Golden Thread Productions

This week in our 25th Anniversary campaign we are celebrating 25 Years of Activism as our anchor! While all our stage plays have representation, equity, and empowerment at their core, 2 of our programs stand out: first, our ReOrient festival of short plays! ReOrient has proven a haven for topical political discourse from a broad spectrum of artists and perspectives. Embracing the multiplicity of these perspectives has created a space for dynamic explorations of how personal h...istory and political action intersect, time and time again. Producing multiple plays in festival format also allows a powerful intersection of audience identities to interact and share in community with us. ReOrient is just one of the ways Golden Thread has championed Activism and centered Middle Eastern voices during our 25 years. Another 25 years of Art, Activism, and Family is only possible with your support! Help us start this year off strong by donating any amount meaningful to you at linktr.ee/goldenthread, and while you're there take a listen and share our multiple free online offerings!

It's not too late! There's time to have your donation counted before the New Year. Help us start another 25 Years of Art, Activism, and Family by visiting linktr.ee/goldenthread to give any amount that is meaningful to you.

As we highlight Activism in our artistry this week of our 25th Anniversary, we're reminded that even though so much has changed between our very first and most recent stage productions, our anchor has always been Activism. 'Operation No Penetration' was an original adaptation of Aristophanes’ Lysistrata focused on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The play aimed to emphasize the global nature of war in our time and the need for a global peace settlement. Our most recent produ...ction, a co-production with Crowded Fire cut short by the pandemic, 'On the Periphery' focused on the lives of social outcasts in Istanbul’s urban slums mirroring the displacement, migration, and gentrification in the Bay Area. At Golden Thread we are committed to reflecting today’s changing demographics, and we push for equity and representation for Middle Eastern American artists locally and nationally! Visit linktr.ee/goldenthread today to help us start another 25 years of Activism by donating whatever amount is meaningful to you!

This week in our 25th Anniversary campaign, we are celebrating Activism as the center of our artistry. Through 25 years of centering Middle Eastern artists, celebrating diverse narratives, and empowering others through radical inclusivity Golden Thread has intentionally anchored our process to Activism. Our plays reflect today’s changing demographics, and we push for equity and representation for Middle Eastern American artists locally and nationally! Our international audience has felt the impact of advocating for equity and empathy, and centering Middle Eastern voices. What about you? Have you experienced a moment with Golden Thread that made you feel seen or respected? What about our work at Golden Thread inspires the activist in you?

As we round out our celebration of Family here at Golden Thread, we have two more features for you! Our first is now the Associate Artistic Director of Oregon Shakes, and has made his mark across roles and genres with Golden Thread: the ever-talented Evren Odcikin. While many of you are familiar with Evren's prolific directing with us, did you know he joined us first as a scenic designer for ReOrient 2005 (pictured)? Evren quickly endeared himself as a man of many skills, mov...ing from an ensemble performer in workshops of 'Ecstasy: a waterfable' in 2009 to directing the mainstage production. Evren has done web design, translation, marketing, and of course directed many of our mainstage and ReOrient shows! We are inspired by your continue rise to the national recognition you deserve, Evren! If you want to help us continue to create chosen Family and champion Middle Eastern artists, visit our linktr.ee/goldenthread to donate whatever amount is meaningful to you, and to listen to our two debut radio plays: free to access and to share!

NO SUMMARY: Online conversations with artists that don’t fit in a Box

Join us for our second NO SUMMARY livestream episode as we welcome our four commissioned playwrights, all of Arab heritage: Hassan Abdulrazzak, Tariq Hamami, Hannah Khalil, and Mona Mansour. We challenged these four singular voices to write new plays exploring vital themes and unique collaborations inspired by our current reality, and they are rising to that challenge with zeal. Abdulrazzak, Khalil, and Mansour plan to develop a remote collaboration model to co-write a new play, while Hamami will write a play exploring the Black Panthers’ residency in Algeria in the 1960s and 70s. Join us for this episode on October 23rd at 11AM PDT right here on Facebook Live, exploring the intersections of identity, art, and activism during this era of digital content!

As we lead up to our 2nd NO SUMMARY episode on October 23rd at 11AM PDT, we're highlighting our 4 commissioned playwrights! You may remember our premiere productions of Mona Mansour's 'Urge for Glowing' and 'We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War', and we are privileged to highlight this resident artist in her new collaborative commission! We asked Mona what excites her about working with Golden Thread: "I love working with Golden Thread because I never have to explain why stories ab...out the Middle East are relevant. I love working with Golden Thread because I am always free to be adventurous with form, as I work on ideas that are important to all of us as we collaborate. I love working with Golden Thread because they have good taste. I love working with Goden Thread because the opening night food is incredible. #MiddleEasternFood" See more

Have you listened to our debut radio play yet? Our digital content is free to access and to share. You can find more information about what platforms we are one and how to listen at https://goldenthread.org/prod/the-language-of-wild-berries/ Follow Donya and Davood’s marriage over a 10-year span of marriage, jumping back and forth in time, from 2006 to 2016. Discover the identity of a mysterious stranger in the play that seems to follow Donya and Davood everywhere. Journey into the lives of two contemprary Iranian people and experience something of the struggles that unite us. In an era when US-Iran relations are at an all time low, this US English language debut is more vital now than ever.

We want to hear from you: what was your favorite part about our recent NO SUMMARY livestream conversation? Did you learn something new? Did you feel represented in the dialogue?... Was there a question you wanted to ask our creative collaborators? Our second episode launches October 23rd at 11AM PDT! Join us here on Facebook Live to ask questions to our four 2020 Commissions playwrights.

Did you miss the launch of our NO SUMMARY live-stream series? Don't fret: you can still watch the archived conversation. Visit https://goldenthread.org//no-summary-online-conversations/ to find all our watch links. Make sure to set your calendars for our second episode on Friday, October 23rd at 11AM PDT so you don't miss the chance to join the live Q&A with our artists here on Facebook Live!

Happy Indigenous People's Day! Golden Thread celebrates our thriving Indigenous community. The Bay Area is the homeland of multiple Ohlone Tribes, including the Ramaytush in San Francisco, the Chochenyo and the Karkin Confederated Villages of Lisjan, Him'ren, Ohlone Tribe, Inc and Muwekma in East Bay, along with the Bay Miwok, Plains Miwok in Contra Costa, the Yokuts in South Bay and Central Valley. Learn more about ways to support and celebrate our Native communities at The Friendship House in San Francisco, and the Intertribal Friendship House and the Sogorea Te Land Trust in Oakland.

Congratulations to Michael Malek Najjar on the publication of his latest book, Middle Eastern American Theatre. Featuring an interview with Golden Thread's artistic director, Torange Yeghiazarian. That cover photo is from 444 Days by yeghiazarian, premiered by Golden Thread in 2012. Congrats all around! Buy your copy today!

Our livestream conversation series launches here on our Facebook Live today! Join us for NO SUMMARY featuring internationally lauded playwright Naghmeh Samini at 11AM including members of our cast and creative team. Have your questions ready for our live Q&A at the end of the conversation.