Kunafa and Shay cover art

Kunafa and Shay

Kunafa and Shay

Written by: Marina J. Bergenstock HowlRound Theatre Commons Nabra Nelson
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About this listen

 Kunafa and Shay focuses on Middle Eastern and North African (MENA)/Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) theatre—highlighting classic and contemporary plays and theatremakers, spotlighting community-engaged work in the region and diaspora, and analyzing the past, present, and future of MENA/SWANA theatre in the United States. 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.This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Art Entertainment & Performing Arts
Episodes
  • Centering Women and Palestinian Solidarity at Golden Thread

    Centering Women and Palestinian Solidarity at Golden Thread
    May 14 2026
    Marina and Nabra explore how Golden Thread Productions amplifies women’s voices and mobilizes global artistic solidarity through What Do the Women Say? and 24 Hours for Palestine, where performance becomes archive, resistance, and collective action. 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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    32 mins
  • New Threads, New Forms: MENA/SWANA Dramaturgy and Development

    New Threads, New Forms: MENA/SWANA Dramaturgy and Development
    May 7 2026
    Evren Odcikin joins Marina and Nabra to unpack new play development as a site of cultural translation, experimentation, and refusal, exploring Middle Eastern, North African, and Southwest Asian dramaturgies and artistic processes. 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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    54 mins
  • Reclaiming the Narrative: The MENA Theatre Artists’ Bill of Rights

    Reclaiming the Narrative: The MENA Theatre Artists’ Bill of Rights
    Apr 30 2026
    A decade after landmark convenings, Nabra and Marina revisit the “Middle Eastern American Theatre Artists’ Bill of Rights” and “Dear Producers and Artistic Directors of the American Theatre” (an open letter to producers), asking how these calls for agency and equity continue to shape MENA/SWANA theatre today. 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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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    42 mins
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