PARADISE by Laura Maria Censabella

Ms. Censabella’s play, PARADISE, directed by Virginia Reed, is the story of Yasmeen Al-Hamadi a Muslim, Yemeni-American senior at a struggling inner-city Bronx high school. Dr. Guy Royston is her disaffected science teacher, a former Evangelical with a mysterious past. An unlikely research team, together they embark on a neurological study, leading to stormy conflicts over love, faith and culture.

In the story Yasmeen Al-Hamadi (Guest Artist, Tooba Imran) is a Muslim, Yemeni-American senior at a struggling inner-city Bronx high school. Dr. Guy Royston (MTC newcomer, Lucas Eli)  is her disaffected science teacher, a former Evangelical with a mysterious past.

Along the way, both Yasmeen and Dr. Royston learn from each other. They wind up collaborating on a scientific experiment testing the neurological effects of first love, using the other students in the school as their test subjects. Yasmeen also schools her teacher on Islam, correcting misconceptions, and in effect sharing with him her love of her religion. In the end, they are both tested . You could say each is faced with an ethical dilemma, but in a real – and fresh — way, what’s most tested is their love.

• “A RIVETING TWO-HANDER … Paradise engages both the head and the heart, until a final, light-shedding gesture adds another bit of poetry to mix in with its science.” — Boston Globe
• “WOW! … Intelligent, thought-provoking, compelling, heartbreaking, and satisfying … deserves national attention.” — Stage Scene LA
• “WONDERFULLY COMPLEX … entertaining, thought-provoking, and fun besides.” — LA Splash’

The 2018 production played at Odyssey Theatre in LA, co-produced by Viola Davis.