Welcome to Mazal, a podcast by Sarah Benilman dedicated to celebrating and sharing our Algerian heritage in France. Today, I am thrilled to bring you a very special episode featuring Marlo Angell from Lawrence, Kansas, in the United States, or should we say: Lawrence of Algeria!
During the 2026 World Cup, Lawrence hosted the Algerian national football team and shared with the world unforgettable images of beautiful gatherings between the people of Lawrence and the Algerian community: celebrations, cultural exchanges, a giant Algerian flag painted on the grass, the Mayor of Lawrence proudly wearing an Algerian scarf, and so much love.
Among these remarkable events, I was moved to run into, through Brett Hamilton on social media, the screenings of two Algerian films organized by Marlo Angell and her team during the Free State Festival (see cover). For this special episode, she was kind enough to speak with me about what these films meant to her, the audience's reaction, the orchestra that performed the Algerian national anthem, Qassaman ("We Pledge"), and even sang it in Arabic. Of course, we also talked about the extraordinary atmosphere that filled Lawrence throughout this unforgettable time.
Thank you so much to everyone who shared love, culture, and knowledge in these sour times. See you soon in Algeria dearest people of Lawrence! 1,2,3 viva l'Algérie !
Cover credit: At the Lawrence Arts Center, a photograph by Ann Dean featuring the posters for The Arab (directed by Malek Bensmaïl, starring Dali Benssalah) and The Battle of Algiers (directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, starring Yacef Saâdi), alongside a portrait of Zinédine Zidane, the French-Algerian 1998 World Cup champion and brand new coach of the French national football team since today !
Special thanks to my brother Mehdi for coming up with this more perfect title.
Sarah.