The ALC Tangier, together with Lindblom Math and Science Academy in Chicago and the Tangier American Legation Institute for Maghrebi Studies (TALIM), have worked together within the Global Voices Initiative (GVI) program to exchange student-produced script writing and performance projects.
The students at ALC-Tangier coached by Rabia El Antaki, wrote three plays:
- The Perfect Bride tells the tale of an obsessive mother trying to find a wife for her only son
- The Time Machine: as students get bored in a history lesson, they fall asleep are transported to the past where they meet Caesar, who is looking for Cleopatra. They’re transported, with Caesar in tow, the future where they meet a woman pretending to be Cleopatra.
- A Hard Day is the story of a series of mishaps and hardships a young man encounters on the first day of a job.
As a touching coda to their three performances, the students sang Tomorrow (بكرة), a song about love, brotherhood and equality among nations and religions. The students added a few of their own verses, in English and Arabic, to the popular song.
You can see all four performances in the videos below.
ALC-Tangier wishes to thank Jerry Loftus of TALIM for his generous support in providing space and logistical assistance for this project, without which it would not have been possible. Thanks also to Rachid el Mziryahi for his technical expertise, essential to connecting students at Lindblom and TALIM. Thanks and recognition go out to George Bajalia for initiating this collaboration, bringing ALC-Tangier, TALIM, Lindblom and GVI together. Kudos, George, for your inspiration and hard work.
Last but hardly least, Rabia El Antaki and her students have earned everyone’s heartfelt thanks for their commitment, organizational skill and creativity. Rabia and her dedicated troupe of student writers and actors deserve special mention for having produced such a wonderfully entertaining and educational evening of work in the midst of the Moroccan academic year’s high-stakes exam season. Brava, Rabia! Bravi, ALC-Tangier students!
Everyone in the ALC-Tangier community looks forward to continued collaboration with GVI host schools.