First Fiction Fridays: Mahmoud by Tara Grammy & Tom Arthur Davis

What:Mahmoud (Playwrights Canada Press, 2015)Who: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.Tom Arthur Davis is a playwright, actor, producer, and director. He is the artistic director of Pandemic Theatre, a Toronto-based theatre company with a mandate for socio-political work. He is also a core member of the Wrecking Ball, a political performance cabaret.Why you need to read this now: Because characters:Effervescent and entertaining, the characters in Mahmoud will regale you with stories as you ride around Toronto with them in a taxicab. Maybe you’ll connect most with Mahmoud, an exuberant middle-aged Iranian taxi driver who reads Hafez, and describes himself as the engineer of his taxi. Or maybe Emanuelos, the young Spanish man pining after his hard-to-reach boyfriend Behnam, who’s visiting Iran during the country’s presidential election protests. Or perhaps you’ll relate most with Tara, the Iranian-Canadian preteen who’s only ever wanted to be a singer/songwriter/actor/UN ambassador, and whose dream is to play Tinker Bell in the school play. If only she looked more like the popular girl, Nicole Lambs.  Because story:Mahmoud follows three disparate characters in Toronto whose lives are connected in various degrees to Iran as protests rage during its 2009 presidential election. When they find themselves crossing paths their experiences with racism, sexism, homophobia, homesickness, and everything in between become intertwined in unexpected ways.Because glowing reviews:“[Mahmoud] expertly manages the tension between the comedic and the dramatic through fine character crafting.”—Cristina D’Amico, Toronto Review of Books“The script weaves [the characters’] lives together in surprising ways, with some sensitive and sombre moments mixed with the laughs.” —Jon Kaplan, NOW Magazine“Resonate(s) with such poignant and universal familiarity.” —Bill Raden, LA Weekly“Hilarious, touching, and involving, the story examines cultural and religious tensions over what it means to be Iranian in a modern, cosmopolitan city.”—Mary Mallory, The Tolucan Times“Each narrative arc is capable of standing on its own, but the real intrigue happens when the subjects cross paths with one another, revealing the tensions that exist not only between North American and Iranian values, but among different generations of Iranian-Canadians.” —Carly Maga, The GridTOBecause awards:Mahmoud won the 2012 Best of Toronto Fringe and the 2012 New York Fringe Encore Series.*Click here to look inside the book!Find out how Mahmoud evolved from a 10-minute class project into a hit play!