravan-Serai Tours, a Seattle travel agency specializing in the Middle East and North Africa. Through her travel agency network she has organized volunteer trips and donation drives for refugees in the Middle East and North Africa since the 1980s. She often labors into the wee hours of the night to solve a person’s problem, putting that person in touch with a lawyer, a city council member, a school principal, a church contact, perhaps even someone who lives on the other side of the country. No one is turned away.

Jen Marlowe is an author/filmmaker/playwright and human rights activist. Her most recent film (based on her documentary play) is There Is A Field focused on Black-Palestinian solidarity. Her most recent book is I Am Troy Davis, written with innocent death row prisoner Troy Davis (who was ultimately executed in 2011) and his sister. Her previous books include The Hour of Sunlight: One Palestinian’s Journey from Prisoner to Peacemaker, and Darfur Diaries: Stories of Survival. Her films include Remembering the Gaza War, Witness Bahrain, One Family in Gaza, Rebuilding Hope: Sudan’s Lost Boys Return Home and Darfur Diaries: Message from Home. For more information about Jen’s work, visit www.donkeysaddle.org.

George Kassis holds a couple of graduate degrees in Engineering and Business, and spent 28 years working for the Boeing company before deciding to retire in early 2021. Though George does not have any theater background, he is into all forms of art, primarily music. George plays the oud and enjoy the classical music of the Arab world. Born and raised in the Galilee area of Palestine, George came to US to study, then settled in Seattle in the late 1980s.

Manal AlSharif - (she/her) is a Palestinian immigrant. Loves seeing Arab theatre grow in the PNW. Happy to be part of Dunya Productions and learn more about what it takes to bring our theatre to this corner of the world. Looking forward to bringing Arab related films to a screen at Dunya Productions soon.

Edward Mast’s plays have been performed in several cities and countries, and he was returning home from his first of many trips to the Occupied Palestinian West Bank when he met Hanna Eady. 

Founding company member Beth, is honored to be part this production team. She is a theatre arts activist and organizer, director, playwright, producer, designer, and educator.