Zara: A One Person Show

How does an anxious, asthmatic child of immigrants navigate religion in the American South?  “Zara” is a one person show about identity, God, marijuana, and an actual 400-pound gorilla.

Andrew Aghapour was raised by immigrant parents in a multi-racial and multi-religious household. “Zara” is a comedic account of an anxious, asthmatic Muslim kid’s search meaning and the chance encounters that impacted him, including a friendship with the man who mugged him and a love affair with marijuana. Drawing on personal stories, philosophy, and the history of monotheism, "Zara" is a story about how identity is inherited and remade in 21st-century America.

The project won the Durham Arts Council’s Catalyst Grant, a program supported by their Annual Arts Fund and the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources. Additionally, “Zara” welcomed the support of Professor Michelle Robinson of the American Studies Department at UNC-Chapel Hill, and received grants from both the Performing Arts Special Activities Fund and the Humanities for the Public Good Initiative.

Writter/Performer/Producer Andrew Aghapour
Producer/Director Ashley Melzer
Executive ProducerJeff Polish

Find out more: ZaraShow.live