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Since 2008 Israel has used a military tactic in Palestinian neighborhoods called “a knock on the roof,” in which Israel would drop small explosives on residential rooftops as a warning that residents have five minutes to evacuate before larger bombs will destroy the entire structure. The Palestinian actress and playwright Khawla Ibraheem has used this military term as the title of her blunt, hair-raising monologue play that puts the audience in the shoes of a Palestinian in wartime. The audience members are not voyeurs, but are brought into the pain and joy of survival. The audience is frequently challenged with questions like “How far can you run in five minutes?” or “What clothes would you pack for a six-year-old son?” and often audience members are expected to give a verbal answer. Ibraheem not only wrote the play, but also performs the role of Mariam who prepares herself and her young son for the inevitable “knock.” The play opened on Jan. 27 at the New York Theater Workshop. The play was written in 2014 and is based on the 2007 Israeli-Hamas War, many of whose features remain true today.

While the fictional character, Mariam, repeats to herself to “act normal,” the anxiety of the impending “knock” eliminates any normalcy from her life. The audience learns that Mariam’s husband is in Europe working on his master’s degree, which leaves Mariam alone with her son to deal with everything from electrical blackouts to the Israeli occupation. Despite the hardships and difficulties, Mariam is tough and is determined to persevere. She is put in an impossible position, but faces life with a laugh and often offers a bit of sarcasm to answer challenges. In a world in which Palestinians are often reduced to statistics in a news report, the true power of this script is to reveal their humanity.