‘We Live in Cairo’ review — love in the time of the Arab Spring
Read our review of We Live in Cairo off Broadway, a new musical created by writing duo The Lazours, playing at New York Theatre Workshop through November.
In 2013, Patrick Lazour saw a single photo in The New York Times: young students gathered around a laptop during the 2011 Egyptian revolution in Cairo’s Tahrir Square. Who were they, and why did they fight so hard against a government that was the only one they had ever known? With these people in mind, brothers David and Patrick Lazour wrote We Live in Cairo, a new musical that boils down the Egyptian Revolution to the hearts and minds of six student activists.
The cast members have an infectious energy from the start, filled with a spirit of youthful optimism and young love. Amir (Ali Louis Bourzgui, fresh from The Who’s Tommy on Broadway) and Layla (Nadina Hassan) play star-crossed lovers whose fight is partially motivated by the desire to see an Egypt in which Christians and Muslims can marry. Set against a backdrop of early-2010s Cairo, their world — both the physical Cairo and the landscape of social media that made the revolution possible — is brought to vivid life by projection design (David Bengali).
Rotana Tarabzouni is magnetic as Fadwa, the generational activist whose father (and his father before him) died in prison. She manages to be filled with brightness and a kind of gritty cheer, a beacon to other revolutionaries less surefire than she is, while also containing a well of sadness and pain. More than anyone, Fadwa understands the potential cost of their activism and is as quick to remind them of it as she is to encourage them never to give up. As the students prepare for sit-in in Tahrir Square, Tarabzouni’s character dons a Palestinian keffiyeh in a nod to the actress’s heritage. Her performance of the song “Each and Every Name” in the second act is so filled with palpable grief that time in the theatre seems to stop entirely.
We Live in Cairo’s evocative music, complete with a band playing distinct Arabic instruments like the oud, gives it the wings to fly. The cast, all powerful vocalists, make the words of the soundtrack resonate throughout the theater as they experience hope, love, and loss. Sweeping anthems such as “Genealogy of Revolution” and “Tahrir Is Now” to the sweet, more personal “Movement” or “Living Here” make these six fictional students as real as the events of the revolution itself. Timeless and beyond any single movement, We Live in Cairo is a tribute to the lives of people who fight for the greater good, no matter the cost.
We Live in Cairo summary
Directed by Taibi Magar, We Live in Cairo imagines the lives of the young activists who made the 2011 Egyptian revolution possible. Six young Egyptians with different backgrounds and upbringings come together to challenge the oppressive regime of President Hosni Mubarak. Some are Christian, some are Muslim; some are straight, some are gay; some are rich, some are poor. But when they achieve the impossible by ousting the tyrant, that proves to be just the beginning. The six friends continue to struggle with their allegiances to their families, to their country, and to each other as the aftermath of the revolution takes shape.
What to expect at We Live in Cairo
New York Theatre Workshop is the perfect venue for such an intimate production where at times it feels like we’re all in the gallery space the students make their haven, strategizing about street art along with them. NYTW is also the perfect canvas for the show’s projections, which immerse audiences fully in the story.
As a show about revolution against a police-state regime, We Live in Cairo doesn’t shy away from the reality of police brutality against protesters. The use of tear gas is alluded to, and a character is even shot with a rubber bullet. But viewers may want a content warning for this show because for a brief moment, a real-life photograph of a dead man, Khaled Said, that helped kickstart the revolution is projected for all to see. It’s not an easy image to witness, but it makes a powerful statement about the cause the students fought for.
What audiences are saying about We Live in Cairo
We Live in Cairo has a 79% rating on Show-Score at the time of publication, with generally positive reviews praising the music, the acting, and the projection effects.
- “Great unique original musical. The talent was exceptional - both the actors and musicians.” -Show-Score user CAROL C 6124
- “The storytelling felt grounded, steering clear of exaggeration, yet it’s almost unbelievable that it’s based on real-life events.” -Show-Score user Ismael B
- “The actors are absolutely terrific. The music is excellent. The staging/lighting and effects are brilliant.”-Show-Score user SteveF625
Read more audience reviews of We Live in Cairo on Show-Score.
Who should see We Live in Cairo
- We Live in Cairo won the Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater in 2016, and anyone hoping to keep an eye on promising new musicals should check it out.
- Fans of Ali Louis Bourzgui from his turn as the title character in The Who’s Tommy on Broadway will delight in seeing him as the sweet, crooning leading man Amir.
- With historical themes of youth versus establishment, We Live In Cairo will appeal to fans of similar musicals such as Les Misérables or Rent.
Learn more about We Live in Cairo off Broadway
We Live in Cairo is an intensely sweet and powerful musical that focuses on the impact of revolution and upheaval on individual lives. It tells us revolution is never over as long as there are people willing to look out for each other.
Photo credit: We Live in Cairo off Broadway. (Photos by Joan Marcus)
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