Watch The Rep’s panel on Islam and other “Disgraced” coverage

After opening to excellent reviews, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Disgraced has since built a tremendous buzz and sparked profound and necessary conversations among our audience members.

In addition to those great lobby conversations, we hosted our own panel on Islam in America last month featuring Disgraced playwright Ayad Akhtar and local Muslim leaders Dr. Ghazala Hayat of the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis and Faizan Syed of CAIR-St. Louis.

The three talked about their personal and communal experiences following 9/11, as well as how Disgraced represents Islam as a play. Thanks to our partners at Howl Round TV, you can watch the entire panel below. (Please note: audio kicks in 5 minutes into the video).

We’ve also seen some great coverage from the local media:

- The St. Louis Post-Dispatch posted several excellent columns on the show that are well worth reading:

• Judith Newmark interviewed Akhtar about the show and its lack of easy answers.
• Dr. Hayat wrote about its depiction of faith and self-loathing.
• Columnist Aisha Sultan compared reading the show to seeing it live, while Newmark penned her own essay about the depiction of Jewish people on stage.
• Newmark also went on FOX 2‘s “Arts Pop” segment to discuss the show.
• St. Louis Public Radio interviewed Akhtar about the play and how its 2013 Pulitzer Prize win affected his career.
• Ladue News published a Q&A with director Seth Gordon about the show and what audiences can expect from it.

One week of performances remain for Disgraced.