Contemporary Palestinian theatre following the 1948 Nakba, (‘disaster’ — the exodus of Palestinians at the time when the state of Israel was established) focused on realism. Sometimes one thought that it was surrendering itself completely to political reality and to memory. It voluntarily renounced the most important elements of theatre and creative work, namely imagination, the ability to watch, and aesthetic enjoyment. Which is why Zuabi, as a Palestinian living in 2010 Palestine, announced that he had his own explanation for the Nakba. His explanation does not necessarily tally with well-known images of the Nakba or with the expectations of an audience. A Palestinian who had to pack his bags and leave during the Nakba, he could have carried his beloved tree with him instead of the bundles of clothes we know from pictures of the displacement. Why? Because the theatrical enjoyment is higher and because the tree Yusuf carries on his back in the play I am Yusuf and This is My Brother opens up bigger and wider opportunities for interpretation.

History has been and will continue to be the biggest trap in Palestinian theatre and in all our creative endeavours: without knowing it, we, creatives, are entangled in...