In this special episode, Marina and Nabra sit down with Lebanese actor, theatremakers, and peacebuilder Raffi Feghali to talk about the Buffer Fringe Festival. Buffer Fringe is an annual festival with a mission for peacebuilding and social justice, organized by Home for Cooperation and situated in the buffer zone in Cyprus. Buffer Fringe runs 7-9 October 2022, presenting three days of international, interdisciplinary, experimental performances under the theme of Pockets (beyond). Join us as we explore improv in Lebanon, experimental theatre in a geographically contentious area, and artistic curation for peacebuilding. Kunafa and Shay is a podcast produced for HowlRound Theatre Commons by

co-hosts Nabra Nelson and Marina Johnson. Kunafa and Shay discusses and

analyzes contemporary and historical Middle Eastern and North African

(MENA) and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre from across

the region.

Kunafa and Shay highlights MENA/SWANA plays and theatremakers,

spotlights community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and

analyzes the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the

United States and beyond. Theatre artists and scholars Nabra Nelson and

Marina Johnson bring their own perspectives, research, and special

guests in order to start a dialogue and encourage further learning and

discussion.

The name, Kunafa and Shay, invites you into the discussion in the best

way we know how: with complex and delicious sweets like kunafa, and

perfectly warm tea (or, in Arabic, shay). Kunafa and Shay is a place to

share experiences, discuss ideas, and sometimes engage with our

differences. In each country in the region, you’ll find kunafa made

differently. In that way, we also lean into the diversity, complexity,

and robust flavors of MENA/SWANA theatre.