Betrayed: A REAL Picture of the Iraq War
A Review by Eric Shapiro originally appeared in "Teen Reviewer" 5/2008
The speeches by George W. Bush, John McCain and like-minded politicians give the impression that winning the war in Iraq is purely a matter of logistics. If we devise a sound strategy and allocate enough resources, they claim, the Iraqi people will forget their differences, join hands and function as a democratic society. On the other hand, leaving now and “cutting our losses” would be a disservice to the hardworking Iraqis who have worked tirelessly to further our righteous goals. But, as George Packer shows in his wonderful, low-key production Betrayed, we betrayed these men and women the second we naively sought to reshape their nation with little more than bombs and impassioned declarations of American values. The tragedy is that had we come in with a better understanding of Iraqi culture, things might have been different.
Two of the play’s protagonists, Adnan (Waleed F. Zuaieter) and Laith (Sevan Greene) could not be more different, or so it seems at first. The former, a Sunni idealist and the latter, a more down to earth Shiite, are united by their love for America and its culture (even in the form of Metallica or trashy novels). After Saddam Hussein is ousted from power, they waste little time in signing up to build an Iraq more hospitable to their dreams. At the U.S. embassy, they meet Intisar (Andya Bedi), a fiery young Iraqi woman whose dream as a child was to ride a bike alongside her brothers. Over the course of the play, the three idealists experience the best and worst of America, albeit with a much healthier portion of the second. Meanwhile, the fourth protagonist, their American supervisor Bill Prescott, is forced to re-evaluate his world when his squeaky-clean image of America is vicariously shattered when tragedy strikes one of his charges. Although the aforementioned event is indeed heart wrenching, it is perhaps even more difficult to watch as the characters endearingly simple notions are polluted by the harsh realities of the war. The play does not end on a happy note, but the fact that the American dream can withstand such trauma provides some consolation.
Betrayal succeeds where most fictional stories set in modern day Iraq fail because it strives to paint a realistic, balanced view of the situation. Packer manages to provoke the necessary emotions from the audience (anger, shame, a desire for justice) by exposing the hypocrisy, cruelty and outright stupidity of the U.S., but also recognizes its potential for good. Alternately, he elicits sympathy for the Iraqis without failing to point out their own complicity in the chaos that embroils their nation. Betrayal is difficult to watch, but thoroughly enjoyable. It will undoubtedly serve as a wake-up call to all Americans with the courage to face up to their own mistakes and challenge their thinking.
Two of the play’s protagonists, Adnan (Waleed F. Zuaieter) and Laith (Sevan Greene) could not be more different, or so it seems at first. The former, a Sunni idealist and the latter, a more down to earth Shiite, are united by their love for America and its culture (even in the form of Metallica or trashy novels). After Saddam Hussein is ousted from power, they waste little time in signing up to build an Iraq more hospitable to their dreams. At the U.S. embassy, they meet Intisar (Andya Bedi), a fiery young Iraqi woman whose dream as a child was to ride a bike alongside her brothers. Over the course of the play, the three idealists experience the best and worst of America, albeit with a much healthier portion of the second. Meanwhile, the fourth protagonist, their American supervisor Bill Prescott, is forced to re-evaluate his world when his squeaky-clean image of America is vicariously shattered when tragedy strikes one of his charges. Although the aforementioned event is indeed heart wrenching, it is perhaps even more difficult to watch as the characters endearingly simple notions are polluted by the harsh realities of the war. The play does not end on a happy note, but the fact that the American dream can withstand such trauma provides some consolation.
Betrayal succeeds where most fictional stories set in modern day Iraq fail because it strives to paint a realistic, balanced view of the situation. Packer manages to provoke the necessary emotions from the audience (anger, shame, a desire for justice) by exposing the hypocrisy, cruelty and outright stupidity of the U.S., but also recognizes its potential for good. Alternately, he elicits sympathy for the Iraqis without failing to point out their own complicity in the chaos that embroils their nation. Betrayal is difficult to watch, but thoroughly enjoyable. It will undoubtedly serve as a wake-up call to all Americans with the courage to face up to their own mistakes and challenge their thinking.