The Who & The What
by Ayad Akhtar

Name: The Who & The What
Brand: Ayad Akhtar
SKU: 9780822232520
Rating: 3.9 (219 reviews)

The Who & The What Book Cover — The Who & The What Cover

Highlights

Small Cast

Female

Male

Unit Set/Multiple SettingsAmerican Religious Christmas

What readers are saying

Readers appreciate the depth and complexity of themes in this play, particularly regarding the role of women in Islam and Muslim American identity. The writing of Ayad Akhtar is frequently praised for its intelligence and emotional honesty, with many noting the engaging dialogue and character development. While most reviews are highly positive, a few critics found the play lacking in depth and exploration of its central themes.

Intelligent and emotionally honest writingEngaging dialogue and character developmentExplores complex themes of identitySome found it shallow and didactic

Synopsis

The Pulitzer prize-winning author of Disgraced explores the conflict that erupts within a Muslim family in Atlanta when an independent-minded daughter writes a provocative novel that offends her more conservative father and sister.

Zarina has a bone to pick with the place of women in her Muslim faith, and she's been writing a book about the Prophet Muhammad that aims to set the record straight.

When her traditional father and sister discover the manuscript, it threatens to tear her family apart.

With humor and ferocity, Akhtar's incisive new drama about love, art, and religion examines the chasm between our traditions and our contemporary lives.

Press Reviews

"THE WHO & THE WHAT explores intergenerational and interfaith conflicts with fluid eloquence and intelligence. Mr. Akhtar writes dialogue that, while often funny and always natural, crackles with ideas and continually reveals undercurrents of tension that ratchet up the emotional stakes."
— The New York Times

"THE WHO & THE WHAT is to be commended for tackling themes too rarely addressed in contemporary dramas…Akhtar is definitely a playwright whose work merits significant attention."
— The Hollywood Reporter