Mahmoud

By (author): Tara Grammy, Tom Arthur Davis

Mahmoud is an exuberant, if overwhelmingly passionate, Iranian engineer-cum-taxi driver who relishes the chance to regale his passengers with his love of Persian culture. Emanuelos, a fabulously gay Spanish perfume salesman, can talk a mile-a-minute about his boyfriend, Behnam. And then there’s Tara, an awkwardly charming Iranian Canadian preteen who just wants to be “normal,” whatever that means. When the three strangers find themselves crossing paths in the busy streets of Toronto, their experiences with racism, sexism, homophobia, homesickness, and everything in between become intertwined in unexpected ways.

AUTHOR

Tara Grammy

Tara Grammy is an Iranian Canadian actor and playwright. She was born in Tehran, but grew up in Toronto, with a few years spent in the United States and Germany. She has recently been featured in the 2014 CBS Sketch Comedy Diversity Showcase. Tara currently lives in Los Angeles but travels to Toronto often.

AUTHOR

Tom Arthur Davis

Tom Arthur Davis is a T’karonto-based arts worker originally from the unceded territory of the Algonquin nation (Ottawa) with colonial lineage from the ancestral homelands of the Beothuk and the Mi’qmak peoples (Newfoundland). In 2009 he co-founded Pandemic Theatre, where he has created most of his work in close collaboration with Jivesh Parasram. Since 2018, Tom has acted as a producer for Why Not Theatre where he leads the company’s Provoke Activities (initiatives that help remove barriers for artists). Tom’s work with Pandemic and Why Not has toured across Turtle Island and overseas, including collaborations with Barbican Centre, Battersea Arts Centre, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Canadian Stage, The Cultch, High Performance Rodeo, Latitude Festival, National Arts Centre, PuSh Festival, Sydney Festival, The Theatre Centre, and Theatre Passe Muraille. His works for the stage include Mahmoud (co-writer), Take d Milk, Nah? (co-creator/dramaturge), and The Only Good Indian (co-creator/co-writer).