Symposium on State of Affairs in Iraq @ Wilma Theater February 19, 2006

The Wilma Theater will host a symposium on Sunday, February 19th at 3:45 p.m. in conjunction with Heather Raffo?s Nine Parts of Desire, which runs February 1st through March 12th. As the third anniversary of the overthrow of Saddam Hussein approaches, what is Iraq really like today? This panel will discuss the current situation in Iraq and relate it to the Wilma's production of Heather Raffo's play. Is life better or worse for the men and women who live there? What does the future hold? Limited free seating is available. Call 215-546-7824 to RSVP.

The panelists are:
? Deborah Amos, Foreign Correspondent on Iraq for National Public Radio
? Sinan Antoon, Professor of Arabic Literature and Culture at NYU, who was involved in the making of About Baghdad, based on his first visit back from exile
? Trudy Rubin, Foreign Affairs Editor for the Philadelphia Inquirer
? Kate Saxon, Artistic Director of Heather Raffo's 9 Parts of Desire
? Moderated by: Marty Moss-Coane, Host of WHYY's Radio Times

Special thanks to University of Pennsylvania's Middle East Center and Daniel Berger, Honorary Producer.

ABOUT THE PLAY: In this stunning and compelling mosaic of the voices of ordinary Iraqi women, playwright Heather Raffo brings to life personal stories from nine women of different ages, backgrounds and outlooks, all united by one common theme; their strength. Among them are a free-spirited artist who paints nudes and is curator of Saddam Hussein?s art center, a political exile in London, a New Yorker of Iraqi descent who is glued to the TV news, a young girl who dances to American music and is enamored by all things Western, a beleaguered doctor, and a Bedouin woman in search of love. Beyond politics, veils and war, this daring one-woman theatrical tour de force celebrates the vitality, endurance and diversity of the women of Iraq whose stories are not often told on TV or in the newspapers.

A critically acclaimed Off-Broadway hit which ran for nine sold-out months, Heather Raffo?s Nine Parts of Desire was hailed as ?an example of how art can remake the world? by The New Yorker, earning nominations for the 2005 Lucille Lortel Award and Outer Critics Circle Award. Heather Raffo?s Nine Parts of Desire begins previews February 1st, opens on February 8th and closes on March 12th, 2006. Tickets are $10 to $49 and are available at the Wilma Theater Box Office (265 South Broad Street), online at www.wilmatheater.org or by phone at 215-546-7824.