Bonhoeffer: Cell 92
Created by Jerry Holsopple and Justin Poole
Directed by Ingrid De Sanctis
Bonhoeffer: Cell 92 is a theatrical production, co-created by Jerry Holsopple and Justin Poole, and directed by Ingrid De Sanctis that explores the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor and theologian who resisted the Nazi regime. The play, a cinematic theater piece, utilizes a combination of live actors and projected film to delve into Bonhoeffer's moral conflicts and his involvement in the resistance movement. Justin Poole plays Bonhoeffer on stage, interacting with the filmed characters who appear on three screens, effectively creating a sense of the prison cell where Bonhoeffer spent his final year.
The play is structured as a memory play, with the screens serving as windows into Bonhoeffer's past experiences, relationships, and internal struggles. It draws from primary sources like Bonhoeffer's letters and diaries, as well as historical accounts, to depict the tensions between his pacifist ideals and his participation in the conspiracy against Hitler. The production aims to spark dialogue and reflection on the complexities of faith, morality, and resistance in the face of oppressive regimes.
"Bonhoeffer: Cell 92" has toured nationally and internationally, appearing in various venues including theaters, universities, and even with the support of the Austro-American Institute and US Embassy in Vienna. The play has been praised for its unique theatrical approach, which combines cinematic elements with live performance to create an immersive and thought-provoking experience.
Cooking with a Small Arab Girl
A solo performance written and performed by Aya Nassif
Directed by Ingrid De Sanctis
Aya Nassif is a Lebanese American woman fluent in English, French, and Arabic. She is a recent graduate of JMU, where she studied theatre and psychology. What began as a final project in a solo performance class at JMU taught by Ingrid De Sanctis and Jessica Del Vecchio, has evolved into a full-length piece about identity, childhood, and peanut butter. In Cooking with a Small Arab Girl, Aya creates American cuisine with a Lebanese twist and, also, randomly sings in French, engages with the audience, and makes a bit of a mess. On this week’s cooking show, Aya is determined to recreate the different peanut butter sandwiches she was mesmerized by in her childhood. While this tumultuous cooking journey unfolds, Aya uncovers stories of being a Lebanese American woman making sense of her past and the present in a creative, funny, and moving manner.
I had the privilege of taking on the roles of producer and director for JMU theatre graduate Aya Nassif (2022). Together, we transformed her ten-minute solo piece, Peanut Butter and Just Shut Up, originally conceived in the Solo Performance Class, into a full-length solo piece, Cooking With a Small Arab Girl. The play premiered at Eastern Mennonite University in February 2024 as part of Two Solos and a Duet: A Collaboration with EMU Theatre and Constellations Theater Project, which included my solo piece, the things I forgot and Justin Poole’s The Gospel Project.
