A poetic, heartbreaking story of intergenerational queer history in Lebanon, The Green Line weaves together civil war Beirut with a contemporary nightclub, following one family’s journey to discover their past.

In the present day, Rami, a twentysomething queer Lebanese Canadian, has returned to the Lebanese mountains to bury his father. To cope with the weight of his grief, Rami, carrying a necklace in the shape of a phoenix left to him by his father, finds himself in a queer Beirut nightclub, where he catches the attention of a powerful drag queen named Fifi, who just so happens to be dressed as a phoenix.

In 1978, in the midst of the Lebanese Civil War, Naseeb is attempting to get himself and his sister Mona out of Beirut and into the safety of the mountains. Mona, however, is secretly in love with her classmate, a woman named Yara, and refuses to leave the city. When Naseeb becomes swept up with the descending political culture of the war around him, he creates a rift between himself and Mona greater than the line that divides the country itself.

Makram Ayache's profile page

Hiba Sleiman is an actor, playwright, and scriptwriter who has worked internationally with renowned stage and film directors in Lebanon, Canada, and the United States, including Mona Mansour, Lina Abyad, Sahar Assaf, and Philippe Aractingi, among others. Hiba holds a double BA in Communication Arts and Psychology as well as an MA in Drama Therapy. Currently based in Montreal, Hiba translates works from French and English to Arabic and writes for the stage and screen, as well as poetry in both English and Arabic. Her eagerness to share her impassioned native language compels her to continuously find ways to create relevant and representational narratives through multiple languages. She wrote and created several short films and is currently developing her first full-length play.

Hiba Sleiman's profile page

• Short-listed, Governor General's Literary Awards
• Winner, Betty Mitchell Award for Outstanding New Play

“An affecting, well-written piece by Edmonton playwright Makram Ayache . . . that travels to a surprisingly wide variety of places . . . a universal, first-class [play] more than worthy of your attention.”

Alan Kellogg, 12thnight

“Ayache’s dialogue is decidedly lyrical . . . There are some truly beautiful images not just in the monologues but in simple exchanges.”

Louis B. Hobson, Calgary Herald