Jacques of all Trades

Pretty amazed to open the Washington Post homepage to see an article on Muslim American identity, featuring not one, but two friends in D.C., up-and-coming actress, Zehra Fazal, whose one-woman show, “Headscarf and the Angry Bitch” puts a hilarious and humanizing face on the identity challenges faced by young American Muslims, especially in a post-9/11 world; and Imam Yahya Hendi, Georgetown University’s Muslim chaplain, who has been serving as a resource for students for over a decade.

A great piece by Marc Fisher (The Washington Post)

Hey DC theater fans (and anyone else who wants a fresh, irreverent look at growing up Muslim in America), check out Headscarf and the Angry Bitch at Round House Silver Spring this week, May 17-20.  

Allow Zehra Fazal to welcome you into our post post-9/11 era. Her one-woman show Headscarf and the Angry Bitch is a reflection on an unconventional Muslim upbringing involving lesbianism and premarital sex, parodying the tunes of Lady Gaga and Michael Jackson with songs like “The Only Thing I’ll Do Five Times a Day is You.” She uses the word “rimjob.” USA! USA! But Fazal, who performs as the Muslim folk-rocker Zed Headscarf, teaches real lessons about her religion, like the difference between halal and haraam, despite her admissions of blasphemy in her hilarious songs. The show originated in the 2009 Capital Fringe Festival, and has gone on to tour the country, returning to the Round House Theatre for this week only. (via TBD Picks: ‘Headscarf and the Angry Bitch’ - @TBD Arts | TBD.com)

Having seen an early version of the show, it’s one not to be missed!

Minaret, Islamic Center of Washington, DC

(Judging by wikipedia, it’s apparently a Turkish-style minaret)

A Venn Diagram that puts the downtown Manhattan mosque controversy into perspective.

Click the image for a larger version.  

(Chart by Mark Schmidt, via sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net)