By Nabra Nelson, Marina Johnson, Evren Odcikin. Evren Odcikin joins Marina and Nabra to unpack new play development as a site of cultural translation, experimentation, and refusal, exploring…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson. A decade after landmark convenings, Nabra and Marina revisit the “Middle Eastern American Theatre Artists’ Bill of Rights” and “Dear Producers and Ar…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Heather Rastovac Akbarzadeh. This episode explores how Middle Eastern, North African, and Southwest Asian folklore and performance create joy, belonging, and…
By Nabra Nelson, Marina Johnson, Sahar Assaf. This episode is a deep dive into Golden Thread's evolution.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Yussef El-Guindi. Playwright Yussef El Guindi reflects on Golden Thread's pivotal second decade; writing in the post-9/11 landscape; and how Middle Eastern, …
By Torange Yeghiazarian, Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson. This episode is a deep dive into the founding of Golden Thread Productions with founding artistic director Torange Yeghiazarian"tracing…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson. Marina and Nabra take a sweeping look at thirty years of Middle Eastern, North African, and Southwest Asian theatre in the United States"from Golden Thread's…
Golden Thread Productions' world premiere of Pilgrimage, written by Humaira Ghilzai and Bridgette Dutta Portman, opened on October 26, 2025, marking the culmination of a years-long creative …
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson. There are so many cool Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) performance artists out there!
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Basma al-Sharif . Palestinian filmmaker Basma al-Sharif dives into her award-winning pieces to discuss film as performance art.
By Nabra Nelson, Marina Johnson, Laila Abdo. This episode analyzes narrative podcasts as a form of performance.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Riham Isaac. Palestinian performance artist Riham Isaac discusses her site-specific performances, which understand performance as a medium for change.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Leyya Mona Tawil. This episode explores Arab experimentalism and futurism with artist Leyya Mona Tawil, also known as Lime Rickey International.
By Nabra Nelson, Marina Johnson, George Abraham, Fargo Tbakhi. Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson are joined by poets Fargo Tbakhi and George Abraham to explore the intersection of poetr…
By Nabra Nelson, Marina Johnson, Mama Ganuush. Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson interview Palestinian African trans drag artist Mama Ganuush.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Rima Najdi. This episode dives into the performance art of Lebanese artist Rima Najdi.
By Nabra Nelson, Marina Johnson, Khansa .. Lebanese multidisciplinary artist Khansa shares his artistic journey, blending traditional Middle Eastern music with modern avant-pop, and offers a…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Tania El Khoury. Live artist Tania El Khoury discusses her creative process, the ways audience participation cultivates solidarity and awareness of social ju…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson. In the last episode of the fourth season of Kunafa and Shay"which was a historical and classical Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Southwest Asian …
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Samer Al-Saber. Dr. Samer Al-Saber joins hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson for a conversation around resistant ventriloquism and postcolonial courtesy. D…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Amir Al-Azraki. Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson learn from Dr.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Fidaa Ataya. Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson are joined by Fidaa Ataya, a Palestinian storyteller who talks with us about the tradition of the hakawati…
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Mazen Alaa. Nubia has a long history of theatre, both before and after the displacement of the 1960s.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson, Sarah Fahmy. Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson look at MENA and SWANA puppetry traditions with guest artivist Dr. Sarah Fahmy.
By Marina Johnson, Nabra Nelson. Hosts Marina Johnson and Nabra Nelson discuss Ottoman theatre, emphasizing its significance in global theatre history.